Texas Hold'em guide
Texas Hold'em rules
Each player gets two private cards, five community cards are dealt face up in three stages, and there are four rounds of betting. The best five-card hand at showdown — or the last player left after everyone else folds — wins the pot.
What is the goal of Texas Hold'em?
You win chips by winning pots. There are two ways to win one: get every other player to fold, or show down the best five-card hand after the last betting round.
Your hand is the best five cards out of seven — your two hole cards plus the five community cards on the board. You can use both hole cards, one of them or none.
How do the button and the blinds work?
A disc called the dealer button marks the player in the dealer's seat. It moves one seat clockwise after every hand, so everyone takes turns acting last.
Before any cards are dealt, the two players to the left of the button post forced bets called blinds: the small blind (usually half the minimum bet) and the big blind (the minimum bet). The blinds make sure there's always something to win. On this site's practice table they are 10 and 20 chips.
Heads-up — with only two players — the button posts the small blind and acts first before the flop, then last on every later street.
How are the cards dealt?
The deck is shuffled and each player gets two face-down cards, one at a time, clockwise, starting with the player to the left of the button. These are your hole cards and only you can see them.
Before each set of community cards the dealer "burns" the top card — discards it face down — so nobody can glimpse what's coming. The practice table burns cards too.
What are the four betting rounds?
There's a round of betting after the hole cards are dealt and after each batch of community cards.
| Round | Cards dealt | First to act |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-flop | Two hole cards to each player | The player to the left of the big blind ("under the gun") |
| Flop | Three community cards | The first player still in the hand to the left of the button |
| Turn | A fourth community card | The first player still in the hand to the left of the button |
| River | The fifth and last community card | The first player still in the hand to the left of the button |
Before the flop the blinds act last, because their bets are already in. From the flop on, the button acts last.
What can you do when it's your turn?
- Fold — give up your cards and any chips you've already put in. You're out of the hand.
- Check — pass without betting. Only allowed when nobody has bet in the current round.
- Call — match the current bet.
- Bet — put in the first chips of a betting round.
- Raise — increase the current bet. Everyone else must call the new amount, raise again or fold.
- All-in — put in every chip you have left. You can never be forced out of a hand for lack of chips, but you can only win as much from each opponent as you put in.
A betting round ends when everyone still in the hand has had a chance to act and has either put in the same amount or is all in.
How much can you bet in no-limit Hold'em?
In no-limit you can bet any amount from the minimum up to all of your chips, at any time.
The minimum bet is one big blind. A raise must be at least as large as the previous bet or raise in the same round. With blinds of 10/20, if a player raises to 60 — a raise of 40 — the next raise has to go to at least 100.
An all-in for less than a full raise doesn't reopen the betting: players who have already acted can only call or fold.
What happens at showdown?
If two or more players are still in after the river betting, the hands are turned face up and the best five-card hand wins. In a casino the last player to bet or raise shows first; on the practice table every remaining hand is turned over at once and the winning five cards are highlighted.
Hands are compared using the standard poker hand rankings. If two hands are exactly equal the pot is split, and when it can't be divided evenly the odd chip goes to the first winner to the left of the button.
If everyone else folds, the last player wins the pot without showing. Any part of a bet that nobody called goes back to the player who made it.
How do main pots and side pots work?
A side pot is created when a player is all in and others keep betting. An all-in player can only win the chips they matched from each opponent.
The smallest all-in sets a cap. Chips up to that cap from every player go into the main pot, which everyone can win; chips above it go into a side pot that only the players who put them in can win. Each further all-in creates another layer.
At showdown the pots are awarded separately, each to the best hand among the players eligible for it.
Example: three players all in
Ana goes all in for 200. Ben goes all in for 500. Cara has more chips and calls with 1,000.
| Pot | Size | Who can win it | How it's built |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main pot | 600 | Ana, Ben, Cara | 200 from each of 3 players |
| Side pot 1 | 600 | Ben, Cara | 300 from each of 2 players |
Cara's extra 500 isn't matched by anyone, so it goes straight back to Cara.
If Ana has the best hand, Ana wins the main pot (600) and the better hand of Ben and Cara wins the side pot (600). If Ana has the worst hand, both pots are decided between Ben and Cara.
The practice table works this out for you: at showdown each pot is labeled with its winner, and the hand history shows any chips that were returned.
Frequently asked questions
Do you have to use both hole cards in Texas Hold'em?
No. Your hand is the best five of the seven cards available. You can use both hole cards, one or none — if the five board cards are your best hand, you "play the board".
Who acts first in Texas Hold'em?
Before the flop, the player to the left of the big blind acts first. On the flop, turn and river, the first player still in the hand to the left of the button acts first.
What is the difference between no-limit and limit Hold'em?
In no-limit you can bet any amount up to all your chips. In limit Hold'em, bets and raises are fixed sizes and the number of raises per round is capped. This site plays no-limit.
What happens if I run out of chips during a hand?
You're all in. You stay in the hand until showdown, but you can only win as much from each opponent as you put in; any further betting between other players goes into a side pot.