• They began introducing Blackjack games with a double deck or more decks to raise their own edge and make it harder to count cards. Single deck basic strategy play Blackjack is also dependent.
• The basic strategy for pair splitting is shown below in a black and white table followed by a color-coded chart for single-, double-, and 4/6/8-deck games. The black and white strategy table shows your pair in the first column and, in the second column, what the dealer’s upcard should be for you to split.

Blackjack is a diverse casino game with multiple variants, rules, and a different number of decks in the shoe depending on where you play. In this guide, we will look at how to play the two deck Blackjack strategy.

As with any Blackjack system, the two deck Blackjack strategy comes with quite a few variables depending on the casino you are playing at. You may also see two deck Blackjack referred to as ‘Double Deck Blackjack’, and needless to say, you play Blackjack on a table with two decks of 52 cards (104 cards) in the shoe.

Tips for double-deck blackjack. To reduce house edge and gain profit from the game of blackjack, both single- and double-deck, it is important to apply an appropriate and efficient basic strategy. One can use a special blackjack strategy chart developed for double-deck games, defining the player's possible decisions during the game. However, for the basic strategy player, double deck games offer fewer opportunities than single-deck games to make decisions based on the, ‘ Deck composition,’ and it is for that reason that double deck has a greater house edge.

Every casino scrutinises its Blackjack games, and it is this due diligence that helps the gaming team decide which rules to apply to Blackjack tables that make it to their casino floor or an onlinecasino’s Blackjack section.

As ‘2 Deck Blackjack’ has a lower house edge compared to 4, 6, and 8-deck games, many casinos either avoid this variation, add high minimum bets, and/or apply less liberal rules. The other solution is to not include 2 deck Blackjack tables at all.

You will find out later on in this guide how difficult it is to find double deck Blackjack games, and when you do, you will need to make sure you are ready to take on some of the restrictive rules casinos tend to add to this variant.

Luckily all 2 deck Blackjack tables come with several basic strategy charts to prepare you for the varying rules applied to double deck games.

Below we will walk you through the easy to learn steps you need to take to choose the correct basic strategy chart so you can quickly learn how to play 2 deck Blackjack tables whether you find them at a land-based casino or onlinecasino.

We will cover the following topics in this guide:

• Rules that influence Two deck blackjack strategy
• Using Table Rules To Apply The Correct Basic Strategy Charts
• Two Deck Basic Strategy Charts In Action,
• Where can you play 2 deck Blackjack?
• Play Blackjack at mBitcasino

Rules That Influence Two Deck Blackjack Strategy

Every Blackjack strategy that you apply to your session whether you are playing an 8 deck, 6 deck, 4 deck, or 2 deck Blackjack strategy, you should always be using ‘basic strategy’. This is the key ingrediant to not only playing winning blackjack, but to reducing your losses by playing ‘perfect Blackjack‘.

To figure out which basic strategy charts you should use, you need to understand the different rules applied to Blackjack tables.

Dealer Rules

Nearly all ‘Two Deck Blackjack‘ games use the rule ‘dealer stands on 17’ (H17) referring to hard 17 and not a soft 17. For the benefit of those that do not know, soft 17 is any hand that totals 17 using an Ace as one of the cards. That Ace can count as 1 or 11. For example, A-6, A-4-2, or A-3-3 are all soft 17 hands.

Soft 17 counts as an 11 on Blackjack tables that use the H17 rule, and as such, the dealer is perfectly within his or her rights to hit the 11 total. On the other hand, if the table rules state that the dealer must ‘stand on all 17s’ or ‘dealer stands on soft 17’ (S17), then you are in luck because this rules works in your favour.

In our ‘12 Pro Strategies on how to win at Blackjack’ guide, we mention that when the ‘dealer stands on soft 17’ this increases your house edge by 0.22%. All that being said, you are unlikely to find a 2 deck Blackjack table with this rule. For that matter, very few 4-deck, 6-deck, or 8-deck tables include the S17 rule.

When you are looking at basic strategy charts, the first clue to which chart you should use is the dealer rules:

• Dealer stands of hard 17 = H17
• Dealer stands on soft 17 = S17

Splitting

When it comes to choosing basic strategy charts, you only need to know whether you can double down after splits.

• Doubling Down After Splits Allowed (DAS)
• No Doubling Down After Splits (NDAS)

Doubling Down & Surrender

There are a few other blackjack rules you may need to adjust your basic strategy to. You may find specific basic strategy charts for 2 deck blackjack strategy or your Double Deck Blackjack, H17, NDAS basic strategy chart will include adjustments/alternatives for the below situations.

Make sure that before you play, you understand how these adjustments affect your double-deck game, or any game of blackjack for that matter.

• DOA = Double Down Allowed On Any First Two Cards
• D10 = Double Down Only On 10 or 11 Totals
• RSA = Re-Splitting Aces Allowed
• ESR = Early Surrender
• LSR = Late Surrender

House Edge

This is not so much a rule, but we thoght we’d include this as an interesting fact. The fewer decks in play on a Blackjack table the lower the house edge which is why single-deck Blackjack is so popular.

When you add just 1 addiitonal deck of cards making the game double deck Blackjack, the addition of the extra deck subtracts 0.34% from the house edge.

Here’s how additional decks of cards affect the house edge:

• 2-deck blackjack: subtract 0.34% from the house edge
• 3-deck blackjack: subtract 0.45% from the house edge
• 4-deck blackjack: subtract 0.5% from the house edge
• 5-deck blackjack: subtract 0.53% from the house edge
• 6-deck blackjack: subtract 0.55% from the house edge
• 7-deck blackjack: subtract 0.56% from the house edge
• 8-deck blackjack: subtract 0.57% from the house edge

As 2 deck blackjack has a lower house edge compared to 3+ deck blackjack games, usually the casino will pull back that additional house edge by adding less liberal rules such as no splits on Aces or double down on 10 or 11 only. These rules can then even up the double deck versus 6-deck or 8-deck tables.

Another tactic used is to still allow liberal rules on double deck Blackjack tables, but increase the minimum bet.

Using this theory, the casino is banking on the long run outcome of the house edge working in its favour. With the higher losses from lost bets with a high minimum amount, the table will make as much as its 6-deck and 8-deck games with a lower house edge.

Blackjack Pays 6-5

Some casinos see the threat of the lower house edge of 2 deck Blackjack games as so high that they apply the Blackjack pays 6-5 rule. This rule increaes the house edge more than any other rule – 1.4% to be precise which is a sizeable chunk!

No matter what the variation of Blackjack is, unless there is something special about the rules, just walk away from any Blackjack table with the 6-5 Blackjack pays rule.

The only exception that we can think of is Double Exposure Blackjack but even then, most casinos will use 8 decks for this game to make up for the added advantage of seeing both dealer’s cards, while also restricting other rules such as double downs, DAS, and H17 rules.

Using Table Rules To Apply The Correct Basic Strategy Charts

The only way to play perfectly sound mathematical double-deck Blackjack is to use basic strategy charts. Players that do not play or learn basic strategy potentially hand over around 2% to 3% back to the house. That’s a significant amount when you consider most Blackjack games have a house edge of 99.5%!

In order to choose which basic strategy chart you use, you need to get answers to the following questions:

• Does the dealer stand on soft 17? (H17 or S17)
• Is Doubling down is allowed on any 2 cards?
• Is doubling down after splits permitted?
• Is surrender allowed?

Once you know the answers to these questions, you can apply the correct basic strategy rules to your game.

Examples of Basic Strategy Charts To Choose:

• Double Deck Blackjack, S17, DAS
• Double Deck Blackjack, S17, NDAS
• Double Deck Blackjack, H17, DAS
• Double Deck Blackjack, H17, NDAS

Two Deck Basic Strategy Charts In Action

Just to give you an idea of how a basic strategy chart work, we will give you a couple scenrios. You can then find two deck blackack basic strategy charts here at Wizard of Odds to compare.

Basic Strategy Contingency Rules & Legend

Before you begin, make sure you understand the meaning of each letter and combination of letters on a basic strategy chart. You will also see that there are contingency rules in place for games that include additional rules on top of the S17, H17 DAS/NDAS rules.

• H – Hit
• S- Stand
• D – Double
• Dh – Double if allowed, otherwise Hit
• Ds – Double if allowed, otherwise Stand
• P – Split
• Su – Surrender
• Suh = Surrender if allowed; otherwise hit
• Sus = Surrender if allowed; otherwise stand

Double Deck Blackjack, S17, DAS

In this scenario your hand is an A-7 and the dealer’s upcard is a 9. On the basic strategy card for a table with the above rules it states you should act using the following sequences when your hand is an A-7:

• Double on dealer upcards 3 through to 6
• Stand on dealer upcards 2, 7, or 8
• Hit on dealer upcards 9, 10, or A

The correct move here is to hit.

Double Deck Blackjack, H17, DAS

You switch tables and now the dealer rules are ‘dealer stands on 17’ and doubling down after splits is allowed. Your hand turns out to be 4-4 while the dealer’s upcard is a 5.

There is only one move here accroding to the two deck blackjack H17 DAS basic strategy chart, and that is to split.

Double Deck Blackjack, S17, NDAS

Now in this scenario your hand is a A-2 and the dealer’s upcard is a 6. Now this is where basic strategy charts allow for a contingency plan. On this table, let’s assume the D10 (Double Down Only On 10 or 11 Totals) is in action.3

You refer to the basic strategy chart it says:

• Double Down if allowed, otherwise hit (Dh)

As you cannot double down on a 3 total or any total (DOA), the correct move in this situations is to ‘Hit’.

Where can you play 2 deck Blackjack?

We had a good look around to see where you can find 2 deck Blackjack games in gambling hot sports such as Las Vegas, at online casinos by checking which software providers offer operators 2 deck Blackjack tables, and we also looked at live dealer casinos.

Here is what we found:

Land-Based Casinos

In places like Las Vegas, there are only a handful of casinos that host 2 deck Blackjack. The lowest minimum bet in Vegas is at Aliante which is $5 while the next in line are the Bally’s and 4 Queens casinos with a $25 minimum bet, and Aria, Caesar’s Palace, and Bellagio offer double deck Blackjack with a $100 minimum bet.

The reason for the higher than normal minimum bet at many of these casinos is that 2 deck Blackjack has a lower house edge versus the more common 6-deck and 8-deck games.

Virtual RNG Operated Online Casino 2 Deck Blackjack Games

As for online casinos, to date, most software providers avoid developing 2 deck Blackjack games. As such, the only notable onlineBlackjack developer to release 2 deck Blackjack tables is Real Time Gaming (RTG). These are all virtual RNG games that are set by default to 2 decks but most operators change this to 4 decks because of the higher house edge.

Live Casino 2 Deck Blackjack Games

It took a lot of research to find out exactly how many decks each live casino platform offers with their live dealer Blackjack games, and there are no live Blackjack tables from any of the top live casino platforms that offer 2 deck Blackjack.

Play Blackjack at mBitcasino

At mBitcasino, you have the choice of multiple ways to play blackjack. For virtual Blackjack tables, check out our virtual blackjack section.

Games from BGaming include 6-Deck Blackjack Surrender (99.404%) RTP), 6-Deck Multihand Blackjack (99.24% RTP), 6-Deck Multihand Blackjack Pro (99.4% RTP), and 8-Deck Double Exposure (99.3% RTP), and 8-Deck Pontoon (99.503% RTP). There is also 1 virtual table game from Amatic which is 6-Deck Blackjack 21. You can also play 5-Deck Blackjack (3-hand) by Habanero!

There is also a selection of live Blackjack tables from eZugi while the largest number live Blackjack games with the largest variation of tables are from our Evolution live casino games. We recommend the immense fun of Party BJ and a whole new way to Blackjack as Evolution removes 64 cards which are all 9s and 10s from its 8-deck Power Blackjack novelty way to play live Blackjack table games!

Want to know how to boost your blackjack strategy? You’ll want to use this technique to win big at your next game. In this article, we’ll teach you how to play winning Blackjack.

Blackjack Tips

Whether you’re a fan of the casino game or online blackjack is more your thing, sooner or later, you’ll come across a technique called “Basic Strategy”.
So, what is it? Essentially, this blackjack betting strategy tells you exactly how to play every possible hand you could be dealt in a game of blackjack. Mastering this strategy means that you’ll know when to hit or stand, or whether to split, double down or surrender in all your blackjack games.
The strategy originated from early computer models and is applied using computer simulations and maths.
What it gives you is the statistically accurate answer for every single hand, although it’s important to understand that there are no half measures to using this strategy.
If you want to use it and rely on it to help you win, you have to commit to learning it all.
It’s also important that you appreciate Blackjack Basic Strategy does not mean that whenever you play blackjack, you’ll win every hand. What it does help you with is:

1. Making more money in the long run e.g. by knowing when to split or double down when you do have the advantage; and
2. Losing less overall when you are dealt a negative expectation hand.

Learning this trick for playing blackjack means that the casino’s advantage is down to less than 1%. But to win at Blackjack, you’re going to have to learn the Basic Strategy technique perfectly as well as how to count cards (legally). Card counters always know whether they or the casino have the edge.
To learn Basic Blackjack Strategy, you will first need to download one of the many strategy charts you can find on the internet, put together by other blackjack players, to help you memorize how to play each hand.
Take note that you need to make sure you’re using a chart that included the most common rules at the blackjack tables today – not one from 15 or 20 years ago!
Secondly, if you want to memorize the chart quickly, there are numerous videos also available on the internet, teaching fast ways to learn the technique.
Thirdly, to be able to understand the chart, there’s some basic and fundamental terminology you’re going to need to know:

Top Online Blackjack Casinos

Double Down in Blackjack

What Does Double Down Mean in Blackjack?

The term “double down” means you can opt to double the amount of your initial bet in return for drawing one card only. Depending on the casino you’re playing at, there’s likely to be limitations and restrictions in place as to when precisely you’re allowed to double down. The reason for this is because when you do double down, the house advantage is reduced.

When to Double Down in Blackjack

Now, assuming the rules of the casino you’re betting at permit it, a good tip is to make sure that whenever you have an 11 in your hand, you double down – unless the dealer’s got an Ace. Another good time to double down is whenever your hand totals 10 e.g. 5/5, 6/4, 7/3, but this time, not if the dealer has an Ace or a 10. Similarly, double down if your hand totals 9 and the dealer isn’t showing a 6, 5, 4 or 3.
There are other variations, of course, depending on the rules and nuances of the casino you’re playing at or even the type of blackjack game you’re playing. But if the game is calling for you to double down, it’s a good sign that you’re probably going to win that hand! For exactly that reason, you want to make certain that you’ve considered it as an option before moving on.

Blackjack Insurance

What is Insurance in Blackjack?

Eventually, you’ll find yourself in a situation when the dealer offers you the chance to make a side bet – also known as an insurance bet (including the “even money” bet). These types of bets occur when the dealer’s upcard is an Ace.

How Does Insurance Work in Blackjack?

Double Deck Blackjack Basic Strategy Examples

The way the insurance bet works is that if you take the dealer up on their offer, you’ll be given your original bet back should they land a blackjack. To take out the insurance bet, you’ll have to layout an extra amount totalling half (or less) of your original bet. With this type of bet, essentially, you’re betting against the dealer hitting blackjack. So, if they don’t hit blackjack, you will lose the insurance bet and the game continues with the original bet still to play for.

Should You Take Insurance in Blackjack?

Most blackjack players will recommend that you never take the insurance bet because, most of the time, it’s considered to be a bad bet. Why is this? Well, back to basic math again. The odds that the dealer will hit blackjack when their card is an Ace are 9:4, and basic math tells us that, more frequently than not, this means this bet will be lost.

When to take insurance in Blackjack

However, there are a few specific occasions when taking the insurance bet is wise; this is one example of where knowing how to count cards accurately is going to give you the edge.
Before you’ll be able to take advantage of being offered an insurance bet, you need to ensure that you have a good understanding of tracking card ratios which, when all is said and done, is the basis of card counting. It’s no accident that the majority of the most popular systems for card counting come with a breakpoint factored in when the insurance bet becomes the more appealing option.
Taking insurance occasionally won’t do too much harm to your game overall, but generally, you might want to avoid it, especially if you can’t or don’t count cards.

Splitting Blackjack

What is Splitting in Blackjack?

The option of “splitting” in blackjack only becomes available if your first two cards are a pair or you have two 10-value cards, such as a King and a Jack.
When you’re dealt such a hand, you can choose to split the cards into two new and separate hands which you continue betting on by placing a further bet on each hand that equals the initial bet. Play then continues, as usual, across all hands.

Double Deck Blackjack Basic Strategy Tactics

Why split in Blackjack?

Now, just because you have a good pair doesn’t mean you should automatically split them. But you should always consider it because, when done properly, splitting allows you to lower the house advantage.

When to split in Blackjack?

You should always split a pair of Aces because 11 is a fantastic starting point in blackjack, even if you can only draw one further card on each.

In the long run, another good pair to always split is a pair of 8s. Although, many players don’t realize it’s better to play two hands each with a starting 8 than play one hand of 16. If you find yourself with a pair of 5s or 10s though, these pairs should never be split.
Multiple deck games and a single deck game will also call for different splitting strategies. Unfortunately, most players fail to utilize this potential opportunity to lower the casino’s advantage because they adopt the same strategy in every game they play – they either never split pairs or they always do, or worse still, they do so on a whim! That kind of strategy is never going to pay off in the long run. Start with the basic pair splitting rules and then specialize in the rules and decks for specific games to gain the most benefit from this often-misunderstood feature.

When to Hit

Once you’ve worked through all the above options, as well as whether it might be best to simply cut your losses and surrender the game. You should start to think about whether you should hit or stand.
In layman’s terms, “hit” simply means you ask the dealer for another card.
“Stand” means that you don’t take another card and your turn ends.

When to hit and stand

You should hit when you believe that being dealt an additional card would improve your score, edging you closer to 21, which is the object of the game. However, you don’t want to go over this, so the time to stand is when you believe your hand already holds a higher score than that of the dealer, so you don’t need another card.
As long as the cards in your hand do not exceed 21, you can choose to hit or stand. If the hand totals more than 21 then this is a “bust” and you lose the bet.
Oftentimes, when new to the game of blackjack, many a player stands on soft 17. This is because they think this is a good hand to hold, but the general rule is that you shouldn’t ever stand between soft 13 and soft 17. If you have a hand like that, you need to double down with a good doubling strategy or hit instead. Remember, you’re aiming to get a hard 17 or a soft 18 to 21.
One exception to this is when you have a soft 18 but the dealer is showing a strong 9/10/Ace upcard. In that kind of scenario, there’s a slight advantage to you if you hit on soft 18.

Blackjack Strategy FAQ

Can you split face cards?

Double Deck Blackjack Basic Strategy For Beginners

Some game variants do allow face cards to be treated as pairs, even when they’re non-matching face cards. This is because all face cards are worth the same value, which is 10. As such, in many casinos, if you get any combination of a Ten/Jack/Queen/King, you could choose to split them.
However, stricter house/game rules require that the cards be an exact match, so you’d have to have a King and a King, for example, in order to split.

Can you split twice?

Double Deck Blackjack Basic Strategy Rules

As with pretty much anything else, you can if the casino and game rules say you can. Some will allow re-splits up to a maximum of 3 times per original hand (although some offer even more than this). Others only permit one split per original hand.