In poker, “all-in” refers to the action of a player betting all of their remaining chips. You should go all-in if you have an excellent hand and want your opponent to call, or a terrible hand and want your opponent to fold. Or perhaps when you don\u2019t have a lot of chips relative to the pot (e.g. if there\u2019s $75 in the pot and you have $50 in your stack).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Few moves carry as much weight as the all-in bet. The powerful maneuver can present a make-or-break decision for both you and your opponent. Let\u2019s explore the rules, tactics, and psychology behind this high-impact play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All-in in poker means betting every chip you have. When you declare, \u201cI\u2019m all-in,\u201d you\u2019ve committed your entire chip stack.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n (Yes, in poker, verbal is binding. Announcing a poker all-in is the same as physically pushing all your poker chips<\/a> in the middle.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is specifically for No Limit Texas Hold \u2018Em poker, where you can bet any amount you want \u2013 unlike Limit poker, where your bets are capped. In Limit poker, you can only end up “all-in” if your remaining chips are fewer than the current bet or raise limit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The beauty of No Limit Hold \u2018Em is that you can go all-in whenever it’s your turn. However, there are a few caveats to be aware of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As stated above, announcing, \u201cI\u2019m all-in\u201d is the same as manually betting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Experienced players might softly say \u201call-in\u201d and throw one chip in the middle. Do not be deceived and think this is them only betting a singular chip \u2013 they are betting their entire stack. When in doubt, you can always turn to the dealer for clarification and ask, \u201cAre they all-in?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n If an opponent calls your all-in bet, prepare for your cards to be flipped over for everyone to see. Poker tournament dealers will always lay the cards face-up. Cash games won\u2019t always have this done in practice, but most casinos have a rule where any player at the table can say \u201call hands\u201d and the cards can be exposed. This happens after the action is completed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the most crucial poker all-in rules to know is whether or not it re-opens the action. For example, if somebody raises and you go all-in, can that person reraise again? It depends on how much your all-in is for, and whether it qualifies as a full raise (a full raise is equal to or greater than the size of the previous bet or raise).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here\u2019s an example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to poker all-in rules, can Person #1 reraise again and make it, say, $20? (This would probably be very unsettling for Player #3).<\/p>\n\n\n\n The answer is no, because Player #2’s all-in of $6 is not a full raise from the previous bet. In poker, the ability to reraise requires the previous incoming bet or raise action to be at least a full bet or raise. <\/p>\n\n\n\n However, let\u2019s try it this way:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Can Person #1 reraise again? Absolutely \u2013 this completely abides by the poker all-in rules as it constitutes a full raise. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Maybe they\u2019ll increase the price to $40, which would put Person #3 into an unfortunate position. They probably thought their hand was worth $12\u2026 not $40. <\/p>\n\n\n\n To avoid finding yourself in these shoes, you\u2019ll need to pay attention to the size of the all-in jam vs. the original bet or raise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If someone bets $80 and you only have $60, you can still call the bet by going all-in. Now, you can only win a multiple of your all-in amount. For example, if you win the hand, you would win $120 (your $60 bet plus your opponent’s $60 bet, but not their additional $20). <\/p>\n\n\n\n Let\u2019s take the same example. Someone bets $80. You only have $60 and go all-in for the rest of your stack, but another player in the hand calls the full $80 bet. The dealer will then designate a main pot and side pot. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The main pot will contain $180 ($60 x 3 players). The side pot will be just between the other two people, since they have more chips remaining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You would only be able to win the main pot, because you wouldn’t have contributed to the side pot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You can go shove\/jam\/ship\/go all-in at any time, but you should keep the pot size in mind. Generally, going all-in is most appropriate when you have a pot-size bet or less.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Poker tournaments force all-ins much more than cash games. In a poker tournament, the blinds increase \u2013 it gets more costly to play a single hand. Sometimes players will be pushed all-in automatically! <\/p>\n\n\n\n This can happen when, say, you only have 400 chips left but the big blind is 500 chips. For this reason, players start shoving all their chips in the middle preflop before they get to this point (they want to avoid the dreaded auto all-in). <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s common to go all-in before the flop even with bad hands in poker tournaments as a tactic to \u201csteal the blinds\u201d \u2013 hoping everyone folds and winning chips by default. It\u2019s an extreme all-in bluff!<\/p>\n\n\n\n When you don\u2019t have a lot of chips relative to the pot, it makes sense to go all-in much more frequently. <\/strong>This applies to both tournaments and cash games. Above we included that going all-in preflop is a vital tournament maneuver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What\u2019s more polarizing is going all-in on the river \u2013 the final betting round in poker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are now no more cards to be dealt and you know your final poker hand ranking<\/a>. Because your hand is determined and cannot improve, you should only go all-in if you have an excellent hand (and want your opponent to call) or a terrible hand (and want your opponent to fold).<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A good example of going all-in would be if you had Jack-Ten on 9-8-7-2-5. You have a straight! (The \u201cnuts\u201d \u2013 no other hand can beat you). You would want to go all-in here for value. Alternatively, you could have Queen-Ten and go all-in as a total bluff. You\u2019re going all-in here hoping to apply max pressure and convince your opponent into a fold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What you don\u2019t want to do is go all-in with a hand like Ace-Eight. Your hand isn\u2019t good enough to warrant committing all your chips in the middle, nor is it bad enough to turn into a bluff. This is a time you should check and not bet if given the option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The strategy behind going all-in on the river involves only your very best hands and your very worst hands.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This will really put your opponent to the test. Balancing river shoves between your strongest and weakest hands makes it nearly impossible to determine whether you\u2019re full of air or whether you’ve got the goods.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat Are The Poker All-In Rules?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
1. Verbal is binding<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
2. You can go all-in with one chip<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
3. Your hand may be revealed <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
4. Players may re-raise after an all-in bet if the all-in constitutes a full raise<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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5. You can always go all-in \u2013 even if it\u2019s for less than the bet size<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
6. When there are multiple players involved in a hand, the dealer will usually create a side pot <\/em>after an all-in<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
When Should You Go All-In?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Why Would You Go All-In?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What Do You Do If Someone Else Goes All-In?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n