Counting – live dealer blackjack

We already know that card counting at online casinos doesn’t work. Essentially the deck(s) are shuffled after every single hand, so there is no discard pile or opportunity to assess removed cards. Some however have questioned whether it is possible to card count when playing against a live dealer in online blackjack.

Rather than playing against a random number generator (RNG) you are playing against a live human dealer. The dealer has to manually shuffle the deck(s) every so often, but not after every hand. This raises the question as to whether a card counting strategy can be effectively utilised against a live dealer online.

The answer depends on the rules of the casino operator for the game. For instance, BetFred casino utilises eight decks of cards, and offers only around 50% penetration. That means that approximately four decks will remain in the shoe when the dealer reshuffles. This is not adequate penetration with the number of decks for a counter to be able to accurately assess their advantage at that point in the game.

The rules of Victor Chandler casino state that cards are shuffled ‘at regular intervals’. While less specific, you can be sure that they will employ a cautious shuffle strategy so that penetration never goes to a counter-advantageous level. Indeed some operations utilise the infamous ‘continuous shuffle machines’ so that cards are shuffled before every hand, alleviating any possibility of card counting.

Essentially then, the number of decks used and the low penetration level means that card counting is not an effective strategy against live dealer blackjack online. If, however anyone can find a game with good rules that would mean a counter can gain an edge, do please contact me and I will amend this page.