One "fact" that's often spouted off by blackjack players is how the house edge is 0.5% in this game. However, the blackjack house edge is by no means a rigid figure such as 0.5%, and it varies greatly depending upon individual casino rules and a player's ability.

The 0.5% house advantage is normally used as a general marker for what can be achieved through perfect basic blackjack strategy. However, the reality is that most people don't actually get anywhere close to this low of a casino edge when they play blackjack and we'll explain why.

Just Average

Many players who sit down to the felt have some general semblance of how blackjack strategy works - though they've never truly put any work into the matter. So they'll make plenty of correct plays during a session, but they will splice in some bad plays too such as splitting 8's and 10's, taking insurance, and doubling down when they shouldn't.

Because most people don't thoroughly study blackjack tips before they play, the average person is facing a 2% - 2.5% house edge. Now this isn't terrible since it's still better than other games like slots, roulette and Caribbean poker. However, it's still not the ideal house advantage either.

Even Worse

Another breed of players are those who have absolutely no idea how to play blackjack. What's worse is that they adopt terrible strategies based on misguided beliefs about what will help them win. For example, a really bad player might try to mimic the dealer, which raises the house edge to around 7%.

Thankfully most players don't make this mistake - hence the 2% - 2.5% average casino advantage. But those who pay absolutely no attention to strategy are really taking a huge risk by playing blackjack.

A Simple Matter

Anybody who wants to lower the blackjack house edge down to around 0.5% doesn't even have to work that hard. Instead, they can use a blackjack strategy chart, which shows the correct moves in each situation. Once you've used the chart enough while playing, you can eventually play with your own knowledge and achieve perfect (or near perfect) strategy!