18+ entertainment and education. Virtual chips only. No deposits, cash prizes or real-money gambling on this site.

When should you hit or stand in blackjack?

The basic rule of thumb: hit on 11 or under (you cannot bust), always stand on hard 17 or more, and between hard 12 and 16 it depends on the dealer’s upcard - stand when the dealer shows 2-6 (weak, likely to bust), hit when the dealer shows 7 through Ace (strong).

Why the dealer’s upcard decides it

The dealer must hit until 17, so a dealer showing 5 or 6 busts most often - those are the dealer’s worst cards. When the dealer is weak, standing on even a shaky 12 or 13 is the math play: let the dealer take the bust risk. When the dealer shows 7 or better, they make a hand most of the time, so you have to take the risk and try to improve.

Hard vs soft hands

A soft hand contains an ace counted as 11 (like A-6, soft 17) and cannot bust on one hit, so soft hands are hit and doubled far more aggressively than hard hands. A hard 16 is the worst hand in blackjack; a soft 16 is a fine hitting or doubling hand.

The full chart

Every hit/stand/double/split decision for every hand against every upcard is in the basic strategy chart. The chart is the mathematically best play for multi-deck games - memorize a few rows at a time and practice the decisions free in the game. For why standing on 12-16 against a 6 is math and not fear, see the bust odds chart.