Blackjack House Edge Calculator

The house edge in blackjack swings dramatically based on rules. A 6-deck H17 game pays the casino about 0.55% with perfect basic strategy. The same game with a 6:5 blackjack payout costs you 1.94% — almost four times the house take. This calculator quantifies every common rule variation so you can spot a beatable game before you sit down.

House edge · perfect basic strategy

0.55%

$44 expected loss per 4-hour session at $25/hand (320 hands).

Number of decks

Blackjack pays

Surrender

Dealer hits soft 17 (H17)

H17 is more common on the Strip. S17 favors the player.

Double after split (DAS)

Most casinos allow this.

Dealer peeks for blackjack

US standard. ENHC (no peek) puts double/split bets at risk vs A.

Resplit aces

Rare. A small EV gain when allowed.

Why rules matter more than skill

A perfect basic-strategy player at a 6:5 blackjack table is throwing away more money than a beginner playing every hand correctly at a 3:2 table with the same other rules. Rule selection is the single most important blackjack decision after deciding to play at all.

If a table pays 6:5 on blackjack, walk past it. Find a 3:2 table — most casinos still have them at $25+ minimums.

The rule-impact table

Each rule's contribution to the house edge, anchored at the 6-deck / H17 / DAS / late-surrender / 3:2 / dealer-peek baseline of about 0.55%:

Reading the calculator

The calculator above sums these contributions linearly. The result is an approximation — actual house edges from solver-grade tools differ by ±0.05% in most cases — but it captures the relative magnitudes correctly. Use it to compare tables, not to tax-deduct your trip.

What this means in dollars

At $25 per hand, 80 hands per hour, four hours of play, total wagered is $8,000. A 0.5% edge costs you $40 expected. A 1.9% edge (6:5 BJ) costs you $152. That difference compounds over a trip — and it's why disciplined players walk past tourist-trap tables on principle.

FAQ

What's the typical blackjack house edge?

With perfect basic strategy on a 6-deck H17 game with DAS and late surrender (3:2 blackjack), the house edge is approximately 0.55%. That's one of the lowest house edges in any casino game — but only with perfect play.

How bad is 6:5 blackjack?

6:5 blackjack adds about 1.39% to the house edge. On an otherwise identical 6-deck H17 game, that takes the house edge from 0.55% to 1.94% — almost four times worse for the player. It's the single most damaging rule in modern blackjack.

Is single-deck blackjack always better?

Single-deck pays a 0.48% bonus relative to 6-deck for the same other rules. But single-deck is often paired with worse rules elsewhere (6:5 BJ, no doubling, dealer hits soft 17) that more than offset the deck-count gain. Read the placard before you sit.

Does dealer peek matter?

Yes. ENHC (European No-Hole-Card) games cost about 0.11% more because your doubled or split bets are at risk against an unseen dealer blackjack. Strategy also changes against an Ace upcard — don't double 11 vs A and don't split A,A vs A in ENHC.

How accurate is this calculator?

The calculator uses a linear additive approximation against a 0.55% baseline. It is accurate to about ±0.05% for typical rule combinations and reproduces the published Wizard of Odds rule-impact figures. For casino-grade precision, use a Monte Carlo solver.

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Last updated 2026-05-06. Spot an error?