Free poker reference
Small blind Preflop Range
These charts are the starting point
Sharkling solves the spots the chart can't cover, and grades your play against the answer.
Small blind — First raise
100bb, 6-max cash
40.6%of hands
Range notation
AA, KK, QQ, JJ, TT, 99, 88, 77, 66, 55, 44, 33, 22, AKs, AQs, AJs, ATs, A9s, A8s, A7s, A6s, A5s, A4s, A3s, A2s, KQs, KJs, KTs, K9s, K8s, K7s, K6s, K5s, K4s, K3s, K2s, QJs, QTs, Q9s, Q8s, Q7s, Q6s, Q5s, JTs, J9s, J8s, T9s, T8s, T7s, 98s, 97s, 96s, 87s, 86s, 85s:0.16, 76s, 75s, 65s, 64s:0.96, 54s, AKo, AQo, AJo, ATo, A9o, A8o, A7o, A6o, A5o, A4o, A3o, A2o, KQo, KJo, KTo, K9o, K8o, K7o, K6o, QJo, QTo, Q9o, JTo
Hands with a :0.5-style suffix are mixed — the solver plays them that fraction of the time. Copy this string into the equity calculator to run it against a specific hand.
Where this came from: Cash open-raise charts from solver-core's preflop solver (engine v0.1.0). Postflop continuation values calibrated against real postflop solves (Phase B) at 100bb and reused at this depth. No cross-player card removal; cold-continues vs 3-bets pruned. See the methodology page. Converged to 0.00088 bb of Nash distance.
Static charts can't cover every postflop spot
Build the board, stacks and ranges in Neural Custom Solve, then study the flop strategy while the exact solve runs.
Playing the small blind
The small blind is the strangest seat at the table. Only the big blind remains to act, which argues for opening extremely wide — but if they call, you are out of position for every street that follows, which argues for the opposite.
Modern solver strategy resolves this with a mixed approach: raise a strong, polarised range and limp a supporting range behind it, rather than raise-or-fold. The chart above shows the raising range; the limp strategy is a separate chart.
The other thing the small blind has going for it is the discount. You have already posted half a big blind, so the price of continuing is better than it looks — which is exactly why the big blind gets to defend so wide against you.
The other seats
Position changes the correct range more than any other single factor. Compare:
- Under the gun — opens 16.6% of hands
- Middle position (hijack) — opens 21.5% of hands
- Cutoff — opens 29.6% of hands
- Button — opens 49.3% of hands
Once you know which hands to open, the next question is how they perform when called. The equity calculator will run any of these ranges against a specific hand or another range — paste the range notation from above straight into it.
Frequently asked questions
What is a preflop chart?
A grid of all 169 starting hand types showing which to raise, call or fold from a given seat. It is the compressed output of a solver run: the machine plays the spot millions of times and the chart records the strategy it settles on.
Should I follow preflop charts exactly?
As a default, yes — they are far better than instinct, and preflop is where the most money is lost to bad habits. But charts assume opponents who play back correctly. Against players who never fold or never defend their blinds, deviating is where the profit is.
Why does position change the range so much?
Two reasons. Acting last after the flop is worth several big blinds per 100 hands on its own, and opening from an early seat leaves more players still to act behind you. The button opens roughly three times as many hands as under the gun.
Do these charts work for 9-handed games?
Choose a 9-max set in the chart browser for a full-ring game. The opening examples below the browser are for 6-max cash games, so use the set that matches your table size and stack depth.
Are all the charts free without an account?
Yes. Every published set and action is free to browse and share, including opening, calling and re-raising ranges. The postflop presolve library is also free. Training, personal analysis and custom solves have their own account and plan requirements.
Related tools
- Hand RankingsEvery hand, ranked — and what beats what.
- Equity CalculatorHand vs hand, hand vs range, range vs range.