Where You Play Blackjack Counts

Many casino games hog the limelight, but none are quite as universally appealing as blackjack. This is one of the most widely played casino card games, and it is enjoyed across continental Europe, the United States and beyond. Players are drawn to the magnetic allure of the blackjack tables – with big-money jackpots, glitz and glamour aplenty. Fortunately, blackjack is a relatively easy game to learn, and an exciting game to master. Lots of time, effort and strategy will certainly guide you on a winning course to blackjack profits. The truth of the matter is that the house edge in blackjack is among the lowest of all the house edges in casino games – so it's worth a shot

Getting Started: The Rules of Blackjack

While it's entirely possible to win huge sums of money playing blackjack, this is near impossible to do if you don't have a firm grasp of the rules. While one set of rules may hold true in one domain, they aren't necessarily applicable in another. 777.com takes a look at 3 major casino areas in the world, and the differences in their blackjack gaming rules.

Typical Blackjack Rules

- Players get paid out 3-2 on any Blackjack hand (21 dealt in the first two cards)

- Insurance bets payout at 2-1

- Anytime the dealer is dealt a face-up Ace card, the player can take out insurance

- In games of blackjack, the dealer draws to 16, and stands on all 17s or higher. There are several casinos which require the dealer to hit on a soft 17

European Casino Rules for Blackjack

- Equal value cards can be split, but not split again.

- It is possible to double down after you split your cards.

- When Aces are split, players are only allowed to draw for 1 more card.

- Players are only allowed to double down when a hand’s value is between 9 and 11.

The European casino rules for blackjack are far stricter than one might imagine. It is not possible to split twice. Further, European Casino Rules are rigid for doubling down, since the permissible hand values are between 9 and 11.

Las Vegas Casino Rules for Blackjack

- It is possible for players to double down on any combination of cards.

- Players can double down after splitting pairs.

- Players can split with any pair, and even re-split if more pairs are dealt. The only exception to this rule is with split Aces where one cannot split again and are only allowed to draw once.

Take note that Las Vegas casino rules differ tremendously from European casino rules. The major difference comes from the fact that you can double down with any initial combination of your cards. It is also possible to re-split after splitting, if you're dealt more pairs. There are similarities between the two, including the fact that you're allowed to split Aces once, and hit with them once.

Atlantic City Casino Rules for Blackjack

- Players can split any pair.

- Re-splitting pairs is not allowed.

- Doubling down is allowed after splitting.

With Atlantic City blackjack rules, players can double down with any pair, and it's possible to double down after splitting cards too. The difference between Atlantic City blackjack and Las Vegas blackjack rules is that players are not able to re-split pairs.

Notable Differences

There are also major dealer actions that vary greatly between Atlantic City blackjack, European blackjack, and Las Vegas blackjack games. With Atlantic City and Las Vegas blackjack, the dealer will check for blackjack any time that the face-up card has a 10 value or higher. In the event that the dealer hits blackjack, the game is over and players will not be allowed to take any further action. This differs greatly from European blackjack, where players can split or double down on their hand before the dealer checks for blackjack. In the event the dealer does not have blackjack, players who split or double down will lose their bets

From the 3 gambling domains,, Las Vegas is considered to have the most favourable rules for players because there are no restrictions placed on doubling and players are allowed to re-split cards.