An article about the house edge on video blackjack can be divided into three sections:
Theoretical Basics
The Effect of Variables on the House Edge
The Effect of Skill on the House Edge
The theoretical basics of video blackjack are simple. The house edge is the percentage of money that is bet by the house, and it is always greater than 0.5 percent. This means that for every $100 that is wagered, the house will win $5.
50 on average. It should be noted, however, that this figure does not take into account any player advantage or disadvantage that a player may have.
The effect of variables on the house edge is a topic of much debate among casino professionals. Some believe that the house edge decreases as the number of decks in use increases, while others contend that it remains unchanged.
The reason for this discrepancy likely has to do with how casino personnel count hands; if they are counting hands using all 52 cards, then a hand with two sixes would be counted as a ten and not as a six, which would decrease the house edge by one half of one percent. Conversely, if hands are counted using only the face cards, then two sixes would be counted as two tens and would increase the house edge by one half of one percent.
One variable that has a significant impact on the house edge is player skill. As players become better at video blackjack, their odds of winning decrease, which in turn decreases the house edge.
This phenomenon can be seen most clearly in games with low Pai Gow poker hand values (e.g., 3-2 or 2-1), where skilled players have an extremely good chance of winning even when playing against a house edge of 1%.
