Casinos are plenty of fun to visit, but take time, petrol and planning to attend in person, which has led to a rise in those who want to enjoy their favourite games online instead. While many games are considered equal, there are some subtle differences to games hosted online vs visited in person. For avid Blackjack players, here are some key differences to note.

Playing Online

When you choose to play online, you’re able to open up whatever device you’d prefer to play on and can join one of hundreds of online casino’s, whenever you want to, as opposed to having to wait for a seat to open at your local land based casino. Online Blackjack also caters to almost unlimited players, while land based venues are limited to the seats available at each table.

Online Blackjack is a speedy affair, so if you’re short on time and want to play, the dealing of the cards is fairly instant – the part which takes the most time usually is you tapping the buttons once you’ve made your  decisions. Online play gives you absolute control over the amount of hands you play in an hour – while land based casinos limit this.

Lower starting bets is a great online advantage as you’ll often find casinos who are willing to allow you to start your bet for only $1. Land based casinos however almost always have higher starting bets – usually from $5 and up.

Land Based Blackjack

If you’re someone who thrives in crowds, the community aspect of land based Blackjack can’t be beaten. You’ll also have ample opportunity to study different playing styles to your own.

Dealer mistakes are usually few, but they do happen which ups the players edge in games such as Blackjack, at land based venues. If you’re able to spot this early on, you can use it to your advantage. Some common dealer mistakes that happen in a players favour include paying out too much, or paying out early due to misreading the hand.

Player advantages are more numerous at land-based venues and some players can almost entirely eliminate the house edge. Numerous factors come in to play for this, but some common advantages are: Hole carding and shuffle tracking.

• Shuffle tracking is a common advantage since most dealers only shuffle and cut the cards once – while online Blackjack tends to have the cards reshuffled more frequently. Players who are able to keep track of cards in a deck have a distinct advantage at land based casinos due to this. Once low cards have been dealt out, the remaining high value cards are often easier to track and take the house advantage away.
• Hole carding is the ability to spot a poor dealer who keeps flashing their down card, which ultimately makes it easier to have an advantage over the house by playing your hand better.

Now that some of the main differences have been noted, it’s up to you to choose if you’d prefer to play Blackjack online, or if playing Blackjack at a land based venue is more your style.