When to Hit or Stand in Blackjack — Strategy & EV

Hitting and standing are the two most common blackjack decisions, and getting them right is most of what basic strategy is about. The correct choice depends almost entirely on your hard total versus the dealer's up-card.

The core rule

The dealer's up-card splits into two groups:

• Dealer 2–6 (weak): the dealer is likely to bust, so you stand on stiff totals and let them draw. Stand on hard 12–16 (with one exception below).
• Dealer 7–A (strong): the dealer will probably make a good hand, so you must improve. Hit hard 12–16 against these cards.

Two totals never change:

• Hard 17 or higher — always stand.
• Hard 11 or lower — always hit (you cannot bust, and you usually want to double 9–11; see when to double down).

The exceptions worth memorizing

• Hard 12 vs dealer 2 or 3 — hit. Twelve only stands from dealer 4 upward; against 2 and 3 the math favors hitting.
• Hard 16 vs 9, 10, A — surrender if allowed, otherwise hit. See when to surrender.

Soft totals (a hand counting an Ace as 11) follow different rules — those are covered in soft hands strategy.

Why these are the EV-maximizing plays

Every hit/stand line is just the higher-EV option. Standing on 16 vs a dealer 6 wins because the dealer busts often enough; hitting 16 vs a dealer 10 loses less than standing into a near-certain 20. Fullcount computes the exact expected value for both actions from the live shoe, so you can see how much each decision is worth rather than memorizing a static chart:

The precise cut-offs shift slightly with the rules (H17 vs S17, deck count). Pick your game from the blackjack rule variants, or start from the basic strategy overview.