What is No Bust Blackjack & Is It Worth Playing?

No-bust blackjack is a common blackjack strategy that involves avoiding busting (going over 21). The general rule for this strategy is to never hit if there’s a chance that your hand will bust. To use this strategy, you only hit (request an additional card) if your hand is worth less than 12 (11 or less). In this situation, it is impossible to go bust if you hit. However, if your hand is worth even one number above 11 (12 or higher), then you should stand regardless of what hand the dealer is showing.

With the no-bust strategy, the hope is that the dealer will go bust somehow. The rule of blackjack requires the dealer to continue to hit until they reach 17. This means there’s a fairly good chance the dealer will go above 21 if they continue to hit, leaving you with a positive bankroll

Is It Worth Playing?

The no-bust strategy works, and it could be a good strategy sometimes, but in most cases, it isn't. Statistically, the dealer will only go bust 28.36% of the time on average. This means you’re going to lose a lot more than you’ll win on average with this strategy.