Blackjack basic strategy is a mathematically derived set of decisions for every possible hand vs. dealer upcard. Following it reduces the house edge to approximately 0.5%, compared to 2-5% for the average player (Thorp, Beat the Dealer, 1962).

What Is Basic Strategy?

Basic strategy is a set of rules derived from computer simulations of millions of blackjack hands. For every possible combination of your hand and the dealer’s up-card, it tells you the mathematically optimal action.

Following basic strategy reduces the house edge from roughly 5% (average player) to approximately 0.5%.

How to Read the Charts

  • Find your hand total in the left column
  • Find the dealer’s up-card in the top row
  • The intersection tells you the correct play

Key:
H = Hit | S = Stand | D = Double Down (hit if not allowed) | Ds = Double Down (stand if not allowed) | P = Split | Ph = Split (hit if not allowed) | Rh = Surrender (hit if not allowed) | Rs = Surrender (stand if not allowed)

Hard Hands

A hard hand has no Ace (or an Ace counted as 1).

Your Hand2345678910A
8 or lessHHHHHHHHHH
9HDDDDHHHHH
10DDDDDDDDHH
11DDDDDDDDDD
12HHSSSHHHHH
13SSSSSHHHHH
14SSSSSHHHHH
15SSSSSHHHRhRh
16SSSSSHHRhRhRh
17+SSSSSSSSSS

Hard Hand Highlights

  • Always hit 8 or below — you can’t bust
  • Double 10 and 11 — these are your best opportunities
  • Stand 13-16 vs. 2-6 — the dealer is likely to bust
  • Hit 13-16 vs. 7-A — the dealer likely has a good hand
  • Surrender 15 vs. 10 and 16 vs. 9/10/A when available

Soft Hands

A soft hand includes an Ace counted as 11.

Your Hand2345678910A
A,2HHHDDHHHHH
A,3HHHDDHHHHH
A,4HHDDDHHHHH
A,5HHDDDHHHHH
A,6HDDDDHHHHH
A,7DsDsDsDsDsSSHHH
A,8SSSSDsSSSSS
A,9SSSSSSSSSS

Soft Hand Highlights

  • Never stand on soft 17 (A,6) — always hit or double
  • Double soft hands against dealer 4-6 — the dealer is weak
  • Soft 18 (A,7) is tricky — stand vs. 2, 7, 8; double vs. 3-6; hit vs. 9, 10, A

Pairs

Your Hand2345678910A
A,APPPPPPPPPP
10,10SSSSSSSSSS
9,9PPPPPSPPSS
8,8PPPPPPPPPP
7,7PPPPPPHHHH
6,6PhPPPPHHHHH
5,5DDDDDDDDHH
4,4HHHPhPhHHHHH
3,3PhPhPPPPHHHH
2,2PhPhPPPPHHHH

Pair Highlights

  • Always split Aces and 8s — no exceptions
  • Never split 10s or 5s — 20 is great; 10 is great for doubling
  • Split 9s against everything except 7, 10, A
  • Split 2s, 3s, 6s, 7s against weak dealer cards

Quick Summary Rules

If you can’t memorize the full chart, these rules cover the most common situations:

  1. Always stand on hard 17+
  2. Always hit hard 11 or less
  3. Double 11 vs. everything; double 10 vs. 2-9
  4. Stand on 12-16 vs. dealer 2-6; hit vs. 7+
  5. Always split Aces and 8s
  6. Never split 10s or 5s
  7. Hit soft 17; stand soft 19-20
  8. Never take insurance

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