How to Count Cards in Blackjack

To take your game against the dealer in the casino up a level, you need to learn card counting in Blackjack. Card counting is a simple skill, but it’s not entirely easy to master. Let us guide you. We’ll take you step by step through the perfect guide, strategies, principles and the history of card counting. To get this technique down, you’ll need to invest some time and a lot of patience. Remember: card counting can be learned.

How should I understand card counting in Blackjack

Card counting is one of the techniques you use when you track the remaining number of high and low cards in the dealer’s shoe. With successful card counting, you can increase your stake when you can see the odds are currently in your favour, boosting your percentage chance of winning a bigger bet. Just remember that card counting isn’t there to teach you how to win at blackjack consistently, or even how to cheat at blackjack. Think of card counting as a set of skills for regular play. It allows you to estimate the value of the cards left in the shoe.

Why not count cards?

There are no laws that treat card counting as a criminal offence—provided you’re doing it in your head and you’re not using a card-counting device or a mobile app. Despite that, it’s still considered cheating. If you try to count cards in a casino, we strongly recommend being cautious. Casinos keep an eye on players who count cards and use every available technology to do so. You may be asked to leave the table, or you could even be banned from the casino. Be aware—your behaviour will be closely monitored throughout your play.

Why should you consider card counting?

The main reason? Winning. If you’re good at counting, follow all the steps correctly, and stick to strategy principles, you’ll eventually be rewarded with a sweet win. Learning to count cards in blackjack can help you win big sums. Blackjack is a worldwide phenomenon among casino games because, as well as being entertaining, it also gives you a decent chance of landing a win—especially when you know what you’re doing. Then the game becomes even better, as you can swing the odds of winning in your favour, giving you an even greater chance of success. You can boost your chances even further by using a Blackjack bonus.

So how exactly does it give you an edge over the casino? If you play Blackjack perfectly, the house edge sits at around 0.5%. If you play perfectly and also count cards, you’re playing with a 1% advantage over the casino. So this technique really is worth it—admit it.

Card counting in online Blackjack

You can use card counting in online Blackjack too. Although most online casinos use software that shuffles the cards every time a new hand is dealt, which makes this type of counting more difficult. There are several programs you can use that will count the cards for you. However, using them is generally prohibited.  The advantage, though, is that you can count cards from home without risking the casino catching you, as can happen if you try to count cards in a land-based casino. You shouldn’t sit down at a Blackjack table until you’ve first learned card counting through practice. A great way to practise counting is to use one of the free online Blackjack games. In free games, you can improve your skills without risking losing your money. If you decide to play for real money online, keep in mind that some sites use software that shuffles the cards almost every time a new batch of cards is dealt. This makes it increasingly difficult to count cards and gain an edge over the casino.

Basic card counting strategy

The most basic strategy for beginners is called the Hi-Lo Blackjack strategy. In this strategy, high cards (10-A) are assigned a specific value of -1. Low cards (2-6) are assigned a value of +1. The remaining cards (7-9) are counted as 0. This strategy is simple for a beginner and easy to use, and it allows you to start counting cards when playing online or in a land-based casino. When the dealer deals a card, note its assigned value in your head. If the card is, for example, a queen, you count it as -1. If the next card dealt is a two, its assigned value is +1. You continuously add and subtract the numbers according to their value. In this case, we have a running total that equals 0. The idea is that you do this continuously for each new card dealt, without breaking your count, until the shoe is shuffled again. The count is considered the so-called running count. And that’s it. The calculations aren’t difficult, but you do need to stay focused and avoid mistakes.

Which strategy is the best?

The simplest strategy is Hi-Lo. To begin with, it’s best to start with that one. After a while of playing, you’ll see how you’re getting on. As your skills improve with practice, you can decide to move on from basic counting to an alternative Blackjack strategy. Of course, you need to be 100% confident you’ve mastered the game itself before you even start card counting.

Is card counting illegal?

At Bonus-menu.co.uk, we try to make sure you’re always as well informed as possible when it comes to casino games. There are laws you need to consider before you start card counting.

For example, the laws of the state of Nevada (Las Vegas) prohibit card counting using electronic or mechanical aids, such as smartphone apps. If you’re caught counting, you’ll be arrested. Using your own mental arithmetic skills to track the cards isn’t illegal. Although the legal position on card counting is perfectly clear, using your head to count cards is still not welcomed in casinos.

Even though the casino and its operator can’t prosecute players who count cards while playing Blackjack, they can make things very unpleasant for you if you’re caught. Some law firms in the USA have dedicated legal teams and defence attorneys who deal with arrests in Las Vegas. Because casino operators are well aware of the practice of card counting, they take measures to stop you. You’ll find surveillance cameras wherever you look up. Dealers are often rotated when a table is considered too profitable. Sometimes the pit boss will instruct the dealer to do an extra shuffle as soon as the round is over. Online blackjack doesn’t have the same issue, but some software generates random shuffles to prevent this practice. If you decide to enter a casino, it’s important to be responsible and respect the rules on their premises.

The 5 greatest card counters in history

The 5 greatest card counters in Blackjack history definitely include the MIT team, Jeff Ma, Peter Griffin, Ken Uston and Erika Schönberg. The MIT Blackjack Team was formed in 1979 and operated for more than two decades. Its original members, as well as those who joined later, were university students. The biggest single win was never specified, but the cumulative total winnings amounted to millions of dollars. An interesting fact about the MIT team is that several team members, including Bill Kaplan, appeared in the 2008 film 21, which is based on the story of this Blackjack-playing team.

Advanced card counting strategies

Once you’ve mastered the basics of card counting using the Hi-Lo technique, you’ve probably stopped counting on your fingers. If you want to move on to more complex methods, there are several options to choose from.

Omega II

The Omega II technique is a balanced system, with 0 as the baseline. It was developed by Bryce Carlson, who wrote an entire book on card counting in 1992. It’s more sophisticated than the classic values of +1, 0 and -1.

A positive count indicates that there are more low cards left in the shoe. A negative count means there are still plenty of high cards remaining.

Wong Halves

This system is named after its creator, Stanford Wong. It’s considered an advanced strategy because of the assigned values, some of which are fractions.

Wong Halves is considered a balanced system, which means that when the shoe has been fully dealt, your total should be 0. You can simplify the strategy by doubling all values to avoid using fractions altogether.

Team play

Some card counting approaches require a team effort. The advantage is that you can count multiple shoes across several tables at the same time. The team uses signals to communicate with each other while avoiding detection. This way, the big bettors can be told when to join the game and whether to place large bets or not.

Multiple Decks

This strategy was devised by a team of MIT students and graduates who won millions of dollars over the years in various casinos. Once their exploits were uncovered, their story became a bestseller. In 2008, their story was adapted into a Hollywood film called 21.

Counting Multiple Decks – what if the casino uses multiple decks?

One way casinos try to combat card counting is by using multiple decks at a single table. In theory, this makes it harder for players who count cards to track the running count. If you come across a blackjack dealer using multiple decks, you can still use the Hi-Lo strategy. All you need to do is divide the running count by the number of decks remaining. This gives you what’s known as the true count. Your true count, rather than the running count, determines your edge when multiple decks are in play. You need to keep an accurate running count to work out the true value. For example, if your running count is 5 and there are 2 decks remaining, then the true count will be 2,5 (because 5 divided by 2 is 2,5).

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