Blackjack Strategy: Surrender

In rare cases, your original two cards may be so unlikely to produce a winning hand against the dealer’s upcard that you’d be better off surrendering—giving up half your bet and folding—than playing out the hand. For instance, if the dealer is showing an ace or a 10 while you have a 16 that’s not the product of two 8s, you should surrender. Note that not all blackjack games allow you the option of surrendering.

Your surrender strategy should depend on the number of decks in use and the dealer’s action on soft 17. The following tables cover surrendering strategy. They use this key:

There are a few exceptions to the guidelines listed in the table. They are marked by an asterisk (*) in the table followed by a note below the table.

*Though in some scenarios you should surrender 16, never surrender 8–8. Instead, split. **Though you should usually hit on 14, surrender a 7–7 against a 10.

*Though in some scenarios you should surrender 16, never surrender 8–8. Instead, split. **Though you should usually hit on 14, surrender a 7–7 against a 10 or an ace.

*Don’t surrender an 8–8.

*Don’t surrender an 8–8 except against an ace.