Why Card Counting on Blackjack Doesn’t Work

If you’re an avid blackjack player, at some point or another, have wondered about the concept of card-counting. You will find that many casino guides online, promote card counting as the all-elusive salvation to all your live blackjack woes.

Card counting has been hyped up so much in Hollywood movies, that plenty of blackjack players are looking to learn the art of card counting.

In essence, card counting is the tracking of cards that are dealt out in Live Blackjack, in a bid to determine the odds or predict cards that have not yet been dealt out. Sounds complicated? Well, it is, but does it work?

Read on to learn more about card-counting in Blackjack.

What is card-counting in live Blackjack?

Card counting is a unique technique that lets blackjack players know when there is an advantage shift in their favour. When they know that this is occurring, they increase their bets substantially. On the other hand, when there’s a shift in the dealer’s favour, the player will make a bet on a smaller scale or no bets at all.

Players who are known to card-count lower the house edge by varying the bets they place. In general, it has been proven that high-value cards such as Aces and face cards are more beneficial to the player than to the dealer, while the low-value cards are more advantageous to the dealer.

Now that you understand how it works, we need to explain why card counting is not recommended. For starters, if you are trying to card-count at a brick-and-mortar casino and they notice, you are going to get banned. Your picture will be paraded around at other casinos as well. Casinos, in general, have 0 tolerance towards card counting in Blackjack.

Secondly, card counting when playing at the best online casinos doesn’t work for several reasons. If you are playing the generic table game version of Blackjack without the live dealer, then a hand is automatically generated by the software. Since it is generated after each round, the software picks cards from fresh decks of cards each time. Since casinos use Random Number Generators, there is no way to card-count when playing a table game version of Blackjack.

You can try to card-count, but it’s not even worth trying as it will prove fruitless. If anything, we recommend using your bankroll wisely and adopting a Blackjack strategy to help you make the right decisions, especially if you are starting out at the game of Blackjack.

Why live casinos are protected against card counting

How does card counting apply when you throw it in a live casino setting. The best casinos are transparent when it comes to card-shuffling. You will see shufflers ambling at the table shuffling openly on the camera.

You know when cards are being reshuffled. However, because reshuffling is done before all the cards in the shoe have been dealt out, it’s impossible to card count. Additionally, live casinos don’t reveal how many decks of cards they have in the shoe, so card counting in this case will be not only mind-numbingly boring and mentally exhausting, but also a pointless exercise.

You need to be aware the card counting takes a lot of training and it’s so mentally exhausting, that it is easy to make a mistake, making you lose focus on your blackjack strategy.

Even if you had to take up card counting as a side hobby, it requires stealth and patience for a minuscule profit and the risks that come with it are supremely high. If anything, we suggest you put your energy into a great betting strategy and to learn the rules of Blackjack properly to make the best possible decisions.

To sum it up, here are the reasons why card counting doesn’t work:

Live Blackjack is resistant to card counting

Many live blackjack games are played with eight decks of cards, and the shoe is changed with circa four decks of cards having been dealt. With many blackjack tables, there is auto shuffling to ensure that a new shoe is available for every had dealt.

Software keeps count

The live casino software is so sophisticated these days that it monitors and keeps count as the game is played out. Additionally, players who attempt to card-count are easily spotted and stopped if they appear to be taking advantage of the casino.

Players playing badly

Since there will be different types of blackjack players sitting at the table, you can expect a mixed blend of both experienced and inexperienced players at the table. The experienced players will be applying advanced techniques, while beginners will be fumbling throughout their gaming session. Since you will not be able to know who the good and bad players at the table are, this will have an impact on any potential card counting that you might aspire to the executive.

Dealers have no way of knowing

Don’t assume that the croupier knows something that you don’t. Croupiers see the cards at the same time you do, so there is no way for them to know when a winning hand is coming up. Croupiers won’t even get to see the card facing down until once the players have revealed their hand.

In conclusion

Having a basic blackjack strategy and managing your bankroll should be your main priority when playing at a live casino. Even if you somehow succeed in card counting, the wins are so small that it’s simply not worth it. The risks, on the other hand, are humongous.

Once you get caught, you will likely be banned. If you are playing online and the casino notices your card counting, you will be disconnected from the table with very little fuss. We can reassure you that the players who are indeed winning at Blackjack aren’t doing this by card counting, but rather by making the right decisions and knowing when to hit or stand.

If your main goal is to play with an advantage, there are more positive and legal ways to do so, without blackjack card counting.