How to Play Texas Hold'em Online: Poker Rules

What Is Texas Hold’em?

At its core, Texas Hold’em is a community card game where players combine two “hole cards” dealt to them with five “community cards” dealt face-up in the middle of the table. Players can use any combination of these seven cards to make their best five-card hand.

The game has four betting rounds: Preflop, Flop, Turn, and the River. At each round, players have an opportunities to bet, check, call, raise, or fold. A player can win by either:

1. Showing the highest-ranked hand at showdown
2. Getting all other players to fold before showdown

Table Setup & Positions

Poker is played around an oval table, usually seating 2–10 players. A dealer button (a small round disc) moves one seat clockwise each hand and determines who acts first and last in each betting round.

Positions in Order

• Small Blind (SB) – Early position; posts the small blind and acts second-to-last preflop, first postflop.
• Big Blind (BB) – Early position; posts the big blind and acts last preflop unless there’s a raise.
• Under the Gun (UTG) – Early position; first to act preflop.
• Under the Gun +1 (UTG+1) – Early position; next seat after UTG.
• Middle Position (MP) – Middle seat; a balance between early and late action opportunities.
• Middle Position +1 (MP+1) – Middle seat; slightly more flexible hand selection than MP.
• Hijack (HJ) – Late position; two seats right of the button, strong spot for opening wider ranges.
• Cutoff (CO) – Late position; just right of the button, great for stealing blinds.
• Button (BTN) – Late position; acts last postflop, most advantageous seat at the table.

Understanding Blinds & Antes

In Texas Hold’em, every hand starts with forced bets called blinds. These small, automatic bets ensure that there’s always money in the pot to play for, otherwise players could sit around waiting for the perfect hand and the game would stall.

The Blinds

• Small Blind (SB): Posted by the player immediately to the left of the dealer button. Typically equal to half the big blind.
• Big Blind (BB): Posted by the player to the left of the small blind. Always equal to the full blind amount.

The blinds rotate clockwise with the dealer button, so everyone takes turns posting them.

Example: In a $1/$2 game, the small blind is $1 and the big blind is $2. The pot already starts with $3 before any cards are even dealt.

Antes

In some many Hold'em tournaments, each player must also post a small forced bet called an ante. Antes increase the size of the pot and encourage more action.

• Cash Games: Rarely use antes.
• Tournaments: Common once the blinds reach higher levels. Antes are usually a fraction of the big blind and are posted by every player, not just the blinds.

Example: Blinds are 500/1,000 with a 100 ante.

• Every player contributes 100 to the pot.
• The small blind posts 500.
• The big blind posts 1,000.
  With 9 players at the table, the pot starts at 2,400 chips before anyone makes a move.

Why Blinds and Antes Matter

Blinds and antes shape the flow of the game:

• They create constant action by putting money on the line every hand.
• They force decisions, especially when stacks get short in tournaments.
• They influence strategy, since your position relative to the blinds often determines which hands you should play.

Think of blinds and antes as the “engine” that keeps Hold’em moving. Without them, players would fold endlessly until dealt pocket aces. With them, every hand has something at stake.

Street-by-Street Betting in Texas Hold’em

Poker action unfolds in four betting rounds. Each street introduces new cards, new decisions, and fresh opportunities to build a winning hand. Here’s how it plays out step by step:

Preflop

Before any community cards are dealt, each player receives two private hole cards. Action begins with the player to the left of the big blind.

Options at this stage:

• Fold – Discard your hand and sit out the round.
• Call – Match the current bet (at minimum, the big blind).
• Raise – Increase the bet. In no-limit Hold’em, the raise must be at least the size of the big blind, with no upper limit beyond your total stack.
  • If the big blind is $1, the minimum raise is $2, as the raise size is $1.

The Flop

After preflop betting ends, the dealer burns one card and places three community cards face-up in the center of the table. These cards are shared by all active players.

Options expand slightly here:

• Check – Pass the action without betting (only possible if no bet has been made yet).
• Bet – Place chips into the pot to build the action.
• Call, Raise, or Fold – Respond to bets in turn.

Example: If a player bets $3, the minimum raise would be $6 (an additional $3 on top of the original bet).

The round continues clockwise until the last bet is matched or everyone folds except one player.

The Turn

The dealer burns a card, then adds a fourth community card face-up beside the flop. Another betting round follows, starting with the first active player to the left of the dealer button.

Options remain the same as on the flop (check, bet, call, raise, fold). Because the pot is often larger by this point, betting sizes can have a bigger impact on the outcome of the hand.

The River

Finally, the dealer burns one card and places the fifth and final community card face-up on the board. A last betting round takes place. This is the final chance to push for value with strong hands, bluff with weak ones, or fold if you think you're beaten. After this betting round, any players still in the hand proceed to showdown.

Side Pots

When a player goes all-in for less than the full bet amount, side pots come into play.

Example:

• Player A bets $30 on the flop.
• Player B calls all-in for $20 (their entire stack).
• Player C calls the full $30.

The main pot includes $20 from each player. The extra $10 from Players A and C forms a side pot, which only they can win. Any further betting also goes into the side pot.

Showdown

In the event of a tie, all players with winning hands split the pot equally. If you’re unsure what hand beats what, make sure to check out our hand ranking chart, which you can find below.

Texas Hold’em Hand Rankings

In Texas Hold’em, every hand is made up of exactly five cards . You can use both of your hole cards, one of them, or none (just the board) to make your best hand.

Below are the hand rankings from strongest to weakest, with short descriptions:

The Showdown Explained

At the end of a hand, if two or more players are still in after the final betting round, it’s time for the showdown. This is where hole cards are revealed and the winner is determined.

Building Your Best Hand

Each player must make the strongest possible five-card poker hand using:

• Both hole cards + three community cards
• One hole card + four community cards
• Or even just the five community cards (“playing the board”)

Only the best five cards count, no matter how many are available.

Example:

• Board: A♠ K♠ 7♦ 7♣ 2♥
• Your hand: Q♠ 7♠
• Opponent’s hand: A♥ 10♦

You win with three of a kind (trip sevens) because your 7 pairs with the two on the board, beating your opponent’s two pair (Aces and Sevens).

Winning by Showdown

When all cards are revealed, the player with the highest-ranked five-card hand wins the pot. If two or more players tie, the pot is split equally.

Example:

• Board: J♠ J♦ 5♥ 5♣ 9♠
• Player A: A♦ Q♣
• Player B: K♠ 10♠

Both players have two pair, Jacks and Fives, with a 9 kicker. The pot is split evenly.

Winning Without Showdown (Bluffing)

Sometimes, you don’t need the best hand to win. If all your opponents fold before cards are revealed, you take the pot uncontested — no matter what you’re holding.

Example:

• Board: K♣ 8♠ 4♦ 2♣ 10♥
• You: 6♦ 6♣
• Opponent folds to your river bet

Even though your hand is just a weak pair of sixes, you win the pot without ever showing your cards. That’s the power of pressure and timing in Hold’em.

Preflop Fundamentals

The preflop stage sets the tone for every Texas Hold’em hand. That’s why developing a solid preflop strategy in Texas Hold’em is a big deal.

The choices you make before the flop determine how big the pot becomes, how many opponents you’ll face, and whether you’ll play from a position of strength or weakness.

Key fundamentals to keep in mind:

• Position matters – Acting later gives you more information and control.
• Choose starting hands carefully – Not all hands are worth playing.
• Make your opening raise count – Set the terms of the hand from the start.
• Respond wisely to aggression – Your reaction to a raise is just as important as your own bet.
• Adapt to table dynamics – Adjust to the tendencies of opponents around you.
• Avoid common mistakes – Don’t chase weak hands or play out of position unnecessarily.

Preflop discipline comes down to patience, position, and purposeful aggression. Aim to enter pots with hands that can either build big wins or force opponents into difficult decisions, while steering clear of spots where you’ll be left guessing after the flop.

Postflop Fundamentals

The postflop stages; flop, turn, and river are where most of the action happens in Texas Hold’em. This is where you’re working with partial information, trying to read your opponents, calculate your odds, and extract maximum value (or lose the minimum) from your hand.

Here are the core postflop concepts every player should understand:

1. Board Texture

The “texture” of the board refers to how coordinated or uncoordinated the community cards are, and how they interact with possible ranges of hands.

• Dry boards: Example – K♠ 7♦ 2♣. There are no flush draws and minimal straight draws, so big hands (top pair, overpairs, sets) are more likely to stay ahead. You can make smaller bets to protect your hand and control pot size.
• Wet boards: Example – J♥ T♥ 9♠. There are multiple straight and flush draws possible, meaning the hand strength landscape can change quickly. Bigger bets are often needed to protect against draws or to apply pressure when you’re the one holding a draw.

Example: You raise preflop with A♠ K♠ and the flop comes K♦ 7♦ 2♣ (dry). This is a great spot for a small continuation bet to build the pot and deny overcard hands a free card.

2. Equity

Equity is your share of the pot based on your chance of winning if the hand goes to showdown. It changes with each street as more cards are revealed.

• High equity hands: Strong made hands (sets, straights) or strong draws with many outs (nut flush draw + overcards).
• Low equity hands: Weak pairs, gutshot straight draws, and hands that need perfect runouts.

Example: You hold A♥ Q♥ on a flop of J♥ 9♣ 2♥. You have 12 outs (9 hearts + 3 tens) to the nut flush or straight, giving you roughly 45% equity with two cards to come — a hand worth continuing aggressively.

3. Pot Odds

Pot odds are the ratio between the current size of the pot and the cost of a call. They help you decide whether calling is mathematically profitable with a drawing hand.

• Formula: Pot odds (%) = (Amount to Call / (Pot Size + Amount to Call)) × 100
• Compare your pot odds to your hand’s equity to decide.

Example: Pot is $100, opponent bets $25. You must call $25 to win $125 total, giving pot odds of 20%. If your hand has more than 20% equity (e.g., a flush draw with ~36% equity), the call is profitable.

4. Fold Equity

Fold equity is the chance that your opponent will fold in response to your bet. Even if you don’t have the best hand, fold equity can make a bluff profitable.

• When it’s high: Against tight players who can lay down marginal hands.
• When it’s low: Against loose “calling stations” who rarely fold.

Example: You have A♣ 5♣ on a flop of K♦ 7♠ 2♠. You missed completely, but your opponent checked to you. A well-timed bet here may fold out hands like QJ or small pocket pairs, winning the pot without a showdown

Postflop poker is about balancing these factors: the board texture, your hand’s equity, the pot odds being offered, and the fold equity you can generate to make the most profitable decision street by street.

Live vs. Online Differences

While Texas Hold’em follows the same core rules whether you play in a casino, at home, or online, the experience can feel very different. Understanding these differences will help you adapt your strategy and table presence to the environment.

Timers

Online: Most poker sites enforce a fixed time bank, often just a few seconds per decision in cash games and tournaments. This speeds up the game and means you’ll play many more hands per hour than live poker. Time banks prevent stalling but also limit your ability to deeply think through marginal spots unless you’ve saved extra time.

Live: Players generally have more time to act, and the dealer won’t rush you unless the game is moving too slowly. This extra time can be useful for reading opponents’ physical tells but also means the game moves at a slower pace — often 20–30 hands per hour compared to 60–100+ online.

HUDs (Heads-Up Displays)

Online: Many poker tracking programs display statistics on opponents — such as VPIP (Voluntarily Put $ in Pot), aggression frequency, and 3-bet percentages — in real time. These HUDs help players spot tendencies and make data-driven decisions. However, not all poker sites allow HUDs, and some have banned them entirely to level the playing field.

Live: There are no HUDs, so you must rely on memory, observation, and note-taking. Tracking how often an opponent raises, limps, or shows down certain hands becomes a manual process.

Multi-Tabling

Online: You can play multiple tables at the same time — sometimes a dozen or more — which significantly increases the number of hands you play per hour. This allows for faster learning and the ability to spread variance across more games. However, it demands strong focus and quick decision-making.

Live: You can only play one table at a time. While this limits volume, it gives you the opportunity to pay closer attention to each player and dynamic at the table.

Etiquette

Live: Poker etiquette is an important part of keeping the game friendly and enjoyable. Avoid acting out of turn, “splashing the pot” (throwing chips messily into the middle), slow rolling (delaying showing a winning hand), or criticizing other players’ decisions. Good etiquette earns you respect and keeps the game running smoothly.

Online: Many etiquette issues don’t apply because there’s no physical interaction, but chat boxes can be abused. Avoid trash talk or giving away information about your hand during play.

Playing Texas Hold'em Online

Texas Hold’em is a game that blends strategy, psychology, and probability but it’s also deeply influenced by the environment in which you play. By understanding the rules, hand rankings, betting structures, and the subtle factors like position, board texture, and opponent tendencies, you give yourself a real edge over less-prepared players.

The beauty of Hold’em is that it’s easy to learn yet endlessly deep. There’s always more to master, more strategies to refine, and more opportunities to outplay your opponents. With the knowledge in this guide, you’re equipped to sit down at any real money poker site and play with confidence.

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Author

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Cliff Spiller is a casino and sports enthusiast with nineteen-plus years of experience as a writer and editor. He's blogged about US casino and sports betting news for several prominent gaming sites. Along the way, he's written for OddsShark, NJ.com, SportingNews.com, and LegalSportsReport. Cliff is a US editor for ClickOut Media and a writer for Catena Media.

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