Live blackjack rigged
The RTP for perfect pairs™ is 95.90%. Additional bets are also available, including the option to ‘bet behind’ any seat on the table - either while you are waiting for an open seat, or if you just want more action.
All casino to play real money online
Play live blackjack
Blackjack is a casino favorite - an easy-to-learn card game where intuition and strategy can help a skilled player turn a profit from the turn of a card. With live blackjack, you can sit opposite a real dealer and enjoy the fun and excitement of casino gaming from the comfort of home.
Live blackjack - basic rules
Our live blackjack tables feature real dealers in real time, dealing up to seven boxes per table. Eight 52-card decks are used, together in a shoe, and are reshuffled periodically (as opposed to our regular blackjack tables, where cards are reshuffled after every hand).
If you hit blackjack with your first two cards, you will be paid out at odds of 3:2, and ‘insurance’ bets (available if a dealer shows an ace as an upcard) pay 2:1 if the dealer has blackjack. You can double down on any two-card hand, and split pairs once for two hands in total. Split aces receive only one card on each hand.
Additional bets are also available, including the option to ‘bet behind’ any seat on the table - either while you are waiting for an open seat, or if you just want more action. You can also make optional side bets, including perfect pairs™ and 21+3™ wagers.
The theoretical return to player (RTP) for live blackjack is 99.28%.
The RTP for perfect pairs™ is 95.90%.
For more details on how to play the game, please visit our live blackjack rules page.
How to start playing live blackjack
Blackjack is available at a range of stakes, and can also be enjoyed on private tables (available only to our players and offering exclusive promotions) in either english or german. Visit the ‘live’ tab, within the casino section in the client, to open the live casino lobby (mobile users can access the casino section via the ‘more’ menu). Select your game of choice to find a table offering the stakes you wish to play for (stakes displayed will indicate minimum and maximum wagers per box). Select the number of boxes you wish to play and place your wagers (including any side bets), then cards will be dealt.
You can also play live casino blackjack, plus other live casino games, on your ios or android phone and tablet. See here to find out more.
There are also blackjack tables available with native-speaking english and german dealers.
For more detailed information on how to play the game, visit our live blackjack rules page.
See here for more about our regular blackjack games.
Contact support if you have any questions about playing live blackjack.
Live blackjack
If you've ever played blackjack online before, I think you'd agree that you're always wondering:
Is this game rigged?
How different is this compared to playing at the casino?
Well online casinos have heard your thoughts and have come up with a solution to ease your concerns by providing a much more transparent and real experience to substitute that annoying RNG dealer.
Live blackjack dealers.
In this article we're going to look at how live blackjack works, how they compare to RNG blackjack and where you can play safely for real money.
Live dealer blackjack sites
Live blackjack for US players
Bovada
As seen in our complete review of bovada, they are the most recommended casino for US players due to their longstanding reputation.
They currently use visionary igaming software to power their live dealers which has a decent selection of live games as well as mobile compatibility.
Betonline
While we didn't review them as high as bovada, betonline are a decent alternative and utilize the exact same software (visionary igaming). Established since 2004, their reputation took a hit in 2017 but they have bounced back strong and have provided a great service ever since.
Their live blackjack options include:
Sportsbetting.Ag
While not as well known as the above two options, sportsbetting.Ag is a sister site to betonline and offers the exact same service but with a different skin/layout.
Their live blackjack options include:
Is live blackjack legal in the US?
Live blackjack for UK players
888 casino
One of the most reputable brands in UK since 1997, 888 casino uses evolution gaming software to power it's live dealers which allows them to provide an impressive 50+ blackjack tables.
888 also provide private blackjack tables to assure that no matter how busy their site is, there is always a table to play live blackjack on.
Casino cruise
A relatively new casino to the industry (established since 2014), we have decided to list them here because they have built quite the reputation for providing a great all around service.
They primariy use evolution gaming software to power their live dealer games however they also use net entertainment as well to add more diversity to their live dealer gaming catalogue
Their live blackjack options include:
Live blackjack for canadians
888 casino
One of the most reputable global online casino brands, their presence in canada certainly doesn't fall short from high expectations. 888 casino uses evolution gaming software to power it's live dealers which allows them to provide an impressive 50+ blackjack tables.
888 also provide private blackjack tables to assure that no matter how busy their site is, there is always a table to play live blackjack on.
Mr green casino
Mr green casino is fast becoming one of the most popular live blackjack destinations for canadian gamblers. Their slick and modern interface makes for a very seamless experience with a combination of multiple software providers bringing a large diversity of games.
Their live blackjack options are powered by both evolution gaming and net entertainment to bring the best experience possible for it's customers
Their live blackjack options include:
Is live blackjack legal in the canada?
Live blackjack for aussies
Bitstarz
Bitstarz uses evolution gaming software and provides a great diversity of blackjack tables in a variety of betting ranges. Boasting over 50 tables for live blackjack alone, they also have live dealers for baccarat, roulette, poker and various other novelty games. Their live dealer experience is top notch and they also have a if you want to try their customer support is impeccable
Their live blackjack options include:
Joe fortune
While not as entertaining as bitstarz, joe fortune provides an alternative live dealer experience targeted towards the limited australian market. Powered by bodog software, they offer 19 different live blackjack tables of varying betting ranges as well as roullette and baccarat.
Their live blackjack options include:
How does live blackjack work?
The latest evolution of online casino gaming allows you to play blackjack against a real physical dealer which you can see over a live video stream in real time.
So just like visiting the local casino, the live action thrill is much more present as you can chat and interact with not only the dealer, but other players and viewers on the table.
All of this is provided to you through a live stream on your desktop or mobile device however the dealer, and any other players will NOT be able to see you which should ease any privacy concerns.
All of the actions the dealer makes are visible and as he/she deals the cards, you will prompted on your screen on what options to take. This is achieved through microchips that are attached to each card so the software knows what the values are and can track your chosen actions accordingly.
RNG blackjack vs live blackjack
RNG blackjack
These are powered by software that perform intricate mathematical algorithms to simulate the shuffling of multiple cards so that the result is a fair system that mimics playing with actual cards.
The benefits of playing RNG blackjack is that you can play at a much faster pace (or slower if you prefer) than normal and most online casinos offer a multitude of variations to choose from.
Now is it possible for these type of games to be rigged? Absolutely. This is why we list reputable online casinos only on blackjackinfo where their games are audited by third parties to ensure fairness. However, the live blackjack option certainly does give more comfort because you can visually see the cards being dealt by a human dealer
Live blackjack
The negative aspect of live blackjack is that you can't decide how fast/slow a pace you want to play because there are other players on the table waiting for you to make a decision. Each casino will have some sort of visual indicator to show you how much time you have remaining to make a decision. If time expires then the lack of response is interpreted as a stand.
Also note that streaming the live feed of the dealer requires a lot of data so be sure to have a stable and fast internet connection or it may turn out to be a more frustrating experience instead.
Live blackjack variations
Just like in normal RNG online blackjack, the type of live blackjack variation and rules offered depends on the software provider the casino chooses to use.
Live blackjack software compared
Let's go over a few of the popular providers so you can see the difference
Visionary igaming
The house edge for this game is 0.58%. While late surrender and the ability to double after you split are nice, the dealer choosing to hit on soft seventeen is a significant disadvantage for the player.
There is also the option to back bet behind other players, but this is generally not recommended because if they make a poor decision you are stuck with their choice.
Blackjack
However unlike most other blackjack unlimited implementations, the player’s options are slightly limited as you are unable to take more cards than basic strategy dictates. So you are allowed to stay when basic strategy urges a hit, but you are not allowed to hit when basic strategy tells you to stay.
This version is called early payout because you also have the option to exit the hand prematurely and get paid a certain amount. Presumably the payout option is always less than the expectation of the hand and the player should refrain from taking it, although if the payout is close to expectation it is possible that some hands (stiffs for example) might eventually become worth less than the payout at higher counts.
Compared to other online live dealer games, the early payout game allows players to play a lot of hands per hour. You can play three hands simultaneously, and you get in significantly more rounds per hour as well.
- Total decks – 6
- No peek
- Deal hits on soft 17
- No resplitting allowed
- Double on any 2 cards
- Insurance pays 2:1
The house edge of this blackjack variation comes to about 0.69%
Early payout blackjack
Visionary igaming is the only software provider that powers the live dealer games of all US casinos and interestingly uses only 6 decks as opposed to the usual 8 seen in other providers.
They have two variatons called normal and early payout which also allow for side bets which can make things interesting. You can read more about visionary igaming here. They have a house edge of around 0.58% (RTP 94.2%) for their regular tables.
Evolution gaming
- Uses classic seven seat tables
- Cards are dealt from an 8 deck shoe
- Shoe is manually shuffled (around halfway through)
- US style deal (dealer cards are one face down, one face up)
- Dealer must stand on all 17’s
- Doubling after splitting is permitted
- Doubling any two cards is permitted
- No hit on split aces (one card per ace only)
- Re-splitting is not permitted
- Insurance is available
- Bet behind is available
- Side bets available: 21+3, perfect pairs
With these rules in mind, the house edge comes out to be 0.73%. The 21+3 side bet house edge is 6.29% and the pairs side bet house edge is 4.10%. They also provide a feature called pre-decision where you can, similarly to poker, make a decision while waiting for your turn to speed things up.
Blackjack
These are generally low stakes (£0.50 – £25) tables with 7 seats available although an unlimited amount of viewers are allowed to bet behind any player they choose.
Blackjack party
My personal favourite, evolution gaming has live dealer studios based in latvia and are known for providing highly energetic and entertaining dealers. Their platform was built specifically to provide casinos with live dealer games.
While blackjackinfo is filled with information about strategy, sometimes all you want is fun and evolution gaming powered casinos are the best at providing an entertaining live blackjack experience.
They use 8 decks and have a house edge of about 0.73% (RTP 99.27%) with the options for side bets called perfect pairs and 21 + 3. You can read more details about their rules and variations in our complete review here.
Playtech
Playtech grand blackjack rules include:
- Uses an 8 deck shoe
- Dealer must stand on all 17’s
- Double after split is permitted
- Doubling any two cards is permitted
- Hitting on split aces is not permitted
- Re-splits are not permitted
- Insurance is available
- Side bets on offer include: 21+3 and perfect pairs
- Bet behind is available
- 10 card charlie applies
- House edge: 0.48578%
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Grand blackjack
Playtech blackjack VIP rules include:
- Uses an 8 deck shoe
- European style of blackjack deal
- Dealer must stand on all 17’s
- Doubling after split is permitted
- Doubling any two cards is permitted
- Hitting on split aces is permitted
- Re-splits are not permitted
- Insurance is available
- 10 card charlie applies
- Bet behind is available
- House edge: 0.29593%
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Blackjack VIP
Playtech lounge blackjack rules include:
- Uses an 8 deck shoe
- Dealer must stand on all 17’s
- Doubling after split is permitted
- Doubling any two cards is permitted
- Hitting on split aces is not permitted
- Re-splits are not permitted
- Insurance is offered
- Side bets are offered including: 21+3 and perfect pairs
- 10 card charlie applies
- Bet behind is available
- House edge: 0.48768%
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Lounge blackjack
Playtech blackjack soho rules include:
- Uses an 8 deck shoe
- Dealer must stand on all 17’s
- Doubling after split is permitted
- Doubling any two cards is permitted
- Hitting on split aces is not permitted
- Re-splits are not permitted
- Side bets offered including: 21+3
- Bet behind available player pair, dealer pair, 21+3
- House edge: 0.48578%
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Blackjack soho
Playtech blackjack soiree rules include:
- Uses an 8 deck shoe
- Minimum bet is set at £/€/$50
- Maximum bet is set at £/€/$10,000
- Dealer window is 30 minutes
- Players can request a new dealer after 30 minutes or keep the same dealer
- Players can request a shoe change via the dedicated playtech blackjack soiree host
- Players can request the shoe be reshuffled
- Side bets are available including 21+3 and perfect pairs
- Insurance is available
- Blackjack pays 3:2
- Multi seat
- Bet behind available
- US style of blackjack deal
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Soriee blackjack
Playtech royale blackjack rules include:
- Uses an 8 deck shoe
- American dealing style
- Multi-seat
- Bet behind available
- Blackjack pays out 3:2
- Insurance pays out 2:1
- Side bets available including 21+3 and perfect pair
- Dealer must stand on all 17’s
- Doubling any two cards is permitted
- Insurance is available
- House edge: 0.48578%
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Royale blackjack
Playtech transylvania blackjack rules include:
- Uses an 8 deck shoe
- Dealer must stand on all 17’s
- Doubling after split is permitted
- Doubling any two cards is permitted
- Hitting on split aces is not permitted
- Re-splits are not permitted
- Insurance is offered
- Side bets are offered including: 21+3 and perfect pairs
- 10 card charlie applies
- European betting style
- Bet behind is available
- House edge: 0.48768%
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Transylvania blackjack
- The game automatically splits certain hands
- In the case of a split, you have the option to split or to fold
- If you fold your bet will be returned to you minus 20%
Additional rules in playtech unlimited blackjack:
- Dealer draws until 16 and always stands on any 17
- Re-splitting is not permitted
- Only one extra card is drawn for split aces
- Doubling after splitting is permitted
- Dealer does not check for blackjack in any case
- When doubling: if the dealer gets blackjack, you lose both your bets if the dealers first card is of 11 value (ace).
- You get your double bet back if the dealer fist card is value 10 (dealer gets blackjack)
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Unlimited blackjack
Playtech have been a software provider for online casinos since 1999 and have rapidly expanded their catalogue to include live dealers.
To stand out from it's competitors, playtech look to be the first in implementing live blackjack dealers for specific languages. They currently have a staggering 500 dealers who are well trained and cater to audiences from the UK, italy, spain and romania.
They have several blackjack variations but their regular tables use 8 decks with the option to sidebet on perfect pairs.
Sparing no expense, playtech built a large studio of 8,500 square metres in latvia back in february 2017 and have clearly set their goal to be the leader in the live dealer space.
Extreme live gaming
- Uses an 8 deck shoe
- Vegas rules apply (2 cards for dealer)
- Dealer offers insurance on ace up card before checking for blackjack
- Insurance pays 2:1
- Blackjack pays 3:2
- Tied blackjack is pushed
- Dealer must stand on all 17s
- Players can split pairs
- Split pairs can get unlimited cards
- Split aces can only get one card each
- Any pair may be re-split
- Aces can only be split once
- Players can split any two cards of the same rank
- Double down on any first two cards
- Doubling down not permitted after split
The house edge comes to 0.62%
Blackjack
Founded in 2013, extreme live gaming has a studio based in london and offers live blackjack with 8 decks similarly to other providers.
What sets them apart however is their "livebox" product which streams a feed from an actual land based casino where you can place bets alongside people inside the venue itself.
Unfortunately this is only available for their roulette games but it will be interesting if they ever provide this experience for blackjack at some stage
Ezugi
- Dealer stands on soft 17
- Early surrender against ace available
- Eight decks
- Dealer peeks for blackjack with aces
- Doubles possible on any two cards.
- Doubles after a split is possible
- Re-splitting not allowed
- Back betting is allowed
- Insurance for blackjack is available
- 21+3 side bets
- Perfect pair side bets
- Bet behind
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American blackjack
The rules for ezugi’s european blackjack are as follows:
- Dealer stands on soft 17
- Early surrender against ace available
- Six decks
- Dealer peeks for blackjack with aces
- Doubles only possible on hard 9, 10, & 11
- Doubles after a split is possible
- Insurance for blackjack is available
- 21+3 side bets
- Perfect pair side bets
- Bet behind
">
European blackjack
This does have a minor 0.05% increase in the house edge bringing the house edge of hybrid blackjack to 0.59% assuming that you employ basic strategy. Unlike blackjack unlimited, where there is only one hand played, with hybrid blackjack you have a full table but players can bet on existing spots and control their hand’s destiny without being forced to follow the decisions of the spot holder.
Hybrid blackjack
Despite the fact that everyone is playing the same hand, people are allowed to play their own hand how they want it and if they choose to stay while someone else chooses to hit that card does not affect them. The rules for ezugi’s blackjack unlimited are as follows
- Dealer stands on soft seventeen
- Double after split allowed
- One card only to split aces
- Eight decks
- Double any two cards
- European no hole card
- No surrender
- Blackjack pays 3:2
- Insurance available
- 21+3 side bets
- Perfect pair side bets
- Bet behind
One advantage to the blackjack unlimited variant is the game speed. Because there is only one hand to play rounds are significantly faster than at a normal table. Unfortunately, they do cut off what appears to be three decks out of eight.
The documentation suggests a house edge of 0.43%, which is not accurate unless the dealer peeks for blackjack. Assuming you can resplit to four hands and the game is played with the european no hole card rule the house edge is actually 0.54%
The house edge on the perfect pair side bet is 4.1% and 6.29% for the 21+3 side bet.
Unlimited 21 blackjack – auto split
Offering a variety of different themed tables, ezugi has some great options when it comes to live blackjack.
In fact, they are one of the only providers who offer the early surrender option which can be found in any of their american blackjack tables with a very low 0.11% house edge
You can read more about ezugi and their catalogue of games here
Is live blackjack rigged?
Considering all actions the dealer makes is visible to multiple players/viewers, it would be extremely difficult for a casino to rig blackjack.
Having said that there was an incident that went viral in february 2017 where video footage of a dealer dealing cards in a peculiar manner lead many to believe betonline was intentionally cheating.
There is no concrete evidence that this was either an accident made by the dealer or purposeful second dealing. It does make you wonder though, since it's so easy to record video footage of gameplay, why would a casino even attempt to rig their games in a manner like this?
Live blackjack FAQ
No. While they all practically offer the normal RNG style blackjack, it takes a lot of resources to provide a solution for live blackjack so many of the smaller casinos are unable to provide it
No. Casinos have shuffle policies in place to avoid players gaining any advantage through card counting. Blackjackapprenceship.Com has a great article about this as to why it's not effective
Yes. Although the interface can get a little bit annoying on a small screen, there are several casinos that do provide live blackjack solutions for mobile
If you've ever been curious where twitch streamer sodapoppin plays, he plays at betonline which is a US casino brand.
While there is no definitive winning strategy, you can still apply our basic blackjack strategy charts to avoid any mistakes.
So, let's see, what we have: blackjack is a popular casino card game, where intuition and strategy can help a clever player get a profit by rolling a card. Learn how to beat the dealer. At live blackjack rigged
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