With more games, more ways to play, first-class service and lower house edges, online casinos provide the best outlet for real money blackjack in Australia. At AustralianCasinoSite.com, we will show you everything you need to know about online 21 – including where and how to play, what kinds of games are available, and why Internet gambling is so much better than playing at a land-based casino.
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Best online blackjack casinos for Australians
There are thousands of real money casino sites which offer blackjack, but not all are made equal. We only recommend gaming websites which accept Australian currency, are fully licensed and regulated, and use leading casino software brands like BetSoft, Pragmatic Play, 1×2 Gaming and Play’n Go. These are the Internet casinos we use ourselves when gambling online, so you can be sure they offer only highest quality gaming, security and customer service.
Why Internet gambling is better
There is a lot to say for the unique atmosphere of a brick-and-mortar casino, but the operators have been ripping off their punters for many years now. Australian gaming venues are among the very worst culprits, especially when it comes to blackjack. Good-value options are few and far between these days; the average house edge (i.e. the casino’s mathematical advantage) on Aussie 21 stands at well over 0.50%, which is very high in blackjack terms. Just look at Melbourne’s Crown Casino, which continues to poison its gaming floor with abominations such as Blackjack Plus and Supernova Blackjack – titles hardly deserving of the name, and which exist only to fleece the naive and the drunk.
Web casinos, on the other hand, offer way better value, dozens of variants, and the ability to play anywhere and any time you like. You also get a different class of customer service, with lucrative welcome bonuses and special promotions available as soon as you sign up. The best part, though, is that you don’t have to waste time or money on travel, hotels, or city-price drinks, which leaves more dosh in your bankroll for the important stuff.
How to play real money blackjack
Blackjack is Australia’s favourite card game, and not least because it is so easy to play. There may be hundreds upon hundreds of different rule variations spanning every nook of the globe and every cranny of the Web, but the aim of the game is always the same: to get more points than the dealer without exceeding 21.
Most blackjack games use a full French deck of 52 cards, which are ranked thus:
- Deuce to Ten all count as face value (e.g. a Four is worth four points)
- All picture cards (Jacks, Queens and Kings) are worth 10 points each
- Aces can count as either 11 points or one point
To start a blackjack hand, players place their initial bets and are dealt two cards each. The dealer may either take one face-up card (common in Europe and Australia), or two cards with one turned face down (American rules). Now, the player has a number of options:
- Stand
To take no more cards. Once you stand, your turn is over and you cannot improve your score. - Hit
To take another card. You can keep hitting up to the point of busting out (i.e. exceeding 21 points). - Double down
To double your wager and take one final card. This is usually only allowed as the first move, and is often restricted to certain totals (e.g. many Australian 21 games only permit doubling on scores of nine, 10 and 11). - Split
To separate two cards of the same rank into new hands. This is only available when you draw a pair on the initial deal. Some games allow you to split up to as many as four hands, while a few don’t permit it at all. - Surrender
To forfeit your hand and half your original wager. This is like a ‘get out of jail’ rule for when you have an awful hand against a strong dealer card.
One of the benefits of playing blackjack online is that you don’t need to bother with the standard hand signals for each of the above moves. Instead, everything is done through simple mouse-click (desktop) or touch-and-swipe (mobile) interfaces, so you are in complete control and don’t have to put up with twitchy dealers or grumpy pit bosses who can’t read your gestures.
Desktop casino software
There are two ways to play real cash blackjack via the Internet. One is to install a Windows PC software client on your hard drive, which you can do at Microgaming casinos like Jackpot City and Casino-Mate. The other way is to play directly through your Internet browser, which requires no downloads and is available at all top-ranking Australian casino sites.
We love 100% Flash casinos like House of Jack, Emu Casino and Mucho Vegas because they work on Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X alike, and because they offer games from multiple trusted developers.
Mobile blackjack on iOS & Android devices
Every virtual casino worth its salt now offers mobile blackjack on smartphone and tablet devices. These are genuine, real money 21 games – made by top brands – which can be played on Apple iOS (iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch), Google Android (Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Motorola, LG, et al), BlackBerry and Windows Phone products.
Intuitive touch interfaces make for fast, easy gameplay as well as hassle-free navigation for quick access to the game lobby, the cashier and your personal settings. Best of all, you don’t have to open a whole new account – so if you are already registered at an online casino, you can log in to the mobile casino with your existing username and password.
Popular Internet 21 games
The best Australian blackjack casinos online stock upwards of 25 distinct variants of the game, covering classic 21 games and quirkier modern interpretations alike. Here are just a handful of our favourite BJ releases for the Web, all of which are available at our trusted real money gambling sites.
- Classic Blackjack Gold Series: This might be the single best RNG-based casino game ever made. Not only does Classic Blackjack feature the high-end graphics and super-smooth game feel of the Microgaming Gold Series, it also uses traditional single-deck 21 rules which keep the house edge at just 0.13%.
- Premier Blackjack Multihand: Another Microgaming favourite, the multi-play version of Premier Blackjack allows you to bet on up to five hands at once. This is one of the coolest-looking digital blackjack releases around, not least because you can choose between different tables and deck designs.
- Professional Series Pontoon: Not to be confused with Australian pontoon (which is more akin to Spanish 21), this NetEnt release is based on the English rules. Both dealer cards are dealt face down, and the player has the option to stick (stand), twist (hit), or buy (double down). Naturals and five-card tricks both pay 2 to 1.
Note: Following the introduction of the Interactive Gambling Amendment Bill in September 2017, Microgaming and NetEnt casino games are no longer available to Australian players.
Live Dealer Blackjack
Live dealer casinos allow you to play hand-dealt blackjack games in real time and with real money, through HD video feeds combined with digital betting interfaces. That means you get all the convenience of online betting as well as the visceral, authentic feel and more relaxed pace of a land-based Australian casino table. Top game developers like Evolution Gaming and Ezugi run live casino studios for a number of our leading blackjack sites.
Secure AUD Deposit Methods
There are many safe methods for adding real Australian dollars to your online casino account, all of which are safeguarded by bank-worthy SSL (Secure Socket Layer) digital encryptions. Instant deposit options include credit cards (Visa, MasterCard), debit cards (Electron, Maestro), certified e-wallets (Neteller, Skrill, EcoPayz), instant online banking (Citadel Direct) and prepaid money solutions (Paysafecard, Flexepin). Wire transfers and old-fashioned bank deposits are also available for larger cash amounts, although they do take upwards of 24 hours to process.