Blackjack Side Bets

Blackjack side bets are wagers that you can make beyond the regular game bet.  They cannot normally be placed without a regular bet having been placed first.

In land based casinos there are a lot of different side bet variations on offer, especially if you go to somewhere like Las Vegas. But at online live casinos the list is quite small, so I have detailed the ones available at the casinos I’ve reviewed here on Live blackjack sites.

The odds for each side bet are normally displayed on the table.

Blackjack Side bet Casinos

Casino	Stakes	No of Decks	Bet Behind	21-3 (Poker)	Perfect Pair	Software	Star Rating	Play
	£5 – £25,000	8				Evolution – BV Grand		Goto Casino
	£0.50 – £500	6				Visionary Igaming		Goto Casino
	£5 – £5,000	8				Evolution		Goto Casino
	£5 – £2,000	8				Evolution		Goto Casino
	£5-£5,000	8				Evolution		Goto Casino
	£5 – £5,000	8				Evolution		Goto Casino
	£3 – £10,000	8				Evolution		Goto Casino
	£2.50- £100	8				Playtech		Goto Casino

Perfect Pair 

In this blackjack side bet you can bet that your own first two cards or the dealer’s first two cards form a pair. The winning Perfect Pair hands are:

• Red / Black pair
• Black / Black pair
• Red / Red pair
• Same suit pair – Perfect pair

Insurance 

The most popular of  the blackjack side bets is Insurance, whereby If the dealer shows an Ace then he will offer you insurance, which is a side bet of 50% of your initial stake that the dealer has Black Jack. This pays a 2:1 return.

This means that if you win the insurance bet you collect twice your insurance bet. It also means that you lose your original stake money, effectively meaning that you have broken even and not won or lost anything for the hand.

If you lose the insurance bet then you still have your original bet in play and have the opportunity to win at even money, but you net result will be 0.5 : 1.

The general advice is to not take the insurance bet as it is not a value bet.

21-3 Poker Hands

Of all the blackjack side bets this is probably my favourite, I guess its because I also like to play poker.  This is a bet that your first 2 cards and the dealers up card will make a “poker hand”, such as a straight, flush, 3 of a kind etc.  The pay table is normally displayed on the blackjack table.  I’ve seen someone do very well with this side bet, but he was betting a large amount each normal hand, and playing a small bet for 21-3.   Not enough to tempt me though as I was betting the table minimum!

Bet Behind
Bet Behind is not really a side bet as such.  In Land based casinos you can place bets on other peoples hands whilst you are playing and you can find that at the William Hill Live Casino. generally though other software providers only let you bet on other peoples hands while you are waiting for a seat at the table.  Some live casinos limit your bet to a range lower than the table stakes, and others allow you to bet the table limits.

What you need to know about Blackjack Side bets!

You do need to be wary of the Blackjack side bets, they are offered by the casino because the house edge is greater than normal blackjack, quite substantially actually.  So my advice is to play these for fun and concentrate your bank roll on the main event.