Free War Blackjack Online
Play War Blackjack free in your browser: Vegas blackjack plus a War bet on your first card against the dealer's. Win the War and you can let it ride on your hand. No download, no sign-up, and $1,500 in play money to start.
What is War Blackjack?
It's a real casino game, dealt in Las Vegas since 2014. You play ordinary blackjack, with one extra, optional bet: the War bet. Your first card goes up against the dealer's face-up card, and the higher card wins.
How to play
- Bet. Put chips on the blackjack circle, and on the War circle if you want the War bet. Each takes $5 to $5,000.
- The War cards. You get your first card and the dealer gets a face-up card. If you bet War, the higher card wins it.
- Take it or add it. Win the War and you choose: take your winnings, or add them to your blackjack bet before the rest of the cards come. Your War bet comes back either way.
- Play the blackjack hand. The rest of the cards are dealt and you play blackjack as normal. Your War card is also your first blackjack card.
War bet rules
| Higher card | Wins even money |
|---|---|
| A tie | Goes to the dealer. There's no push and no going to war. |
| Aces | Low. A 2 beats an Ace, and an Ace never wins the War. |
| Picture cards | K beats Q beats J beats 10, even though all four count 10 for blackjack |
| Suits | Don't matter |
| Bets | $5 to $5,000. Your blackjack bet plus added winnings can't go over $5,000. |
The blackjack rules
The same game as our Blackjack table, one hand at a time: six decks reshuffled when the cut card comes out, blackjack pays 3 to 2, the dealer hits soft 17, double on any first two cards (after splits too), split up to four hands, give up (surrender) for half your bet back, and insurance pays 2 to 1. The Blackjack page explains how to play blackjack and the casino hand signals, and the blackjack strategy chart shows the best play for every hand.
Playing with gestures
On a touchscreen you play on the felt, the way you would at a casino table: double-tap to hit, swipe sideways to stand, hold a finger down to double, tap with two fingers to split and swipe down to give up. When your War card wins, hold to add the winnings to your hand or swipe sideways to take them. Then swipe up to deal the rest. The Gestures button lists every one, and brings the buttons back if you prefer them.
What it costs
The blackjack bet keeps about 58¢ of every $100 (a 0.58% house edge), the same as our Blackjack table. The War bet keeps $7.40 of every $100 if you always take your winnings, because the dealer wins every tie. Adding your winnings to the hand at the right moments brings that down to about $1.20. Which moments? That's yours to work out as you play.
Nothing here is rigged. We checked every figure against ten million simulated rounds and an exact calculation. How we check the odds.
War Blackjack vs. Casino War
They're different games. Casino War is one card each and nothing else: on a tie you give up half your bet or "go to war" with a second bet. War Blackjack is full blackjack with a War side bet, where the dealer simply wins ties and a War win can ride on your blackjack hand.
Questions
Is it really free?
Yes. It's play money only, with no real wagering, no sign-up and no download.
Do I have to bet on the War?
No. The War bet is optional. Leave it off and it's a normal game of blackjack.
New to the game?
Leave Learn on. It walks you through each step as you play, and pauses on the War cards to explain who won and why.
What if I run out of chips?
Open the menu (the ? button) and reset your wallet to $1,500. Your chips are shared with the other games and kept in this browser.
More free games
- Blackjack: Vegas rules from a six-deck shoe, with side bets and a strategy chart.
- Bubble Craps: the dice-in-a-bubble craps machine, regular or crapless.
- All Mini Velvet games
Back to the table ↑ Play money only. No real wagering.