Blackjack House Edge Calculator
Every casino runs its own mix of rules, and each one moves the house edge — some by a lot, some barely at all. Toggle the rules below to see the exact effect on the edge you're playing against, assuming perfect basic strategy.
House edge for this exact rule set
0.46%
How this is calculated
This tool composes a baseline house edge (6 decks, dealer stands on soft 17, double after split, no surrender, 3:2 blackjack payout ≈ 0.46%) with the published per-rule effect of each variation you toggle. It's the same additive-rule-effect approach used across the industry — not a from-scratch combinatorial simulation for every combination, which is why the simulator exists as a second way to sanity-check any given rule set over real hands.
FAQ
- What is house edge in blackjack?
- House edge is the casino's long-run statistical advantage, expressed as a percentage of each bet, assuming the player uses perfect basic strategy. A 0.5% house edge means the casino expects to keep 50 cents per $100 wagered over the long run.
- Which single rule changes the house edge the most?
- Blackjack payout ratio, by far. Switching from 3:2 to 6:5 payout typically adds well over a full percentage point to the house edge — more than deck count, soft-17 rules, or surrender combined.
- Does the number of decks matter much?
- Less than most players assume. Going from 8 decks to a single deck typically only moves the edge by a few tenths of a percentage point — the payout ratio and soft-17 rule matter far more.
- Does shoe penetration affect the house edge shown here?
- No. Penetration (how much of the shoe is dealt before reshuffling) only matters for card counting, which relies on tracking dealt cards. It has no effect on the basic-strategy house edge calculated here.