Speed Blackjack

More About Speed Blackjack

If you’re a big blackjack fan, you probably know the game inside out. After thoroughly mastering it, you have two options ahead of you. You can find new thrills by exploring live blackjack’s many variants. Alternatively, you can put your skills to the test in Speed Blackjack, which considerably ramps up the pace.

Join us for an in-depth look at this Evolution release to see what it’s got in store. Keep reading to determine if this table is right for you.

How Does Speed Blackjack Work?

As its name makes obvious, Speed Blackjack doesn’t try to change how you play the game. Its only goal is to make each round go faster, allowing you to play even more rounds in the same amount of time. The developer accomplishes this by letting players decide how to play their hand while cards are being dealt. As a result, those who make the fastest decision will have their cards dealt first. This approach speeds up the game by up to 30%.

There are seven seats up for grabs on every Speed Blackjack table. Each player is dealt two cards, after which the host draws two for themselves, though only one is visible. When the last player card is placed, all players can choose to Hit, Stand, Split, or Double Down. Dealers don’t wait for one player to finish a turn. They immediately switch to the next player in the queue, ensuring things proceed smoothly.

This continues until all players have made their decision. At that point, the dealer reveals their second card and may draw more if required to do so by blackjack rules. If the host or players went over 21, they automatically lost the round. Otherwise, the higher-value hand takes home the cash prize.

Speed Blackjack also has an auto-decision feature that kicks in if you don’t decide in time. It will automatically hit if your hand’s total is 11 or less and stand if it’s 12 or more.

How to Play Speed Blackjack?

Getting the most out of Speed Blackjack requires you to know its rules. That’s why it’s important you stick to our guide on how to play this live blackjack variant.

Most live casinos have lots of Evolution Speed Blackjack tables, so finding the game is easy. However, if you want the best possible experience, we suggest picking one of our recommended US online casinos.

Bets Are Placed

Each round begins with players wagering on one main and two side bets. To do this, select one of the visible coins and place it on the bet spot matching your chosen wager. The Total Bet tab shows how much you’ve wagered in that round.

Players Receive Their Cards

All players on the table receive two cards. Once that’s done, the host draws two cards for themselves. One card is placed face-up so everyone on the table can see it.

Decision Time

As soon as the last player card is dealt, everyone on the table can choose to Hit, Stand, Split, or Double Down their hand. The host will draw cards based on who responds first. All players must stand or bust before the round can proceed.

The Dealer Gets More Cards

After everyone completes their turn, the dealer reveals their second card. If needed, they draw more cards until their total is 17 or higher.

Payouts Are Awarded

Anyone who goes over 21 while playing automatically loses the main bet. This applies to the dealer, allowing even weak hands to squeeze out a win. However, if no one busts, then it’s a matter of who gets closest to 21. The highest-ranked hands are those that get 21 with exactly two cards. Beyond that, it’s just a question of who is nearest to 21 once all the cards are drawn. If a player and dealer end up with the same hand total, their round ends in a Tie.

Watch all steps

Speed Blackjack Side Bets

While this Evolution game doesn’t have as many side bets as other live blackjack tables, it still has enough to spice things up. We’ll walk you through each wager in the following section.

Insurance Bet

If the dealer’s first card is an Ace, all players will get an option to make an Insurance Bet, which costs half of their initial main bet. The host will peek at their second card to see if they have exactly 21. If that happens, players win the Insurance Bet. If the dealer doesn’t have Blackjack, they lose the wager.

Bet Behind

There may not always be enough seats for all interested players. That is why Evolution introduced the Bet Behind feature. People waiting for a seat to open up can wager on who they think will win the round. Players on a winning streak are highlighted with a gold medal, which shows how many rounds they’ve won.

Perfect Pairs

Winning this side bet is simple: your first two cards must have the same value. However, how much you get depends on how much the two cards match. From least to most valuable, we have:

• If the two cards have the same value but different colors (♦6, ♣6), that’s a Mixed Pair.
• If two cards have the same value and color but different suits (♦6, ♥6), that’s a Colored Pair.
• Finally, two cards with the same value and suit (♦6, ♦6) are a Perfect Pair.

21+3

You win the 21+3 side bet if your first two cards and the dealer’s visible card form a valid three-card poker hand. You get better payouts for more difficult poker hands.

• Flush – cards that aren’t numerically sequential and have the same suit. (♥6, ♥9, ♥J)
• Straight – cards that follow a numerical sequence but have different suits. (♦4, ♣5, ♠6)
• Three of a Kind – three cards with the same value but different suits. (♥7, ♦7, ♣7)
• Straight Flush – cards that follow a numerical sequence and have the same suit. (♣5, ♣6, ♣7)
• Suited Trips – three matching cards. (♦K, ♦K, ♦K)

Payouts in Speed Blackjack

Speed Blackjack sticks to the same paytable as regular live blackjack. That makes sense, as all changes to the game are simply to speed things up, rather than provide a different experience. We outlined possible rewards for all main and side bets in the table below.

Speed Blackjack RTP

If you stick to Speed Blackjack’s main bet, your RTP will be 99.29%. The same is true if you use Bet Behind while waiting for a seat to open up. Meanwhile, the RTP for the game’s two side bets is:

• 95.90% for Perfect Pairs and
• 96.30% for 21+3

Speed Blackjack Betting Range

The exact limit for this title depends on which US online casino you choose and the specific table. However, in most places we checked, the minimum and maximum bet limits are $10 and $1,000, respectively.

Speed Blackjack Strategy

Players familiar with basic blackjack strategy are already well-equipped to play Speed Blackjack Live optimally. If you don’t know how it works, we’ll walk you through it in the following tables.

Each table tells you what to do based on your cards and the dealer’s visible card. You’ll want to change your approach depending on whether the host has a soft or hard hand. Additionally, there is a table that will tell you how to approach splitting two matching cards.

We use the following abbreviations in our tables:

• H – Hit
• S – Stand
• D/H – Double if allowed, otherwise Hit
• D/S – Double if allowed, otherwise Stand
• SP – Split

Hard Cards

Soft Cards

Splits

History of Speed Blackjack

Speed Blackjack is hand-crafted for live casino games. It was released in 2020 by Evolution, with other studios launching their versions soon after. In those few years, it has become a staple of US online casinos. You can find it just about everywhere, allowing experienced players to test their mettle whenever they want.

Why Play Speed Blackjack?

This Evolution release offers several reasons to pick it over any other live blackjack table. Some of the key ones include:

• Rounds are around 30% faster
• Basic blackjack strategy is effective
• RTP equivalent to standard blackjack
• No multipliers or new features
• Chance to win up to 100:1 with side bets

FAQs