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Preflop charts: which hands to open from every seat
Updated November 2026
A preflop chart tells you which two cards to raise with when everyone before you has folded. Pick your seat and the grid shows the hands we train opening from there, in a 6-player game with 100 big blind stacks.
How do I read a preflop chart?
Every starting hand in Texas Hold'em fits on one 13 by 13 grid. The trick is knowing which part of the grid is which.
The three parts of the grid
Tap any square to see the hand
Pairs run down the middle. Everything above that line is suited (both cards the same suit), and everything below is offsuit. So AKs sits in the top row and AKo sits in the left column.
The further you go down and right, the weaker the hand. That's why every chart looks like a blob in the top left corner, and why the blob grows as you move toward the button.
How much of the deck should each seat open?
The fewer players left behind you, the wider you can go. This is the idea behind poker positions, turned into numbers.
Share of all starting hands opened
Out of 1,326 possible two-card hands
All five charts side by side
The blob grows as you get closer to the button
The small blind opens fewer hands than the button even though only one player is left behind it. You'll play the rest of the hand out of position, and that costs money.
How much is being suited really worth?
Less than most people think, and more than nothing. We compared each suited hand with its offsuit twin against one random opponent's hand. Being suited adds 2.7 percentage points on average, and never more than 4.
What suited cards add
Extra chance of winning against one random hand
Don't fall in love with a hand because it's pretty. Suited adds a few points.
Now compare all 169 hands on the same scale. The brighter the square, the more often it beats one random hand.
Every starting hand against one random hand
From 34% for 7-2 offsuit to 85% for a pair of aces
Notice how little the bottom of the grid varies. Most hands sit between 40 and 60, so what separates good openers from bad ones is usually position and how the hand plays on later streets. That's why this grid doesn't match the chart at the top.
How do I remember a whole chart?
Don't try to memorize 169 squares. Learn the edge of each column: for every high card, the lowest kicker you still open. Pick a seat and read it off.
A plus sign means "and everything better", so A2s+ is every suited ace. Players write ranges this way because it fits on a line, and the guide to ranges shows the rest of the shorthand.
What each seat's chart is made of
Combos out of 1,326, split by type of hand
Look where the growth comes from. Moving toward the button adds offsuit hands much faster than anything else, because each offsuit square counts for 12 combos.
How much should I raise?
Online, a raise to 2.5 big blinds is standard from most seats. In a live $1/$2 game people call far more, so raises of $10 to $15 are normal. Add one big blind for every player who has already limped (called without raising).
How do I use the chart in a real hand?
Look up the hand, then check your seat. Here are six hands that change as the seats go round.
Six hands, five seats
Open or fold when everyone before you has folded
After a few sessions you'll feel the pattern. Pairs and suited aces open almost everywhere, and offsuit hands get in only as you move toward the button.
What do I do after I've raised?
If everyone folds, you win the blinds and move on. If you get called, check who has position, because that decides how many bets you can make.
On a flop that favors your range, like one with a high card, a small bet with most of your hands works well. If someone re-raises you, most of what you opened turns into a fold, and the guide to the 3-bet shows which hands to keep.
Three things can happen
Why 2.5 big blinds and not more?
A bigger raise wins more when you get called with a good hand, but it risks more when you don't. Raise to 2.5 big blinds with the blinds' 1.5 out there and they have to fold 63% of the time to make it pay by itself. At 3 big blinds that's 67%.
Risk against reward
What if someone limped in front of me?
A limp is a call of the big blind without raising, and it's usually a weak hand. Raise your good hands bigger: 3 big blinds plus 1 for each limper is a good start.
Drop the weakest hands from your chart here, because you'll get called more often and play a bigger pot.
Raise size with limpers
What if someone already raised?
Most of your opening chart turns into a fold. He has shown strength, so you need a hand that does well against a strong range, and your choices are to re-raise, call or fold.
Typical answers to a raise
What does the big blind defend?
More than any other seat, because you already have 1 big blind in and you get a discount on the call. Pick who raised and see how far the defense goes.
What don't these charts tell you?
They only cover the moment when everyone before you has folded. If someone has already raised, you need a tighter plan, and the guide to the 3-bet starts there.
Our charts are simplified on purpose. Each hand has one answer and there are no mixed strategies, so they're easy to learn, and they aren't the output of a solver. At a table full of loose callers, drop the weakest hands; at a table of players who fold too much, you can open a little wider.
What the chart covers
What is a mixed strategy?
Solvers often play the same hand two ways, raising it some of the time and folding it the rest. Our charts give one answer per hand because that's far easier to learn, and the hands solvers mix are usually close in value anyway.
One hand, two plays
An example of the idea, not a solver figure.
Do charts change for live games and tournaments?
The chart is a starting point, and these are the changes that make the most difference.
- TighterLoose live gamesPeople call more, so open fewer weak hands and bluff less.
- Pairs and suited go upDeep stacksThose hands can win a big pot when they hit.
- WiderAntesThere's more to win, so you can open wider.
- Switch chartsUnder about 15 big blindsStop opening small and use a push/fold chart.
- TighterNine-handedTighten up from the early seats, because more players are still to act.
What are the most common preflop mistakes?
- The same hands from every seatThe chart changes with your seat, and so should you.
- Calling from the small blindIt's cheap, and you'll play the whole hand out of position.
- Limping first inIt gives up your chance of winning the pot right away.
- Any two suited cardsSuited adds about 3 points. It does not turn a bad hand into a good one.
- One raise size everywhereA raise that works online won't do much in a loose live game.
How long does it take to learn a chart?
About a week if you do it properly. Learn one seat a day, starting with the button, and drill it until you stop thinking about it. The trainer below brings the hands you miss back until they stick.
One seat a day
Can you open the right hands from memory?
Twelve spots in three rounds, focused on the hands near the edge of each chart.
Questions players ask about preflop charts
Are preflop charts cheating?
No. They're study tools. Most live rooms won't let you read one at the table during a hand, and online sites have their own rules, so learn them away from the game.
Should I always follow the chart?
Follow it until you can explain why it says what it says. After that you can adjust to the players at your table.
Why do hands like A5s open from early seats?
Because they make the best flush when they hit, and they can make a straight with an ace on the low end.
Are these charts for cash games or tournaments?
Cash games with 100 big blind stacks. Tournaments play shorter, so you'll want tighter ranges from the early seats and a push/fold chart when you get short.
Do I need different charts at different stakes?
Mostly no. What changes is the players: the lower the stakes, the more they call, so value hands get better and bluffs get worse.
What about the big blind?
The big blind never opens, because everyone else has already acted. It defends against raises, which is a different chart.
How the numbers on this page were worked out
The grids count all 1,326 two-card hands: 6 for each pair, 4 for each suited hand and 12 for each offsuit hand. The chance of beating one random hand comes from dealing out the board at random many times per hand, and we rounded it to whole percentages.
Know someone who plays any two cards?
Send them this page, or keep the cheat sheet for your next session.