Blackjack Card Counting

Card counting is an advanced form of blackjack strategy. Using card counting, you can gain an edge over the casino. This is important, because without any form of strategy, the casino will have a large edge over you, and the longer you play, the more money you will lose. Using blackjack basic strategy, you can cut the edge the casino has to .5%. With card counting, the edge goes to you over the casino. By using basic strategy and card counting, you will win money the longer you play.

There are many different types of card counting systems, so it’s best to learn the basics, and then find a system that you like the best. A good system will be easy to remember, and allow you to concentrate and hold conversations while playing blackjack. This is important for reasons I will get to later in this article. The most common and easiest form of card counting to master is the Hi-Lo system. Using this system, you assign a number (-1,0,1) to each card. As the card comes up, you add, subtract, or keep the number the same. As you play, the number you have in your head will let you know if the deck contains high cards or low cards. You can combine this with basic strategy to get the best possible blackjack odds.

The lower cards, two, three, four, five, and six, are assigned a +1 value. Every time you see a low card, add one to the number count in your head (starting at zero). High cards, 10, Jack, Queen, King, and Ace, are all assigned a -1 value. Whenever you see these cards, subtract one point from the number you have in your head. All the remaining numbers, seven, eight, and nine, have a value of zero. Whenever these cards come up, your number count stays the same. Since most games have multiple decks in play, you need to find the true count of your cards. To do this, look in the discard tray. If you have a running count (the number in your head) of eight, and you see that there are two decks on the discard tray, divide the count by two. This gives you a true count of four.

To use card counting to your advantage, bet higher when your true count is high, and only bet the minimum when your true count is low. The higher your true count is, the higher the value of the remaining cards are, which gives you an advantage over the house. When card counting, it is important to look like you are not actually counting cards. Counting cards is not illegal, but many casinos will kick you out if they suspect you are counting cards, as you have negated the statistical edge they have over you