Blackjack side bets are optional wagers you place alongside your main hand, such as Perfect Pairs and 21+3, that pay out on specific card combinations. They offer bigger payouts but carry much higher house edges than the main game, often several times higher, so they are best treated as entertainment rather than a way to win.
Blackjack side bets add spice to the table, at a price. Alongside your main hand you can wager on things like being dealt a pair or forming a poker hand with the dealer’s card, for payouts that dwarf a normal win. The trade off is a house edge many times larger than blackjack’s famously low one. This guide explains the main side bets, how they pay, what they really cost, and the gameplay variations worth knowing. It builds on our complete guide to blackjack.
- Side bets are optional wagers on specific card combinations, separate from your main blackjack hand.
- Perfect Pairs and 21+3 are the most common, paying out on pairs and poker style hands.
- Their house edge is far higher than the roughly 0.5% main game, typically 3% to 20% or more.
- Play them for fun, not profit. Keep your real money on the main hand and treat side bets as an occasional flutter.
What are blackjack side bets?
A blackjack side bet is an optional extra wager you place before the deal, independent of your main hand. It wins or loses based on a specific combination of cards, such as your first two cards forming a pair, regardless of whether you win the actual blackjack hand. You can win a side bet and lose your hand, or the other way around, because they are settled separately.
Side bets exist because they are profitable for the casino. In exchange for the chance at an eye catching payout, you accept a much larger house edge than blackjack normally offers. That does not make them bad fun, but it does mean they should never be the core of how you play. Keep them small and occasional, and your bankroll will last far longer.
Perfect Pairs
Perfect Pairs pays out when your first two cards form a pair, with the size of the win depending on how well matched they are. A perfect pair, two identical cards of the same suit, pays the most. It is settled at the start of the hand and has no bearing on how you then play.
| Combination | Typical payout |
|---|---|
| Perfect pair (same suit) | 30:1 |
| Coloured pair (same colour) | 10:1 |
| Mixed pair (different colours) | 5:1 |
Payouts vary by casino and deck count, and so does the house edge, which typically runs from about 4% up to 11%. That is many times the cost of the main game.
What is 21+3 in blackjack?
The 21+3 side bet combines your two cards with the dealer’s up card to make a three card poker hand. If those three cards form a flush, straight, three of a kind or better, the bet wins. Like Perfect Pairs, it is decided at the start of the hand and paid separately from your main wager.
| Poker hand | Typical payout |
|---|---|
| Suited three of a kind | 100:1 |
| Straight flush | 40:1 |
| Three of a kind | 30:1 |
| Straight | 10:1 |
| Flush | 5:1 |
The 21+3 house edge is typically around 3% to 7% depending on the paytable, again far above the main game. It is popular because those top payouts are tempting, but they are also rare.
Other blackjack side bets
Perfect Pairs and 21+3 are the most widely offered, but several others appear across online and live tables.
- Lucky Ladies: pays when your first two cards total 20, with the biggest wins for a matched or suited 20. It offers huge top payouts but one of the highest house edges of any side bet.
- Buster Blackjack: a bet that the dealer busts, with bigger payouts the more cards the dealer busts on.
- Hi-Lo: a simple wager on whether your second card will be higher or lower than your first, usually paying around 2:1.
- Insurance: the most common side bet of all, offered when the dealer shows an Ace. It is a poor bet, which our guide to blackjack insurance explains in full.
What do blackjack side bets really cost?
The best way to understand a side bet is to see its house edge next to the main game. Pick one below to see how much it costs on average for every 100 dollars wagered, compared with the roughly 50 cents the main game keeps.
Blackjack gameplay variations
Beyond side bets, blackjack comes in many variations that change the rules rather than adding a wager. Knowing the main types helps you pick the best table for your style.
- Multi-Hand Blackjack: play several hands at once against the dealer, which speeds up the game and lets you spread your bets, though you cannot mix cards between hands.
- Blackjack Switch: two hands where you can swap the top cards, a genuinely different strategic puzzle.
- European and Spanish 21: rule tweaks to the classic game, from the dealer’s no peek rule to removing the ten spot cards in exchange for player bonuses.
- Live Dealer Blackjack: real dealer variants like Infinite, Power and Lightning Blackjack, each with its own rules and side bets.
