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Stake Blackjack: Rules, RTP and Basic Strategy
Beat the dealer's hand without going over 21. Hit, Stand, Double or Split on each hand; a Blackjack on your first two cards pays 3:2.
Beat the dealer's hand without going over 21.
99.43% RTP with basic strategy
99.43% RTP with basic strategy
What Is Stake Blackjack?
Quick answer
Stake Blackjack is a Stake Originals card game: beat the dealer’s hand without going over 21. With basic strategy, its RTP is 99.43% and its house edge 0.57%. Your moves shape each win: Double and Split put more on a hand, and a Blackjack pays 3:2.
- Classic moves: Hit, Stand, Double and Split
- Every hand can be checked with your own seed
- !The RTP assumes basic strategy on every hand
| RTP | 99.43% with basic strategy |
|---|---|
| House edge | 0.57% with basic strategy |
| Moves | Hit, Stand, Double, Split |
| Win pays | 1:1 |
| Blackjack pays | 3:2 |
| Insurance | 2:1, offered on a dealer Ace |
| Fairness | HMAC-SHA256 seeds |
| Min bet | $0.0001 or equivalent |
Source: Stake's Blackjack page.
How to Play Blackjack on Stake
- Open Blackjack from the Stake Originals lobby. Stake says it uses classic rules, built around a hand of 21 points.
- Enter your Bet Amount in the currency you hold. The ½ and 2× buttons halve or double it.
- Press Bet. You and the dealer get two cards each; one dealer card is face up.
- Choose Hit to take another card, or Stand to keep your total. Go over 21 and you bust: the hand is lost.
- Double doubles your bet and gives you exactly one more card. If your first two cards are a pair, Split makes two hands, with an extra bet for the new one.
- If the dealer’s face-up card is an Ace, the game offers insurance, a side bet that the dealer has Blackjack.
- Beat the dealer’s hand without going over 21 to win.
Blackjack Payouts: 1:1, 3:2 and Insurance
Blackjack pays fixed odds on your bet. A regular winning hand pays 1:1, so a $10 bet wins $10. A natural Blackjack, 21 with your first two cards, pays 3:2: $15 on the same bet. Insurance pays 2:1 when the dealer has Blackjack. Double and Split add a second bet, so they raise what you can win or lose.
With basic strategy, Blackjack’s RTP is 99.43% and its house edge 0.57%: over many hands, about 57 cents kept for every $100 wagered. From Bronze VIP ($10,000 wagered), or from sign-up with code BONUSTIIME once Stake support activates it, Stake’s rakeback returns 3.5% of that edge, about 2 cents per $100.
Baccarat (98.90% RTP) and Video Poker (99% RTP) are two other card games in Stake’s table range. With basic strategy, Blackjack’s 0.57% edge is the lowest of any Original. To compare them all, see our house edge table.
What the House Edge Costs
An average cost per $100 wagered, not a fee on each bet.
| Edge | Cost | After rakeback |
|---|---|---|
| 0.57% with basic strategy | $0.57 | $0.55 |
| Result | Pays | On a $10 bet |
|---|---|---|
| Winning hand | 1:1 | $10 profit |
| Blackjack, 21 on your first two cards | 3:2 | $15 profit |
| Bust, over 21 | Lost | $10 lost |
| Insurance, if the dealer has Blackjack | 2:1 | Twice your insurance bet |
Blackjack Strategy: What You Can Control
You control
- Every move: Hit, Stand, Double or Split
- Your bet size, and whether you take insurance
- A loss limit and a time limit, set before you start
You don’t control
- The cards you and the dealer are dealt
- The house edge: good play keeps it low, never at zero
- Streaks: the last round has no effect on the next
In Blackjack, your moves change the return. The listed RTP holds with basic strategy: the best move for each hand against the dealer’s face-up card. Stake’s page also gives simple rules of thumb: hit on 11 or less, where no card can bust you; stand on 17 or more; double on 10 or 11 when the dealer has a weaker hand; split pairs like Aces or 8s. Stray from basic strategy and the house can keep more; no play beats the edge.
Doubling your bet after each loss (Martingale) does not change the edge. It makes losing runs more expensive, and it stops at Stake’s maximum bet and maximum profit per bet. Don’t confuse it with Double, which doubles one hand’s bet for a single card.
18+. Play with money you can afford to lose. Stake lets you set limits or self-exclude: see our Stake self-exclusion guide and our responsible gambling page.
How to Check a Blackjack Hand
Blackjack turns your seeds into the cards of each round: yours, the dealer’s face-up and hidden cards, and every card drawn after. Your moves change how the hand plays out, never which cards the seeds produce.
- Before you play, open the game’s fairness settings and note the hashed server seed.
- After your session, rotate your seed: Stake reveals the old server seed.
- Hash it, compare it with the one you noted, then replay any hand with your client seed and nonce.
Stake Welcome Offer for New Players
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Before You Claim
Check Stake's terms for how Originals count toward wagering. The €30 needs a €20 deposit, so it is not a no deposit bonus.
Stake Tools
Other Stake Originals
Stake Blackjack FAQ
Is Stake Blackjack Rigged?
No. Every card comes from your client seed, Stake's server seed and the nonce, and Stake shows you a hash of the server seed first. Once you rotate it, you can replay any hand and check that the dealer's hidden card did not change after your moves.
What Is the RTP of Stake Blackjack?
With basic strategy, Stake Blackjack's RTP is 99.43%, which leaves a 0.57% house edge: about 57 cents kept per $100 wagered over many hands. Other moves can give the house more.
How Often Do You Get a Blackjack on Stake?
Stake's page puts a natural Blackjack, 21 with your first two cards, at 4.8% of starting hands: about one hand in 21. It pays 3:2, so $15 on a $10 bet, against $10 for a regular win.
Should You Take Insurance in Stake Blackjack?
Stake itself calls it risky and does not recommend it to new players. Insurance is a side bet offered when the dealer's face-up card is an Ace. If the dealer has Blackjack, it pays 2:1, which helps cover your main bet; if not, you lose it and the round goes on.
Can You Count Cards in Stake Blackjack?
It would not help. Counting tracks the cards that have left a shoe over many hands. Here each round is dealt from your seeds and a new nonce, so the cards of one round tell you nothing about the next. Your moves are what you control: the 0.57% house edge holds with basic strategy.
How Likely Are You to Bust in Stake Blackjack?
With 11 or less, one more card cannot bust you. Above that the risk climbs: Stake's page puts the chance of busting with one more card at 31% on 12, 62% on 16 and 92% on 20. Stake gives that risk as its reason to stand on 17 or more.
