Blackjack is a card game in which you play against the dealer and bet money on the dealer’s hand. The object of the game is to get a higher hand than the dealer, but you can do so in a number of ways. Some of these include hitting, standing, or doubling down. There are also procedures and codes of conduct, which you should follow when playing. These can help you reduce the house edge to under 1%.

First, you must understand the rules of the game. Assuming you have the correct count, you can choose to stand. If your first two cards are an Ace and a ten, you will have a natural blackjack. If you get 21 on those cards, you win. If the dealer has a natural hand, he pays you one and a half times what you bet. Otherwise, the dealer will collect all of the bets placed by other players and you’ll lose your chips.

The game has gone through many changes throughout its history. The first fairly accurate basic playing strategy for blackjack was devised by the Four Horsemen of Aberdeen. These men used hand calculators to study blackjack probabilities and found that the best strategy was to use specific rules and strategies. In 2008, they were inducted into the Blackjack Hall of Fame.

The first step to learning how to play blackjack is recognizing the possible outcomes of your bets. You can make side bets to increase your chances of winning a hand. If your hand is greater than the dealer’s hand, you can win your bet. Otherwise, you lose your bet and are left with no winning hand.

The second step is to learn the rules and strategy for playing blackjack. The basic rules for blackjack are pretty simple. You can practice basic blackjack strategies at home. However, you will not need a fancy Blackjack table. In a traditional blackjack game, you and your partners should take turns dealing. It is important to double down when you have a 10 or 11 or an ace. This strategy will help you to decrease the house edge.

Splitting is another option in blackjack. When you have two pairs that are not exactly the same rank, you can split your hands and play a new hand. However, this will require you to make an additional bet on the second hand. Splitting is not a profitable option, so you should only use it if your starting hand is low.

If you win the hand, you are awarded the winnings in half of the game. If the dealer gets an ace, you can get the other half of your bet. However, if your hand contains a pair of aces, you will lose your bet. You can also make larger bets when you have an advantage. If there are many aces and tens, you can increase your starting bet.