Blackjack Side Bets
Many blackjack tables, both in person and online, offer optional side bets alongside the main wager.
On this page
- Why Casinos Love Side Bets
- Popular Blackjack Side Bets
- Why taking insurance automatically is costly
- Blackjack Switch and Other “Extra Action” Games
- Are Blackjack Side Bets Ever Worth It?
- How to Evaluate a Side Bet Before You Play It
- What a side bet costs alongside a main wager
- Best Approach for Most Players
- FAQs About Blackjack Side Bets
- What is a side bet in blackjack?
- Are side bets connected to the outcome of the main hand?
- What are the most common blackjack side bets?
- Do side bets have a higher house edge?
- Is insurance a good bet?
- Can I use basic strategy to beat side bets?
- Can I place a side bet without making a blackjack bet?
- Are side bets available in online blackjack?
- Are side bets worth it?
Side bets can make the game feel more exciting because they usually offer bigger payouts than the main blackjack hand. The problem is that most side bets also come with a much higher house edge. In other words, they are fun in the short term, but they usually cost more over time.
This guide breaks down the most common blackjack side bets, explains why casinos push them so hard, and shows you how to decide whether they fit your bankroll.
A blackjack side bet is an optional wager you place in addition to your main bet. It is usually based on your first two cards, the dealer’s upcard, or a special combination (like pairs, suited cards, or poker-style hands).
When you sit down to play blackjack, the main game is simple: beat the dealer without going over 21. In a decent blackjack game, the house edge can be relatively low, especially when you use proper blackjack strategy. That is one reason blackjack is so popular with serious players.
Casinos know this, so side bets are an easy way to increase their edge. They give players a chance at a flashy payout while quietly shifting more money into wagers that are worse for the player mathematically.
Most side bets have their own betting circle on the felt. You place your main blackjack bet first, then decide whether to add one or more side bets. Many products require a qualifying main wager. Confirm that requirement in the specific game rules, including bet-behind or other participation formats, rather than assuming one condition applies to every product.
Why Casinos Love Side Bets
Casinos would rather have players betting on high-edge games than low-edge games. Blackjack by itself can be a fairly efficient game for a disciplined player. Side bets change that.
Here is why casinos add side bets to the blackjack table:
- Higher house edge: Most side bets are far worse than the base game.
- Bigger payout headlines: A 9:1, 25:1, or 100:1 payout gets attention.
- More action per hand: Players are betting extra money every round.
- Distraction: Side bets can pull players away from basic strategy and bankroll discipline.
If you are trying to play blackjack with a serious edge-focused mindset, this matters. Even a good session can get expensive fast if you keep adding side bets every hand.
Popular Blackjack Side Bets
Different casinos and software providers use different names, but these are some of the side bets you will see most often online and in live dealer games.
Perfect Pairs
This side bet pays if your first two cards form a pair. Payouts are usually tiered:
- Mixed pair (same rank, different colors)
- Colored pair (same rank and color, but different suits)
- Perfect pair (same rank and same suit)
It is easy to understand and fun to hit, but the long-term math is usually poor compared with the main game.
21+3
This combines your first two cards with the dealer’s upcard and treats them like a three-card poker hand. Typical winning combos include:
- Flush
- Straight
- Three of a kind
- Straight flush
- Suited three of a kind
21+3 is one of the most common side bets because players already understand poker-style hand rankings. It looks harmless, but the house edge can still be significantly higher than standard blackjack.
Insurance
Insurance is technically part of the main game, but many players think of it like a side bet because it is an extra wager made only when the dealer shows an Ace.
Insurance pays 2:1 if the dealer has blackjack. With a 3:2 natural blackjack, a maximum insurance wager produces the familiar even-money outcome. Accepting it is normally inferior without favorable composition information. Do not assume the same equivalence in a game that pays naturals 6:5.
Without reliable information showing favorable odds, declining standard insurance is the basic-strategy choice. At a 2:1 profit payout, an insurance wager has expected value 2p − (1 − p) = 3p − 1 per unit, where p is the conditional probability that the dealer has a ten-value hole card. It is positive only when p exceeds one third; being a counter is not itself sufficient.
Royal Match
This side bet pays if your first two cards are suited. A higher payout is offered if they form a king-queen suited combo (“royal match”). It is simple and fast, which is exactly why casinos like offering it.
Super Sevens and Similar Streak Bets
These bets pay when one or more of your first cards are sevens (or another featured rank, depending on the game). The bigger payouts depend on rare combinations, such as multiple suited sevens in a row.
These bets look great on a paytable because of the top prize, but the odds of hitting the premium outcome are extremely low.
In-Between
Some games include an “In-Between” style side bet. A common version pays if the dealer’s upcard lands between your two starting cards. It sounds easy when you think of hands like 3 and 10, but the overall price on the bet is still usually in the casino’s favor.
Also remember: winning the side bet does not fix a weak blackjack hand. You can hit the side bet and still play a difficult main hand.
Why taking insurance automatically is costly
Many blackjack variants offer insurance, and it is one of the most common leaks in a player’s game.
Here is why players take it:
- They hate seeing the dealer flip blackjack.
- They want to “protect” a strong hand.
- They think even money is safer.
Here is why casinos love it:
- It feels like a smart hedge.
- It is offered at an emotional moment (dealer shows Ace).
- Most players do not know the math.
If your goal is long-term results, insurance should almost always be a pass unless counting conditions clearly support it.
Blackjack Switch and Other “Extra Action” Games
Some blackjack variants are not side bets in the strict sense, but they increase action in a similar way by encouraging more money on the table. A good example is Blackjack Switch, where you play two hands and can swap cards between them.
Games like this can be entertaining, but they also create more chances to make mistakes. A player who already struggles with basic strategy is much more likely to misplay hands in a specialty format.
More hands and more decisions usually means:
- More total money wagered per hour
- More exposure to mistakes
- Higher effective cost if the rules are worse than standard blackjack
Are Blackjack Side Bets Ever Worth It?
It depends on your goal.
If your goal is entertainment: A small side bet once in a while can be fine, as long as you treat it like paying for extra excitement.
If your goal is profit or disciplined bankroll play: Side bets are usually a leak. They usually raise your combined expected cost and can turn a decent blackjack session into a losing one much faster.
A practical compromise many players use is this:
- Play the main game using proper strategy
- Skip side bets by default
- If you want action, cap side bets at a tiny amount (for example, $1) and only use them occasionally
How to Evaluate a Side Bet Before You Play It
Before making a side bet, read its rules and check these points:
- What is the payout table? Bigger top payouts do not always mean a better bet.
- How often can it realistically hit? Most premium payouts are very rare.
- Does it affect my bankroll plan? Extra bets every hand add up quickly.
- Am I still playing the main hand correctly? Side bets should never distract from basic strategy.
- Is this game already using bad rules? If the table is 6:5 or has weak rules, adding side bets makes it worse.
What a $1 side bet costs alongside a $10 main wager
Suppose, purely as an arithmetic example, a $10 initial blackjack wager has a 0.5% house edge and a $1 side bet has a 5% house edge. Their expected losses are $10 × 0.005 = $0.05 and $1 × 0.05 = $0.05. Together, the expected loss is $0.10 per round—twice the main wager’s expected loss, despite the side bet being only one tenth of its size.
Over 100 such rounds, main initial wagers total $1,000 and side bets total $100. Expected loss is $5 + $5 = $10. Dividing by the $1,100 of these original wagers gives a combined rate of about 0.91%. The main game’s own house edge remains 0.5%; the mix of wagers has changed. Doubles and splits are already included when that main-game percentage is expressed per initial wager, so do not add their stakes again to that calculation.
These are hypothetical edges, not a quoted paytable. Actual cost requires the exact game, deck count and payouts. Expected loss is an average, not a session prediction: a rare large prize can make short results very uneven.
Read every payout tier, not just the jackpot
For an eight-deck Perfect Pairs example analyzed by Michael Shackleford, payouts of 25:1, 12:1 and 6:1 produce about a 4.10% house edge. Keeping the first two payouts but reducing the mixed pair to 5:1 raises it to about 7.95%. The top prize has not changed. This comparison applies to the stated first-two-player-cards version; similarly named bets using dealer cards or different tiers need separate calculations.
Also check whether quoted odds mean profit “to one” or a total return “for one,” whether only the highest qualifying category is paid and whether there is a maximum or shared payout cap. The table-limit guide explains how such a cap can reduce the effective prize.
Best Approach for Most Players
If you are serious about improving at blackjack, focus on the fundamentals first:
- Play good rule sets (3:2, decent table rules)
- Learn and apply basic blackjack strategy
- Use proper bankroll management
- Avoid emotional betting
- Treat side bets as optional entertainment, not income strategy
Games with several side bets can look attractive, but accurate main-game strategy still normally leaves a house edge. Treat better decisions as a reduction in expected cost, not a promise of profitable long-term results.
If you are still learning, start with free blackjack and build your fundamentals before risking real money. When you are ready to move up, compare offers carefully and check the terms on any blackjack bonuses before you claim them.
FAQs About Blackjack Side Bets
What is a side bet in blackjack?
A side bet is an optional wager placed alongside your main blackjack bet. It usually pays based on special card combinations or the dealer’s upcard, not just the final result of the hand.
Are side bets connected to the outcome of the main hand?
Most side bets have separate settlement rules. You can win one and lose the main hand, or vice versa. Their outcomes can still be statistically related because they use some of the same cards; separate payment does not mean independent probabilities.
What are the most common blackjack side bets?
Popular options include Perfect Pairs, 21+3, Insurance, Royal Match, and Super Sevens. The exact list depends on the casino or software provider.
Do side bets have a higher house edge?
Usually yes. Side bets often have much higher house edges than the main blackjack game, which is why casinos promote them so heavily.
Is insurance a good bet?
Usually not without reliable composition information. With a standard 2:1 profit payout, it is positive only if the conditional probability of a ten-value hole card exceeds one third.
Can I use basic strategy to beat side bets?
Main-game basic strategy does not optimize a side bet’s separate probabilities and paytable. Some bets can be composition-sensitive, but evaluating them requires a bet-specific model; ordinary Hi-Lo information is not automatically sufficient.
Can I place a side bet without making a blackjack bet?
Check the specific product rules. Many require a qualifying main wager, and participation conditions can differ by game or betting format.
Are side bets available in online blackjack?
Yes. Many online blackjack and live dealer games include one or more side bets.
Are side bets worth it?
They can be fun, but they are usually not worth it for players focused on long-term results. If you play them, keep the stakes small and treat them like entertainment.
