This page presents general blackjack tips. Specific blackjack tips, like how to play individual hands, can be found in the basic strategy section of the site, which can be found in the text link menu on the right.
Learn basic blackjack strategy by heart and follow it no matter what your hunches tell you. Blackjack is a game of math. Guesses and hunches have no place in winning blackjack play, and the best tip we can offer a blackjack player is to leave your superstitions at the door and follow the mathematically best strategy for the game. Master basic strategy and don't second guess the math.
Your goal is to find an enjoyable, relaxing, fast-paced table where you can do your thing with minimal interference and interruption. Drunk players are distracting. Slow players limit the amount of money you can win per hour. Mean-spirited dealers just bring your whole mood and vibe down, which can interfere with your ability to relax and concentrate.
Insurance is almost always a sucker bet. And it's not really insurance, it's just a side bet that the dealer has a blackjack. But it's a big time negative expectation bet, in almost every case. Now if you're an experienced card counter, insurance might make sense in certain situations. But that's beyond the scope of a blackjack tips article.
Managing your bankroll is a key to being profitable in the long run, if you're a card counter, or for getting the most fun for your money, if you're not. If you make it a rule to never sit down at a table with a bet size that's more than 1/20 of your bankroll for that session, your money will last longer. And if you're an advantage player, your risk of ruin will be reduced too. The same principles that apply to managing a bankroll in poker, video poker, or craps apply to managing your money in blackjack.
And those principles all boil down to one simple tip: Don't play over your bankroll.
Some advantage players wince at the thought of tipping the dealer, but there are reasons to tip the dealer beyond just being a nice guy. A player who tips the dealer generously might get a dealer who shuffles up a little later in the game than he might do otherwise, which is a boon to any card counter. And friendly dealers just make the game more enjoyable. By tipping the dealer, you help to make sure that your dealer stays friendly. And if one of your advantage play techniques is trying to take advantage of dealer tells, you might find that a generously tipped dealer suddenly has more obvious tells.
We hope that these general blackjack tips help you become a better blackjack player. They're not anything profound or deep, and these blackjack tips aren't as important as learning basic strategy. But they should help you get into the right mindset.
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Other Languages: Consejos de Blackjack Español