Let me back up and explain a little bit more about what Perfect Pair is. It is a variation of blackjack that can commonly be found in online casinos. The game itself is played just like regular blackjack except players can only double down on hard 10’s and hard 11’s. Probably the biggest difference is the change in the blackjack payout; being dealt a natural blackjack will net a player an even money payout instead of the traditional 3-2 payout. An even money payout hits a player’s odds for a 2.27% loss.

But what makes Perfect Pairs its own game is the side bet. At the beginning of a round, players place their regular wager for the outcome of the regular game; at the same time, they also make a side wager on whether or not their first two cards will be a pair or not. While this is the fun part of this online blackjack variation, it is also the part that eats into a player’s bank roll. This is because this side wager is entirely chance; there is nothing a player can do to influence which cards they will be dealt. And if they are not dealt a pair right now they lose the side wager. Unfortunately the odds on being dealt a pair are not close to the odds of not being dealt a pair.

You are highly likely to come across this variation when playing blackjack online. My advice is to play Perfect Pairs either for low stakes or for fun because of the hit the player’s odds take in the online blackjack variation and for how easy it is to eat into a bankroll with side wagers.

If a player has done some research on blackjack payouts they know not to play in a game that offers a 6-5 payout. But they see it explained that they are receiving less money and that is the reason not to play in 6-5 payout games.

But there is another reason for avoiding blackjack games that do not offer players a 3-2 payout for their blackjacks: different payouts can actually reduce your blackjack odds.

Not only do you receive less money in a 6-5 payout game, it also reduces your odds by 1.89%. Just because of the change in payout alone.

For players who are fans of blackjack variations, such as games like Super 21, those games also have different blackjack payouts. Most of them, because of the potential—although it is not a great potential—to win a side bet, the payout for a natural blackjack is reduced. In most blackjack variations the payout is only 1-1, or even money, for a blackjack. A 1-1 payout reduces your odds by 2.27%.

A 1-1 payout actually has the worst impact on your blackjack odds of all of the different type of variations.

The reason a lower payout hurts your blackjack odds is because it reduces your opportunity to make money off of the game. Even though you are receiving something for your natural blackjack, it is not what you would traditionally make—that is why it reduces your odds.

While blackjack variations that have full-on changes are not too bad—they are usually culturally different in slight ways, the variations with additions are problems in disguise.

Additions will usually come in the form of side bets. Side bets add an extra thrill to the game because it is not only about winning the round of blackjack, it is now also about winning the extra bet.

Unfortunately, these side bets are bad for your bankroll.

Side bets in blackjack variations are another way for online casinos and brick and mortar casinos to squeeze some more money out of players.

Streak, for example, is a side bet in which players make a separate wager on how many rounds of blackjack they will win in a row. If they do win that many rounds in a row, they will collect on the side bet. If they lose a round before reaching the number they wagered on they will lose their wager. The streak side bet carries an edge of 9.7% up to 14.3% depending on how many rounds in a row you are wagering.

Another variation found mixed in with online blackjack and casino blackjack is Perfect Pairs. In this variation of blackjack, the game itself is played the same as a regular game but offers players a side bet. The side bet is based on whether the player will be dealt a pair in their first two cards.

This side bet is independent of the game itself, meaning that it does not matter if the dealer won or not. The side bet, the point of this variation, is on whether or not those first two cards will be a pair. If they are the player collects on the side wager, otherwise the casino merely collects it.

Because additive variations are meant to take more money from players it is best to avoid variations of blackjack when you encounter them online or in a casino.