Blackjack is a card game in which players aim to beat the dealer. Each player is dealt two cards and the dealer one. The goal is to get a total card value of 21 or close to it, without going over, and beating the dealer. Aces count as 1 or 11, face cards as 10, and the rest at their index value. Suits are irrelevant. When the first two cards of a player add up to 21, it is known as a blackjack and the player wins immediately.
During the game, each player may double his or her bet before receiving another card by placing a second bet equal to the original. This option is called “doubling down,” but it is not available on all hands. Some games allow players to split pairs of cards, receiving a new set of two cards for each, and playing the separate hands independently. In some casinos, a player can also place a side bet that the dealer has a blackjack. These bets are known as insurance bets and pay 3-2 instead of the standard even-money payoff on other winning hands.
The dealer will usually check to see if they have a blackjack before continuing with play. If they do, the hand pushes (or ties), and the bets are returned without adjustment. The dealer then collects and shuffles the cards.
Many novice blackjack players make mistakes that give the house a large advantage. They will stand too often when they should hit, or they will fail to double down and split as frequently as they should. They will also hesitate to hit a 16 against a dealer’s 7, or they will not split a pair of 2s against a dealer’s 4. These mistakes cost the player a lot of money. Expert players, on the other hand, will exploit every opportunity to maximize their wins, doubling down and splitting far more often than the average player.
There are many different types of side bets on blackjack tables, and these can be lucrative for experienced card counters. These include insurance bets, a side bet that pays when the dealer has a blackjack, and more. The rules on these side bets vary from casino to casino, but most will require players to place a side bet at the same time as their main bet.
Some casinos offer a special rule known as early surrender. This allows players to surrender half of their bets before the dealer checks for a blackjack, cutting the house edge by about 0.624 percent. This is a great strategy for anyone who knows the game well enough to use it, but it should only be used in very limited circumstances. It is very easy for a player to mishandle this rule, and it can be a major mistake. The most common error is to surrender when the dealer has an ace showing, as this gives the dealer a better chance of having a blackjack than if the player had simply stood.