Differences between American and European Blackjack

Many blackjack players find a variation of the game they like and stick with this. And oftentimes, their favorite variation turns out to be either American blackjack or European blackjack. These two games are fairly different, but there are some minor differences between the two. That said, let's discuss the different aspects to each game.

American Blackjack

- The dealer receives one face-up and one face-down card, and they peek for a blackjack if their face-up card is an ace. Assuming they have one, all players without a blackjack automatically lose.

- Players can surrender at any time, which helps them save half their bet during a disadvantageous situation.

- Players can double down on any hand.

European Blackjack

- The dealer receives one face-up card, which means they can't peek for a natural blackjack before players make decisions.

- There is no surrender option in this variation.

- Players can only double down on a total of 9, 10 or 11.

What Game is Better?

As you can see from the rules, American blackjack is better in terms of giving players more options. Not only can you surrender when you don't like a certain hand/situation, but you'll also be able to double down on any hand. One more benefit to American blackjack is that dealers look for a natural blackjack before players make any wagers. This prevents people from risking more money on splitting or doubling down - only to find out the dealer has a blackjack.

But despite all of the American game advantages, we're not saying that you should totally avoid European blackjack. After all, the European game can offer an interesting and new challenge to those who are used to American blackjack. So you're highly encouraged to switch back and forth between the games if you get bored with one variation. Just keep in mind that your long-term chances of winning are going to be slightly better with the American version.