At Blackjack, Why Does It Say, "Dealer Must Stand on All 17s?"

Most blackjack tables are printed with the following: "Dealer must draw to 16 and stand on all 17s." I don't understand the second part, all 17s. What does that mean? Aren't all 17s 17?

A 17 is a 17, but there's a difference between a hard 17 and a soft 17, the latter of which means an ace in the hand that can be counted as 11 without busting. For example, 6A is a soft 17, T6A is a hard 17.

When the dealer hits soft 17, it increases the house edge by 0.22%. Most players either don't realize this or don't care -- that extra edge sounds negligible. But putting it into perspective indicates otherwise.

Let's say you're a $10 bettor and you play 50 hands per hour. That's $500 in action, so the casino makes an additional $1.10 per hour off you -- not insignificant.

There’s no simple way to explain why hitting soft 17 increases the house edge, except to say that computer simulations have determined conclusively that this is the case. Soft 17 is a bad hand that’s more likely to improve when taking hit cards.

In Las Vegas, many of the tables that have higher-denomination minimum bets ($100 and up) stand on all 17s, while the lower-minimum tables hit soft 17s.

The reason for this is that higher-limit players are often more knowledgeable and look for better odds on the games they play. At these higher-dollar amounts, the casino makes more money by virtue of the total action and doesn't need to take that extra 0.22% (at the risk of running off a big player who may walk across the street to get that 0.22% back at a competitor's game that stands on soft 17). In most cases, though, players are simply ignorant of the difference.

A strategy point for beginners: It's never correct to stand on a soft 17, regardless of the dealer's up-card.

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AZmaddog Feb-16-2026

Standing on soft 17

If you're playing the blackjack side bet where ties pat 10:1, it is actually correct to stand on soft 17 if the dealer shoes 2, 3, 4, 5, and 7. On a dealer 6, you would double,  and you would hit on the rest of the dealer upcards. This is assuming you've bet exactly half of your blackjack bet on the sidebet.

Proper use of the sidebet can lower the house advantage to to under 0.30%. 

The flip side of the sidebet is: 
1.) You're increasing the variance of the game, hence there are bankroll considerations. 
2.) The unorthodox basic strategy decisions can antagonize other players at the table.
3.) If surrender is offered, half of the blackjack bet is picked up and 100% of the side bet is picked up. This makes surrendering your hand an unsound decision.

Some Guy Feb-16-2026

Why Soft 17 Increases the House Edge

I don’t remember exactly where I heard this, but the reason behind hitting Soft 17 is that 17 is a fairly lousy hand. Only thing it beats is hands 12-16. Hitting a Soft 17 gives the Dealer two chances to make a better hand, one of which is free from busting. If the first card is A, 2, 3, 4, then the hand is stronger. Couple this with the four ten cards, then there is an 8/13 of getting the same total or better. Anything else, one more hit to make a better hand. Funny enough, while hitting Soft 17 has a higher edge, it causes the Dealer to bust more.

Question of the Day - 16 February 2026

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