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How to Play Texas Hold 'em

A beginner-friendly guide — everything you need to sit down and play

Quick Navigation

  1. The Goal
  2. How a Hand Is Played
  3. Blinds — How the Pot Starts
  4. Your Options on Each Betting Round
  5. Hand Rankings — Best to Worst
  6. A Few Things That Trip Up New Players

The Goal

Win chips by making the best 5-card hand from any combination of your 2 private cards and the 5 community cards on the table — or by convincing everyone else to fold.

How a Hand Is Played — In Order

1
Blinds
Two players post forced bets to start the pot
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2
Deal
Each player gets 2 private cards (hole cards)
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3
Pre-flop
First round of betting — call, raise, or fold
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4
The Flop
3 community cards dealt face-up. Bet again.
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5
The Turn
A 4th community card. Another round of betting.
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6
The River
5th and final card. Last betting round.
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7
Showdown
Remaining players reveal cards. Best hand wins.

Blinds — How the Pot Starts

Small blind Player left of the dealer posts half the minimum bet
Big blind Next player posts the full minimum bet
Dealer button Rotates left each hand — everyone takes a turn
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Pre-flop, the big blind acts last. On all other streets, action starts with the first active player left of the dealer.

Your Options on Each Betting Round

Check
Pass without betting. Only available if no one has bet yet this round.
Call
Match the current bet to stay in the hand.
Raise
Increase the bet. Everyone else must call, re-raise, or fold.
Fold
Discard your hand and sit out the rest of this hand. You lose any chips already bet.
Bet
Open the betting when no one else has bet yet.
All-in
Push all your chips in. You can still win the portion of the pot you covered.

Hand Rankings — Best to Worst

  1. 1 Royal flush best A♥ K♥ Q♥ J♥ 10♥ A K Q J 10 all of the same suit. Unbeatable.
  2. 2 Straight flush 9♠ 8♠ 7♠ 6♠ 5♠ Five consecutive cards, same suit.
  3. 3 Four of a kind K♣ K♠ K♥ K♠ 3♦ All four cards of the same rank.
  4. 4 Full house J♥ J♠ J♣ 7♦ 7♥ Three of a kind plus a pair.
  5. 5 Flush A♣ J♣ 8♣ 5♣ 2♣ Any five cards of the same suit, not in sequence.
  6. 6 Straight 9♠ 8♥ 7♠ 6♦ 5♣ Five consecutive cards, mixed suits.
  7. 7 Three of a kind Q♥ Q♦ Q♠ 7♣ 3♥ Three cards of the same rank.
  8. 8 Two pair A♠ A♦ 9♣ 9♥ 4♠ Two different pairs.
  9. 9 One pair K♥ K♠ A♦ 8♣ 3♥ Two cards of the same rank.
  10. 10 High card worst A♣ J♠ 8♦ 5♥ 2♠ No matching cards. Highest card in your hand plays.
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Ties are broken by the highest card in the hand. If two players have the same hand rank and same high card, the pot is split.

A Few Things That Trip Up New Players

You always use exactly 5 cards

Your best hand is any 5-card combination from your 2 hole cards and the 5 community cards. You don't have to use both hole cards.

Playing the board

If the 5 community cards make a better hand than anything in your hole cards, you can “play the board.” Everyone in the hand does the same, so the pot is split.

Ace plays high and low

An ace can be the highest card (A K Q J 10) or the lowest (A 2 3 4 5 — called a “wheel” straight).

Suits don't break ties

No suit is ranked higher than another. If two players have a flush, the winner is decided by the highest card in the flush, not the suit.

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