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How To Calculate Equity in Poker
All You Need to Know about Online Poker Equity
Whether playing online, or at the felt in a casino, knowing how to calculate equity in poker will give you a huge edge when it comes to making decisions at the tables.
Pot equity is worked out using simple maths to calculate the chances of winning in a showdown, while fold equity enables players to work out the likelihood of causing an opponent to fold.
Our extensive guide and poker equity calculator chart below explain everything you need to know about equity and how to use it to your advantage.
What is equity in poker?
Equity in poker is the share of the pot that is yours based on the odds that you will win the pot at that point in play. Equity changes after each street – pre-flop, flop, turn and river.
The strategy around poker equity is pretty simple. If you feel you have more equity in the pot than your opponent (i.e. you have the better hand at that moment) then you generally want to bet, for a couple of reasons.
Betting will induce players with weaker holdings to fold, giving you the pot. If your opponent calls, betting grows the pot, making your "equity" worth a lot more. This assumes, of course, you have read your opponent correctly.
You Bet
1000
Total
2000
Your 70%
1400
Your Increase = 400 Chips
Look at it like this.
Let's say you are a 70 percent favorite to win after the flop and you bet 1,000. Your opponent calls. The total bet for that round is 2,000. Your 70 percent equity amounts to 1,400 chips, so you increased your equity 400 chips by betting.
Poker Equity Charts
Being able to calculate equity quickly in any situation is one of the most helpful skills a poker player can have. Familiarise yourself with the charts below in common pre-flop and post-flop scenarios.
Common Scenarios Preflop
| Hand #1 | Equity #1 | Vs Hand #2 | Equity #2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overpair (AA) | 81% | Underpair (KK) | 19% |
| Overpair (AA) | 92% | Dominated Overcard (AK) | 8% |
| Overpair (AA) | 81% | Unsuited Undercards (87o) | 19% |
| Overpair (AA) | 77% | Suited Undercards (7s) | 23% |
| Overpair (AA) | 88% | Junk (72o) | 11% |
| Two overcards (AK) | 62% | Two undercards (87) | 38% |
| Two overcards (AK) | 46% | Lower pair (88) | 54% |
| One overcard (A5) | 56% | Middle cards (87) | 44% |
| One overcard (A5) | 31% | Lower pair (88) | 69% |
| One overcard (A5) | 34% | Undominated pair (55) | 66% |
| One overcard (AQ) | 62% | Sanwiched lower cards (KJ) | 38% |
| Dominating higher card (AK) | 73% | Dominated higher card (AJ) | 27% |
| Dominating lower card (A5) | 69% | Dominated lower card (65) | 31% |
Common Scenarios Postflop
| Hand #1 | Equity #1 | Vs Hand #2 | Equity #2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overpair (AA) | 81% | Underpair (KK) | 19% |
| Overpair (AA) | 92% | Dominated Overcard (AK) | 8% |
| Overpair (AA) | 81% | Unsuited Undercards (87o) | 19% |
| Overpair (AA) | 77% | Suited Undercards (7s) | 23% |
| Overpair (AA) | 88% | Junk (72o) | 11% |
| Two overcards (AK) | 62% | Two undercards (87) | 38% |
| Two overcards (AK) | 46% | Lower pair (88) | 54% |
| One overcard (A5) | 56% | Middle cards (87) | 44% |
| One overcard (A5) | 31% | Lower pair (88) | 69% |
| One overcard (A5) | 34% | Undominated pair (55) | 66% |
| One overcard (AQ) | 62% | Sanwiched lower cards (KJ) | 38% |
| Dominating higher card (AK) | 73% | Dominated higher card (AJ) | 27% |
| Dominating lower card (A5) | 69% | Dominated lower card (65) | 31% |
Equity when behind
In general, the player with more equity is usually ahead in the hand. There are times, however, when you may be behind and still have more equity.
Take this example.
Three players go to the flop. You are last to act and have 10s-9s. Player 1 has Ah/8h and player 2 has Qc-Qd. The flop comes up 8s-7h-2s. If you stopped the hand right then, you would lose to both players. Player 1 has a pair of eights (not to mention a backdoor, nut flush draw) and Player 2 has a pair of queens.
Your combined open-ended straight draw and flush draw actually gives you more equity than your opponents. At this point, you are a 55% favorite to win the hand. Player 2 is at 28% and Player 1 is at 17%.
You Bet
2000
Total
6000
Your 55% = 3300 Chips
Equity would dictate that you bet. Let's say you are in position and both players check. You only have a 10-high at this point and figure to be behind both players, but your potential is so good that it makes sense to try a semi-bluff, so you put out a bet of 2,000, and both players call.
In terms of equity, you gained 55% of the 6,000 chips bet, or roughly 3,300 chips – almost twice what you bet.
Let's say the turn is a brick for all three players – the 3 of diamonds. Your equity – the chance you will win the hand – has dropped to 36 percent. Player 1, with the pocket queens, is now at 55%, and Player 2 is at 9 percent.
Let's say Player 1 leads out with a bet of 6,000 and Player 2 folds. What do you do? Equity dictates you fold, because now you are only a 1 in 3 chance to win the hand, and if you continually play those kinds of odds, you will be a losing player.
But there are other factors that could lead you to make the call. How big is your stack? If you're in a tournament, how close are you to the money, or to the final table? If you fold, how many chips will you have left?
Another arrow in your quiver
Equity is not a hard
and fast concept, of course. Unless your opponent has shown you their cards and you have a pot odds
calculator at your disposal, you never really know your equity in a given situation, and you certainly can't
predict what your equity will be after the turn and river. Still, understanding the concept and how to apply
it can improve your game.
Knowing your equity in poker relies greatly on the ability to accurately put your opponents on a hand. As you get better at reading your opponents, the accuracy of your equity analysis will also get better.
Strict adherents to equity would say you should bet every time you believe you have more equity, as you will win more often than you lose. But equity is an inexact science and should just be one factor in the equation when deciding whether or not to bet, fold or call.
Understanding equity helps you identify situations where you are ahead, behind or somewhere in the middle, enabling you to make the best betting decisions possible.
From Omaha and Three Card Poker to Five Card Draw and Razz, you can learn more about the poker rules of these variations and other guides here.
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