Blackjack 16 vs Dealer 10
Basic strategy: Surrender — and if the table does not offer late surrender, hit.
For 6-deck blackjack where the dealer stands on soft 17 (S17), with double-after-split and late surrender — the Vegas Strip S17 rules.
16 against a dealer 10 loses more than half the time however you play it. Late surrender forfeits exactly half your bet, which on average costs less than hitting or standing — so surrender when it is offered, and hit when it is not.
This is the single most-debated hand in blackjack. Standing and hitting are almost identical in EV — both around −0.54 — so neither is good; late surrender’s guaranteed −0.50 is why it wins. It is also the most famous count-dependent decision: as the shoe gets rich in tens, standing pulls ahead, and card counters stand on 16 vs 10 once the true count reaches roughly zero. A multi-card 16 (e.g. 5+4+7) also tips toward standing because small cards have already left the shoe.
Exact EV for this hand
The board below is loaded with 16 against a dealer 10. Fullcount computes the precise expected value of every action from the live shoe — change the rules or add cards to see how the best play shifts.
More on this decision: read When to surrender, browse the full basic-strategy matrix, or start from the basic strategy overview. Playing a different game? Compare rule variants.
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