A Guide to Live Dealer Blackjack

Blackjack is by far and away one of the world’s most popular online casino card games. Playing computerised Blackjack can be fun but playing live casino online blackjack is a much more realistic experience. Loads of live casinos are now offering live dealer blackjack for real money. On this page you will discover the best live casinos for blackjack online, as well as some useful hints and advice on how to make live casino online blackjack pay. If you want to know more, simply keep on scrolling!

What Makes A Top Live Dealer Blackjack Casino?

We have outlined eleven of the best live online casinos for blackjack, but plenty more casinos have live dealer blackjack worth checking out. So, what sets our best live casinos apart from the rest? Well, we look at a few different aspects when gauging the quality of real money live dealer blackjack sites.

Firstly, the welcome bonus is vitally important as you want to get as big a bonus as possible when signing up with a live dealer blackjack casino as well as other live casino games. Other important factors include live dealer blackjack promotions, quality of software and reputation of the game provider. If you are looking for a new online live casinos that offer blackjack, we will hopefully point you in the right direction.

Attributes To Look Out For

• Quality of welcome bonus and turnover requirements
• Audited live dealer blackjack software
• Positive reviews
• Seals of approval like eCogra
• Valid licenses

Types of Blackjack Live Casino Games

Playing live casino games online is the closest you will get to actually visiting a casino and playing in real life. Casinos usually have a few different versions of live dealer blackjack, some with high stakes and others with lower stakes, so you should be able to find a live dealer blackjack table that suits your budget.

We won’t bore you with the rules of Blackjack as the chances are that if you are reading this, you will be familiar with how the game works. LeoVegas Casino is our top live dealer blackjack casino and they use software provided by live casino UK favourite, Evolution Gaming. They have a number of different live dealer blackjack games and some with extra features.

Up to 7 players can take part at one table at live dealer blackjack with LeoVegas, but if you are waiting on a seat you can ‘Bet Behind’. This basically means that you bet on the hand of one of the current players while you wait for your seat. Blackjack Party also has bet behind available, and you can play for stakes as low as £0.50.

Blackjack Diamond VIP is at the other end of the spectrum with minimum stakes of £1000. The Salon Prive is for the highest of high rollers, and you need a big bankroll to play that version of live dealer blackjack. LeoVegas also have side bets and other nice features available at some of their live dealer blackjack tables, so it is no surprise that they are our clear number one for live dealer blackjack online.

Live Dealer Blackjack Software Providers

Evolution Gaming is one of the leading providers of live dealer blackjack online software. However, they are not the only ones and plenty more software providers have designed live dealer blackjack games. NetEnt also provides live dealer blackjack to some of the top casinos, including one of our favourites, Casumo. This is also a popular live casino UK option.

Playtech is another big name in live casino software provision and you can check out their live dealer blackjack games if you sign up with Bet365 Casino. Some of the other main live casino software designers have live dealer blackjack available, but for us Evolution Gaming, NetEnt and Playtech are the industry leaders.

Top Providers

• Playtech
• Evolution Gaming
• NetEnt

How To Find A Casino You Can Trust

When you are playing live dealer blackjack for real money, it is vitally important that you know the casino can be trusted. With RNG games there is always a nagging doubt about how trustworthy the software is. However, with live dealer blackjack you don’t have to worry as it is a live dealer and real decks of cards. You should still check for other security features though.

Before you sign up with a live dealer blackjack casino make sure to find out what license they hold. Malta and UK gambling commission licenses are regarded as the most reputable. Other things to check for are SSL (secure socket layer) encryption and also read the privacy policy to find out what measures are put in place to keep your data safe. Only play with casinos that are fully audited, licensed and that we give good reviews too. Perhaps opting for casino sites accepting PayPal is the ultimate seal of approval. We even have a page specifically for the best Live Blackjack PayPal casinos online.

Safety Checklist

• Check that licenses are valid and sites are fully audited.
• Look for seals of approval from the likes of eCogra and other regulators.
• Info on licenses and seals are usually found at the foot of most live dealer blackjack casino homepages.
• Always look for SSL (secure socket layer) encrypted sites.

Blackjack - Live vs. Online

Okay, so you are signed up with your chosen casino and ready to start playing blackjack. The question on your lips is probably which is better? Live dealer blackjack or RNG (computerised) blackjack. Well, the answer is pretty emphatic as there is only one winner and it is live dealer blackjack by a country mile.

The RTP on RNG online Blackjack games can vary quite widely. 32Red is one of the best Blackjack Casinos around and RTPs on their blackjack RNG games range from 99.10% to 99.91%. However, while live dealer blackjack RTP works out at 99.5%, you usually have better options when it comes to doubling up or splitting hands in comparison to some online blackjack games. This can have a dramatic amount on winnings when you get a favourable hand.

So, while some RNG versions of Blackjack may have a slightly better overall RTP than live dealer blackjack, the live option is still a better choice in our opinion. Although the difference in RTP is substantial, the fact remains that you can win bigger if you use the correct strategy when playing live dealer blackjack. The house has a much bigger edge on side bets though, so we recommend staying well away from those.

Are there any Bonuses?

One of the biggest perks when opening an online casino account is the welcome bonus. These vary greatly across the gaming industry, so make sure to take advantage of as many of the best welcome bonuses you can.  LeoVegas is one of the top when it comes to live casinos and new customers can get up to a massive €700 welcome bonus on their first four deposits.

In order to earn the maximum bonus you will need to make four separate deposits. The first is matched 100% up to a max of €50. The second is matched at 50% with a max bonus of €150. The third stage is again a 50% matched deposit bonus up to a max bonus of €200. Finally, 25% of your fourth deposit will be matched up to a maximum of €300. Bonuses must be turned over 35x on slots only before withdrawals can be made.

Unfortunately, with the LeoVegas bonus you won’t be able to reach turnover requirements by playing live dealer blackjack. That is the case with the vast majority of online casinos that we have reviewed. The house edge is just too small and most bookies want you to spend your bonus on games with lower RTPs like slots. If any bonuses or promotions targeting live dealer blackjack are launched, you will hear about it at Casino Countdown first!

Live Dealer Blackjack Strategy

The basic premise of blackjack is to score 21 or less with your cards without busting out. If your cards add up to a higher total than the dealer, you win. If you hit ‘Blackjack’, which is Ace Ten, Ace King, Ace Queen or Ace Jack, you will be paid 3:2. Other betting options include double up, splitting and insurance is also an option with some live dealer blackjack casinos.

Always find the best game to enhance your chances of maximising wins. For example, check if the dealer has to stand or hit on a soft 17 as this can have a big impact on the overall RTP. If they have to hit, the RTP decreases, but if they have to stand it is most definitely in your favour. Make sure to be sensible with your staking plan too, as you don’t want to bust out early.

888 Casino Live Dealer Blackjack

The 888 Casino is one of the best around in our opinion and the range of live dealer blackjack games they have available is phenomenal. They have live dealer blackjack games to suit every level of player, from complete novices to veterans of the game.  

One of the best features of the 888 casino live dealer blackjack suite is the fact that you can use a filter to find the perfect game to suit your staking level. The starting point is a very affordable £0.50, while high rollers can bet up to £10,000 per hand in the Blackjack Fortune VIP suite. If you are looking for a casino with top class live dealer blackjack, 888 casino is well worth a second look.

Coral Casino – Poor Welcome Bonus

Coral may well be one of the leading brands in casino and sports betting, but we were far from impressed with their casino welcome offer. You can play live dealer blackjack if you sign up with Coral, but their sign up bonus is pretty poor in comparison to the likes of bet365 Casino and lots of our other live casino UK sites for blackjack.

The Coral Casino sign up offer at the time of writing was a paltry £50. What’s more, it is a bet to get type bonus and not a matched deposit bonus yet strict turnover requirements still apply. You will need to wager 50x the bonus amount (£2000) within 30 days before you can make a withdrawal. If you are on the lookout for a new live dealer blackjack casino with a decent sign-up offer, you are much better off looking elsewhere.

What edge does the ‘house’ have?

If you use the perfect strategy when playing live dealer blackjack the house edge should be 0.5%. That works out at a return to player (RTP) of 99.50%, a much better return than is available on the vast majority of slots. If you can maintain your discipline and stick to your staking plan, it is more than possible to maximise winning opportunities when playing live dealer blackjack. The information in this guide should help in that regard, so if you do decide to sign up with a live dealer blackjack casino hopefully our advice in this guide helps you to make a healthy profit. Good luck at the tables!!

Live Dealer Blackjack FAQs