# A Ten Day Plan: One Dealer Upcard a Day

A ten day plan that learns the basic strategy chart one dealer upcard per day, in an order where most days add only a handful of changed rows.

Source: https://21trainer.app/articles/one-upcard-a-day-plan/
Updated: October 16, 2026
Publisher: 21 Trainer, makers of Blackjack Strategy: 21 Trainer, an educational blackjack trainer for iPhone and Android (App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/blackjack-strategy-21-trainer/id6759527695, Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=app.blackjacktrainer)

> **Educational content, not gambling advice.** 21 Trainer and this article teach blackjack strategy and card counting as skills, using virtual chips only. No strategy or counting system guarantees winnings, and nothing here encourages real-money play. If gambling is a problem for you or someone you know, call 1-800-522-4700 (National Council on Problem Gambling).

The full basic strategy chart is a wall: 28 rows of player hands against ten dealer upcards, 280 cells in all. Our [four week practice schedule](https://21trainer.app/articles/blackjack-practice-schedule/) attacks it in horizontal slices, one hand category at a time. This plan slices it the other way: one column, one dealer upcard a day.

Unless noted, every count below comes from the 4 to 8 deck chart with the dealer standing on soft 17, the chart behind our dealer upcard series: 28 rows, the hard totals 8 through 17, the soft totals 13 through 20, and the ten pairs. Walked in this order, the first column's 28 rows plus 39 changed rows cover all 280 cells, because neighboring columns overlap far more than they differ.

Ten short daily sessions cover the whole chart. The order is built on the counts, and it is one sensible order, not the only correct one.

## How much changes between neighboring upcards

Each column holds 28 decisions across hard, soft and pair rows. What makes columns work as a sequence is the overlap. From each upcard to the next, only a few rows change:

| Step | Rows that change | What changes, from the first upcard to the second |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2 to 3 | 4 | Hard 9 and soft 17: hit becomes double if allowed, otherwise hit. Soft 18: stand becomes double if allowed, otherwise stand. 6,6: split with double after split, otherwise hit, becomes split. |
| 3 to 4 | 5 | Hard 12: hit becomes stand. Soft 15 and soft 16: hit becomes double if allowed, otherwise hit. 2,2 and 3,3: split with double after split, otherwise hit, becomes split. |
| 4 to 5 | 3 | Soft 13 and soft 14: hit becomes double if allowed, otherwise hit. 4,4: hit becomes split with double after split, otherwise hit. |
| 5 to 6 | 0 | Nothing. The two columns are identical in this chart. |
| 6 to 7 | 15 | Hard 9: double if allowed, otherwise hit, becomes hit. Hard 12 through 16: stand becomes hit. Soft 13 through 17: double if allowed, otherwise hit, becomes hit. Soft 18: double if allowed, otherwise stand, becomes stand. 4,4: split with double after split, otherwise hit, becomes hit. 6,6: split becomes hit. 9,9: split becomes stand. |
| 7 to 8 | 4 | 2,2, 3,3 and 7,7: split becomes hit. 9,9: stand becomes split. |
| 8 to 9 | 2 | Hard 16: hit becomes surrender if allowed, otherwise hit. Soft 18: stand becomes hit. |
| 9 to 10 | 4 | Hard 10 and 5,5: double if allowed, otherwise hit, becomes hit. Hard 15: hit becomes surrender if allowed, otherwise hit. 9,9: split becomes stand. |
| 10 to ace | 2 | Hard 11: double if allowed, otherwise hit, becomes hit. Hard 15: surrender if allowed, otherwise hit, becomes hit. |

Add the steps up: 4 + 5 + 3 + 0 + 15 + 4 + 2 + 4 + 2 = 39 row changes across the nine steps. The 5 and 6 columns are identical, the only neighboring pair with nothing between them. The overlap even crosses the seam: the 2 and 7 columns differ in only 8 rows.

On the weak side, every change adds a double, a split, or a stand on hard 12, as the dealer bust rate climbs from 35.4 percent against a 2 to 42.3 percent against a 6, per the six deck, stands on soft 17 tables the series uses. The four weak side steps total 12 changed rows, and so do the four strong side steps; the seam from the 6 to the 7 outweighs either side on its own, at 15.

## The ten day schedule

The plan starts on the weakest upcard, works down the weak side, crosses the seam, then walks the strong side:

| Day | Upcard | Compared with | Rows that change |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | [the 6](https://21trainer.app/articles/basic-strategy-vs-dealer-six/) | nothing yet, the starting column | all 28 are new |
| 2 | [the 5](https://21trainer.app/articles/basic-strategy-vs-dealer-five/) | the 6 | 0 |
| 3 | [the 4](https://21trainer.app/articles/basic-strategy-vs-dealer-four/) | the 5 | 3 |
| 4 | [the 3](https://21trainer.app/articles/basic-strategy-vs-dealer-three/) | the 4 | 5 |
| 5 | [the 2](https://21trainer.app/articles/basic-strategy-vs-dealer-two/) | the 3 | 4 |
| 6 | [the 7](https://21trainer.app/articles/basic-strategy-vs-dealer-seven/) | the 6 | 15 |
| 7 | [the 8](https://21trainer.app/articles/basic-strategy-vs-dealer-eight/) | the 7 | 4 |
| 8 | [the 9](https://21trainer.app/articles/basic-strategy-vs-dealer-nine/) | the 8 | 2 |
| 9 | [the 10](https://21trainer.app/articles/basic-strategy-vs-dealer-ten/) | the 9 | 4 |
| 10 | [the ace](https://21trainer.app/articles/basic-strategy-vs-dealer-ace/) | the 10 | 2 |

The 6 comes first because it is the dealer's weakest upcard and, tied with the 5, the chart's most permissive column, so day 1 learns the chart at its most generous. Day 2 is nearly free: the 5 is identical to the 6 here, so it is a second pass on the same 28 rows, now read as the 5 and 6 together. And the 7 waits for day 6 on purpose: it is the biggest step on the chart, saved until the weak side is solid. The plan compares it with the 6 to show the whole seam; the 2, learned the day before, is a lighter comparison at 8 rows.

A ten value card, a 10, jack, queen or king, is the dealer upcard four times in thirteen, about 30.8 percent of hands; each other rank shows one time in thirteen, about 7.7 percent. The 10 earns one day like every other upcard but carries four times the table time, so let it return in every review from day 9 onward.

## What a day looks like

Each day has three parts. First, read that upcard's article; the hub page, [All Ten Dealer Upcards on One Page](https://21trainer.app/articles/dealer-upcard-series-summary/), links all ten. Second, learn only the rows that changed from the column it is compared with: three rows on day 3, fifteen on day 6. A paper chart is fine for this part. Third, drill a mixed review that includes every column learned so far.

The mixed review is where a trainer app earns its place: the single column work happens with the chart and the article, and the app's mixed practice is the review. Our piece on [blocked versus mixed drills](https://21trainer.app/articles/mixed-hand-drills/) explains why the review should be mixed: blocks suit new material, but only mixed practice trains recognizing the hand before the chart cell applies.

Session length and pass marks come from the practice writing on this site: ten focused minutes daily beats an occasional marathon per [How to Practice Blackjack Without Risking a Dollar](https://21trainer.app/articles/how-to-practice-blackjack/), and the four week schedule is built around 15 to 20 minutes a day. For the standard, [How Do You Know the Chart Is Finally Learned?](https://21trainer.app/articles/when-is-the-chart-learned/) gathers the thresholds this site has published: accuracy steady above roughly 95 percent across at least a few hundred hands in each hand category, and the high nineties on mixed drilling at table pace.

## If the dealer hits soft 17

Everything above assumes the dealer stands on soft 17. If your game hits it, the 4 to 8 deck chart changes in six cells, in three columns, and they slot into existing days. Soft 19 against a 6 becomes double if allowed, otherwise stand: add it on day 1. Soft 18 against a 2 becomes double if allowed, otherwise stand: add it on day 5. Against an ace, hard 11 becomes double if allowed, otherwise hit, hard 15 becomes surrender if allowed, otherwise hit, hard 17 becomes surrender if allowed, otherwise stand, and 8,8 becomes surrender if allowed, otherwise split: add those four on day 10.

With soft 19 against a 6 changed, the 5 and 6 columns are no longer identical, so day 2 gains one row. Our piece on [S17 vs H17](https://21trainer.app/articles/s17-vs-h17/) covers the rule and the plays it changes. In the app the chart redraws for the selected rules, so with 4 to 8 decks selected, setting the dealer to hit soft 17 shows those six cells changed.

## After day ten

The Pro upgrade adds accuracy heat maps by hand type and dealer upcard, which answer the question this plan leaves open: which upcards are still weak after ten days. The Weakness Drill, also in Pro, then finds and drills your weakest hands.

One final pass is worth it: read the ten columns side by side at the hub, which also lays out the nine neighbor steps in one table.

## Frequently asked questions

### Can you learn blackjack basic strategy in ten days?

Ten days is enough to work through every column once. Neighboring columns overlap heavily: after the 28 rows of the first column, this order adds 39 changed rows across the other nine days, and no later day asks for more than 15. Whether it is then learned is a separate test of steady accuracy, so keep the mixed review going after day 10.

### Which dealer upcard should you learn first?

Start with the 6. It is the weakest upcard for the dealer and, with the 5, the most permissive column for the player: stand on stiffs, double most soft hands, split most pairs. Day 2 covers the 5, identical to the 6 in the 4 to 8 deck chart where the dealer stands on soft 17, which makes it a free second pass on the same column.

### Why does the plan save the 7 for day six?

Because the step from the 6 to the 7 is the biggest on the chart, 15 changed rows out of 28, and the plan saves it until the weak side is solid. The 7 is the seam between the weak and strong halves: every stiff total switches from standing to hitting, the soft doubles disappear, and several pairs stop splitting. Comparing the 7 with the 2, learned on day 5, is a lighter route, since those two columns differ in only 8 rows.

### Which dealer upcard comes up most often?

A ten value card. Ten, jack, queen and king all count as ten, so a ten value upcard appears four times in thirteen, about 30.8 percent of hands, while each other rank appears one time in thirteen, about 7.7 percent. So the 10 gets one day but should return in every review after.

### Does this plan change if the dealer hits soft 17?

A little. In the 4 to 8 deck chart, six cells move, all in three columns. Soft 18 against a 2 and soft 19 against a 6 become double if allowed, otherwise stand, and against an ace hard 11, hard 15, hard 17 and 8,8 change too. Fold them in on the days for the 2, the 6 and the ace: days 5, 1 and 10. The 5 and 6 columns then differ in soft 19, so day 2 gains one row.

## Keep reading

- [All Ten Dealer Upcards on One Page](https://21trainer.app/articles/dealer-upcard-series-summary/)
- [A Four-Week Blackjack Practice Schedule](https://21trainer.app/articles/blackjack-practice-schedule/)
- [Playing Against a Dealer 7, Hand by Hand](https://21trainer.app/articles/basic-strategy-vs-dealer-seven/)