Pontoon rules

Let us explain and compare the rules, payouts, house edge and basic strategy for both styles of pontoon, so you can decide which version fits you best. We will also show you our favourite online pontoon games and how you can play on the Internet for the chance to win real money.

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There are two different types of pontoon: the original British version, and the newer variant played in Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and Singapore. While the two games bear little resemblance to one another, both offer a nice change of pace to standard blackjack (and, in many cases, better value for money).

How to play British pontoon

The UK version of pontoon is an offshoot of the French game vingt-et-un (twenty-and-one), which was also the ancestor of American blackjack. It has plenty of familiar features, but the distinct parlance and rule variations in pontoon set it apart from other modern-day 21 titles.

The aim of the game is the same as blackjack: to score higher than the dealer without exceeding 21 points. It uses between two and eight standard decks of 52 cards, with Aces counting as one or 11 points, picture cards counting as 10 points, and all others counting as face value (e.g. Three of Clubs = three points).

Each player receives two cards face-up, while the dealer takes two cards face-down. The dealer will peek at their cards to check if they have pontoon (a two-card 21), in which case the house wins instantly and collects all bets. If the dealer does not have pontoon, the action then moves to the players.

If a player has a natural 21, they win a 2 to 1 payout. Otherwise, they may choose to stick (stand), twist (hit), buy (double down), or split a pair. Traditional pontoon games allow players to stick or twist after they double their bet, but some modern variants tend to treat the rule as identical to doubling down in blackjack.

If a player’s total exceeds 22 points, the hand busts and all bets are lost. If they draw to five cards without exceeding 21, the hand wins at 2 to 1 odds (regardless of the exact total). If they stick with four cards or less, their hand will then be compared against the house.

Common rules for real money pontoon online are as follows:

• Dealer wins all ties
• Dealer peeks for pontoon
• Dealer hits soft 17
• Dealer draws up to five cards only
• Player may split up to three hands
• Resplitting Aces allowed
• Buying after splitting allowed
• Ace + 10 after splitting counts as pontoon
• Player may only stick on 15 or higher
• Pontoon pays 2 to 1
• Five-card trick pays 2 to 1
• All other wins pay 1 to 1

Australian pontoon rules

The pontoon variants played in Australia and Asia are actually subtle variations of Spanish 21 – an American title which was first introduced to Las Vegas casinos in the mid 1990s. The defining feature of these games is the 48-card deck, in which all the face-value 10s have been removed. This makes it harder to draw blackjack, but there are plenty of player-friendly rules to compensate.

Most Australian pontoon games use the following rules:

• Four to eight Spanish decks
• No peek for dealer blackjack
• Dealer hits soft 17
• Player 21 always wins
• Double down on nine, 10, or 11
• Double down on any number of cards
• Aces count as one after doubling on soft hands
• Split up to three hands
• Double after splitting
• No drawing to split Aces
• Late surrender against 10 or Ace
• Double down rescue (surrender after doubling)
• Pontoon pays 3 to 2

Like Spanish 21, Australian and Asian pontoon comes with an extensive table of bonus payouts:

Hand	Payout
Five-card 21	3 to 2
Unsuited Six-Seven-Eight	3 to 2
Unsuited Seven-Seven-Seven	3 to 2
Six-card 21	2 to 1
Suited Six-Seven-Eight	2 to 1
Suited Seven-Seven-Seven	2 to 1
Seven-card 21	3 to 1
Six-Seven-Eight in Spades	3 to 1
Seven-Seven-Seven in Spades	3 to 1

There is an additional Super Bonus payout for drawing three suited Sevens (first three cards only) when the dealer’s up-card is also a Seven. This pays $1000 for bets between $2 and $24, and $5000 for bets of $25 or more.

House edge and basic strategy

When total-dependent basic strategy is used, both forms of pontoon favour the casino by about 0.4 per cent on average. That figure stands up well against land-based Australian blackjack games, the bulk of which hold a house edge of well over 0.5 per cent.

As both pontoon styles come with certain conditions which aren’t often found in other forms of 21, the optimal strategy for each is very different those which apply to European blackjack or regular Vegas-style games. So while you can follow more or less the same procedure for most 21 games, you need to learn a whole new set of moves in order to keep the pontoon house edge as low as possible.

British pontoon strategy

Because there is a 2 to 1 bonus on a five-card trick, and because the dealer takes no up-card, UK pontoon strategy is highly dependent on the number of cards in the player’s hand. Below is a brief summary of the optimal strategy for games which use the common rule-set outlined earlier.

When you have two cards:

• Stick on hard 15 or higher
• Stick on soft 19 or higher
• Buy on hard 10 or 11 (twist if buying isn’t allowed)
• Twist on everything else

When you have three cards:

• Stick on hard 15 or higher
• Buy on hard nine, 10, or 11 (twist if buying isn’t allowed)
• Buy on soft 19 or 20 (twist if buying isn’t allowed)
• Buy on soft 21 (stick if buying isn’t allowed)
• Twist on everything else

When you have four cards:

• Stick on hard 18 or higher
• Twist on hard 17
• Buy on everything else (twist if buying isn’t allowed)

Australian pontoon strategy

Optimal play for Australian pontoon games is very similar to Spanish 21 strategy. However, because the dealer does not take a hole card, there are several variables which depend on what happens when the house draws a natural 21.

For example, let’s say you have a hard 11 against a dealer 10. If the rules state that the player loses all bets on the table when the dealer draws pontoon (ENHC rule), you should hit rather than risking an additional wager. But if only the original and busted bets for each hand are lost (OBBO rule), you should double down because that extra stake cannot be lost against a dealer natural.

We are currently in the process of drawing up a complete Australian pontoon strategy chart, but here are the essentials:

• Never split 10s, Fives, or Fours
• Always split Aces and Eights, except against a dealer Ace*
• Always stand on hard 17 or higher
• Always hit on hard eight or lower, on hard 12, and on soft 12 through 17
• Always double down on hard 11, except when you have four or more cards*

* Subject to specific hole-card rules, as described above

Best online pontoon games

Our top-rated Australian casino sites offer several versions of real money pontoon, all of which are designed by the biggest and most trusted software brands in online gaming:

Microgaming Spanish Blackjack Gold Series – If you like Australian pontoon, this is the closest thing on the market. The rules are almost identical, with big bonus payouts and a house edge of only 0.38 per cent. Spanish Blackjack Gold is available at all secure Microgaming casinos, including RoyalVegasCasino.com.

Net Entertainment Pontoon Professional Series – This is a conventional English-style pontoon game, available in three selectable betting ranges: low stakes ($0.10 to $10), regular stakes ($1 to $100) and high stakes ($10 to $1000). You can play it now at trusted NetEnt casinos such as Thrills.com and Guts.com.

BetSoft Pontoon: It looks simple but plays more or less exactly like NetEnt Pontoon Pro, except with a fixed $1/$100 table limit and an optional Sweet 16 side bet. As with all of BetSoft’s online table games, G’day Casino is your best bet.

You can play each of the above types of online Pontoon at our recommended real money casino sites in the table above, which we highly recommend based on games selection, bonus and promotions, and security. For the best odds and the lowest house edge, play real money blackjack online at , our top-rated casino site for players from United States, which has some excellent welcome bonuses available for new players along with a great range of blackjack variants and other casino games.