How to Play Free Bet Blackjack

Free Bet Blackjack plays like classic blackjack with one big difference: the house pays for your best doubles and splits. In return, a dealer hand that busts with exactly 22 is a push instead of a win. This guide walks through a round, explains every option you have on a hand, and shows how the free bets are paid. For the complete rule list see the rules page.

The table at a glance

  • Six decks, reshuffled automatically.
  • Blackjack pays 3 to 2. The dealer hits soft 17.
  • Free double on any two-card hard 9, 10 or 11. Free split on every pair except ten-value pairs.
  • Dealer 22 is a push: if the dealer busts with exactly 22, every player hand still standing is a tie. A player blackjack still wins and a busted player hand still loses.
  • Two optional side bets: Pot of Gold and Dealer 22 Push.
  • Chips are play money. They cannot be cashed out and have no real-world value.

A round, step by step

  1. Place your main bet. Add a Pot of Gold or Dealer 22 Push side bet if you want one; both are optional and settle separately from the main hand.
  2. Press Deal. You receive two cards face up; the dealer receives one card face up and one face down.
  3. If the dealer shows an ace you are offered insurance, which pays 2 to 1 if the dealer has a blackjack. If the dealer has a blackjack the round ends immediately; otherwise play continues.
  4. Play your hand. You can hit, stand, double or split, and some of those doubles and splits are free (see below). Each hand is played in turn until you stand, reach 21 or bust.
  5. The dealer reveals the hole card and draws until reaching 17 or more, hitting on soft 17.
  6. Hands are settled. Your hand beats the dealer's with a higher total or when the dealer busts with 23 or more. Dealer 22 pushes. Equal totals push.

Your options on each hand

  • Hit: take another card. You can keep hitting until you stand or go over 21.
  • Stand: keep your total and end your turn on that hand.
  • Free Double: on a two-card hard 9, 10 or 11, the house matches your bet and you receive exactly one more card. If you win you are paid on both bets; if you lose you lose only your own bet.
  • Double: on any other two-card hand you can double with your own chips. You receive one card and both bets are at risk.
  • Free Split: on any pair except 10s, jacks, queens or kings, the house funds the second hand. Each hand is then played on its own.
  • Split: ten-value pairs can be split with your own chips if you choose to.

How a free double works

Suppose you bet 100 chips and are dealt 6 and 5 against a dealer 9. Your total is a hard 11, so the Free Double button lights up. Take it and the house places a second 100-chip bet beside yours. You get one card and your turn on that hand is over.

If the hand wins, you collect on both bets: your 100 and the house's 100, for a net gain of 200 chips. If the hand pushes, nothing changes hands. If the hand loses, you lose your own 100 and the house simply takes its free bet back. You never pay for the second bet.

Because the downside is the same as if you had never doubled, a free double is worth taking on every 9, 10 and 11, whatever the dealer shows. The strategy page explains why.

How a free split works

Now suppose you are dealt a pair of 8s. Press Free Split and the house funds a second 100-chip hand. Each 8 receives a new card and you play the two hands one after the other, hitting, standing or doubling as usual.

The hand with your own bet is settled normally: win, lose or push. The hand with the free bet is settled in your favour only: a win pays 100, while a loss or a push costs nothing. If either new hand is a two-card hard 9, 10 or 11 you can free double it as well.

You can keep splitting up to four hands in total. Split aces are the exception: you can split them once, each ace receives a single card, and 21 made this way is an ordinary 21 rather than a blackjack.

The Dealer 22 push

Free bets would be too generous on their own, so the game balances them with one rule in the dealer's favour. When the dealer's final total is exactly 22, it is not a bust. Every player hand that is still standing pushes and the main bets are returned.

Two things are unaffected. A player blackjack still beats a dealer 22 and is paid 3 to 2. A player hand that has already busted still loses, because it was settled before the dealer drew.

This rule changes how you play stiff hands. In classic blackjack you stand on 12 against a dealer 4, 5 or 6 because the dealer busts often. Here some of those busts become pushes, so standing is worth less and you hit more often. The strategy chart shows exactly where the lines move.

Pot of Gold coins

Every free double and every free split you take during a round earns one Pot of Gold coin, so a hand that splits twice and free doubles once collects three coins. If you placed the Pot of Gold side bet, it pays according to the number of coins you earned, with the top prize for seven or more. The paytable is on the rules page. The side bet loses if the dealer is dealt a blackjack.

Chips, rewards and stats

Your chips are play money. You receive a starting bank when you create an account, you can claim a free reward once a day, and consecutive daily claims build a streak with larger bonuses on days 3, 7 and 14. If you run dry, the game offers a second chance before you need to buy more.

The game keeps your statistics: hands played, win rate, blackjacks, free bets taken and net result for today and for your lifetime. Signed-in players can see how closely their decisions follow basic strategy. The FAQ covers chips, rewards and accounts in more detail.

Try a few hands

The free demo deals real rounds with no account and no download. When you are ready to keep your chips and stats, create an account in a few seconds.