Live blackjack in Las Vegas has gotten expensive since the pandemic recovery. Most blackjack tables under $5 disappeared. A few remain, as well as other low-limit games with small house edges. The list below shows the smallest expected loss at the typical minimum bet at each blackjack game with a low minimum bet and house edge. All hit soft 17.
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Poker Palace – $3
The best expected value in blackjack is at Poker Palace in North Las Vegas. This $3 six-deck game permits double down on two or three cards before and after splitting. The house edge is around 0.45%. At the $3 minimum bet, players should expect to lose about $0.0135 per hand. That is the lowest of any blackjack game in the Las Vegas market.
Jerry’s Nugget – $5
Jerry’s Nugget in North Las Vegas has the last $5 3/2 double-deck blackjack game in the market. It has normal double down rules. The house edge is 0.46%, putting the expected loss at the minimum bet at $0.023 per hand.
Downtown Grand and Tuscany – $5
Downtown Grand and Tuscany deal a $5 six-deck blackjack game. It offers re-split aces. The house edge is 0.55%. At $5 per hand, the expected loss is $0.0275 each time.
$1 blackjack games
Downtown Grand and Oyo deal $1 blackjack. Downtown Grand offers re-split aces. Oyo does not. The house edge is 2.82% at Downtown Grand and 2.88% at Oyo. The expected loss per $1 hand is $0.028 at Downtown Grand and $0.029 at Oyo.
Other $5 3/2 blackjack games
Ellis Island, Jerry’s Nugget, and South Point all have $5 3/2 six-deck blackjack with the same standard double down rules but no surrender or re-split aces. These tables use continuous shuffling machines. The house edge is 0.64%. At $5, the expected loss per hand is $0.032 per hand.
$10 3/2 games
The selection of cheap blackjack games with low expected losses expands greatly at the $10 limit. Available options use two or six decks.
The $10 double-deck games are available at Aliante, Arizona Charlie’s Decatur, Boulder Station, Cannery, M Resort, Rampart, Sam’s Town, South Point, and Suncoast. Standard double down rules apply. The house edge is 0.46%. The expected loss is $0.046 per hand.
The six-deck rules vary by casino. Rampart permits surrender and re-split aces. The house edge is about 0.46%. A $10 player should expect to lose $0.046 per hand at Rampart.
M Resort and Silverton have $10 games with re-split aces. The house edge is 0.55%, making the expected loss per hand $0.055.
Aliante, Arizona Charlie’s, Oyo, Skyline, and Suncoast have standard double down rules without surrender or re-split aces. The house edge is 0.64%. The expected loss per hand is $0.064.
How do high-limit blackjack games compare?
Most casinos offer better rules at high-limit games. Here are the expected losses for the most common salon blackjack tables.
Most MGM casinos, Fontainebleau, Palms, and Treasure Island, deal double-deck blackjack that stands on soft 17. The house edge is about 0.25% at these tables. That is the lowest for any Las Vegas blackjack game. The list below shows the expected loss per hand at commonly available limits:
- $50: $0.125
- $100: $0.25
- $200: $0.50
- $300: $0.75
- $500: $1.25
The other common salon game is six-deck that stands on soft 17 and permits surrender and re-split aces. It is offered at most Las Vegas Strip salons and a few local casinos like M Resort, Palms, and four Station Casinos properties. This game holds about 0.28%. The expected loss per hand at commonly available limits are:
- $50: $0.14
- $100: $0.28
- $200: $0.56
- $300: $0.84
The expected loss per hand at salon games is exponentially higher than the best low-limit ones. However, players who prefer betting big will want to stick with the salon games. Those more comfortable with $5 and $10 games have no reason to move up in limits as there are still many options with a tiny expected loss in Las Vegas.
