Last Updated on October 5, 2026 by Bala Kumar
What’s in the free pack
A good poker strategy chart turns a confusing decision into a quick glance. That’s why we put together a free, printable pack covering three of the most popular poker games, all built from the underlying maths rather than guesswork.
Every chart in the pack is shown in full below, so you can study it right here. The downloadable PDF versions are sized for standard A4 and US Letter paper, ready to print, fold or laminate.
| Chart in the pack | Game | What it tells you | Return or house edge with correct play |
| Video poker strategy chart | 9/6 Jacks or Better | Which cards to hold on every deal | 99.46% return (simple strategy) |
| Pay table quick-check card | Jacks or Better | Which machines are worth playing | 95.00%–99.54% depending on pay table |
| Pre-flop poker strategy chart | No-Limit Hold’em, 6-handed cash games | Which hands to open-raise from each seat | Not a fixed figure (player vs player) |
| 3 card poker strategy chart | Three Card Poker | When to play or fold, and which side bets to avoid | 3.37% house edge on the Ante |
Chart 1: Video poker strategy chart PDF (9/6 Jacks or Better)
Jacks or Better is the classic video poker game and the best place to start. On a “full pay” 9/6 machine (a full house pays 9 and a flush pays 6 per coin), perfect computer play returns 99.54%. Our simple chart gets you to 99.46%, giving up only 0.08%, or about one total bet every 1,178 hands.
How to use it
Look at your five cards, find every way you could hold them, and choose the option that sits highest on the list.
| Rank | Hold this |
| 1 | Royal flush, straight flush or four of a kind (pat hands) |
| 2 | 4 to a royal flush |
| 3 | Full house, flush, three of a kind or straight |
| 4 | 4 to a straight flush |
| 5 | Two pair |
| 6 | High pair (jacks or better) |
| 7 | 3 to a royal flush |
| 8 | 4 to a flush |
| 9 | Low pair (2s through 10s) |
| 10 | 4 to an outside straight (open at both ends) |
| 11 | 2 suited high cards (J, Q, K, A) |
| 12 | 3 to a straight flush |
| 13 | 2 unsuited high cards (if you have more, keep the two lowest) |
| 14 | Suited 10 with a J, Q or K |
| 15 | One high card |
| 16 | Nothing: discard all five |
Examples that surprise beginners:
• You’re dealt a made flush that includes four cards to a royal. Break the flush and go for the royal. Rank 2 beats rank 3.
• You hold a low pair and four to a flush. Keep the four-card flush draw. Rank 8 beats rank 9.
• You hold a low pair and two high cards of different suits. Keep the pair. Rank 9 beats rank 13.
Chart 2: The pay table quick-check card
The chart above only works on a 9/6 machine. Before you sit down, check the full house and flush payouts for one coin. The difference is bigger than most players expect.
| Pay table (full house / flush) | Return with perfect play | House edge |
| 9/6 (full pay) | 99.54% | 0.46% |
| 9/5 | 98.45% | 1.55% |
| 8/6 | 98.39% | 1.61% |
| 8/5 | 97.30% | 2.70% |
| 7/5 | 96.15% | 3.85% |
| 6/5 | 95.00% | 5.00% |
What it means in real money: a quarters player betting max coins ($1.25 a hand) at about 600 hands an hour puts $750 through the machine each hour. On a 9/6 game that’s an expected loss of about $3.45 an hour with perfect play. On a 6/5 machine it jumps to roughly $37.50. Same skill, same game name, ten times the cost.
Chart 3: Pre-flop poker strategy chart (6-handed cash games)
This pre flop poker strategy chart covers the most common decision in Texas Hold’em: which hands to raise when everyone before you has folded. It’s designed for six-handed no-limit cash games with roughly 100 big blinds, which is the standard online and in many home games.
How to read the notation
• s means suited (both cards the same suit), o means offsuit.
• + means “this hand and better”. For example, 77+ means 77, 88, 99 and up to AA, while ATs+ means ATs, AJs, AQs and AKs.
• Positions run from earliest to latest: UTG (first to act), HJ (hijack), CO (cutoff), BTN (button), SB (small blind).
| Position | Approx. share of hands | Open-raise with |
| UTG | about 15% | 77+, ATs+, A5s, KTs+, QTs+, JTs, AJo+, KQo |
| HJ | about 19% | 66+, A9s+, A4s–A5s, K9s+, Q9s+, J9s+, T9s, 98s, ATo+, KJo+ |
| CO | about 27% | 44+, A2s+, K8s+, Q9s+, J9s+, T8s+, 97s+, 87s, 76s, A9o+, KTo+, QTo+, JTo |
| BTN | about 45% | 22+, A2s+, K2s+, Q5s+, J7s+, T7s+, 96s+, 85s+, 75s+, 64s+, 54s, A2o+, K8o+, Q9o+, J9o+, T9o, 98o |
| SB (raise or fold) | about 40% | 22+, A2s+, K4s+, Q7s+, J8s+, T8s+, 97s+, 86s+, 76s, 65s, 54s, A4o+, K9o+, QTo+, JTo |
Raise size: 2.5 big blinds from most positions, and around 3 big blinds from the small blind.
Practical adjustments
• Full-ring tables (8–10 players): tighten up the early positions. Treat the first two or three seats like UTG above, or even tighter.
• Very loose home games: cut back the weakest offsuit hands from the button and play more pairs and suited hands, because you’ll often see the flop against several players.
• Facing a raise: this chart is for opening only. A simple starting point is to re-raise with QQ+ and AK, and call with smaller pairs and strong suited hands when you have position.
• Short stacks: with fewer than 25 big blinds, especially in tournaments, use push-or-fold charts instead.
Unlike video poker, there’s no single “return” figure here, because your results depend on your opponents. Think of this chart as a solid, balanced default you adapt as you learn.
Chart 4: 3 card poker strategy chart
Three Card Poker has just one real decision: after placing your Ante and seeing your three cards, do you play (by adding a Play bet equal to your Ante) or fold?
The one rule: Queen-6-4
Play with Queen-6-4 or better. Fold anything worse.
• Any pair or better: play.
• Ace-high or King-high: always play.
• Queen-high: play if your second card is 7 or higher, or if it’s exactly a 6 and your third card is 4 or higher.
• Jack-high or lower: fold.
| Your hand | Decision | Why |
| Q-7-2 | Play | Second card (7) beats 6 |
| Q-6-4 | Play | Exactly the threshold |
| Q-6-3 | Fold | Third card is below 4 |
| Q-5-4 | Fold | Second card is below 6 |
| K-3-2 | Play | King-high always plays |
| J-10-9 | Fold | Jack-high is below a queen |
Following this rule gives a house edge of 3.37% of your Ante. Measured across everything you bet (Ante plus Play), that’s about 2.01%.
Check the Pair Plus pay table
Pair Plus is an optional side bet that pays based only on your own hand. It has no strategy, but the pay table makes a huge difference.
| Pair Plus pay table (pair / flush / straight / trips / straight flush) | House edge |
| 1 / 4 / 6 / 30 / 40 | 2.32% |
| 1 / 3 / 6 / 30 / 40 | 7.28% |
Remember that in Three Card Poker a straight beats a flush, because straights are harder to make with only three cards.
What it means in real money: on a $10 Ante with correct play, you’d expect to lose about $0.34 per hand. A $10 Pair Plus bet costs about $0.23 per hand on the better pay table, but about $0.73 on the common 1/3/6/30/40 table, more than three times as much.
How to get the most out of your poker strategy chart pack
Print smart. Print the video poker and 3 card poker charts at pocket size and laminate them. A laminated card survives drinks, pockets and years of use. The pre-flop chart works best at full page size on your desk or wall while you study.
Match the chart to the game. The video poker chart is only for 9/6 Jacks or Better. Double Bonus, Deuces Wild and other games need their own strategies.
Know the rules where you play. Most casinos let you use a strategy card at a video poker machine. At live table games, policies vary, so ask the dealer or floor before using one. For online real-money poker, some sites restrict strategy aids during play, so check the terms and use the pre-flop chart for study between sessions.
Learn it, then rely on it less. Aim to memorise the most common decisions so you only glance at the chart for tricky spots. That keeps your play fast and relaxed.
Remember what charts can’t do. These charts reduce mistakes and lower the house edge. They don’t guarantee wins, and most casino games still favour the house in the long run. Set a budget before you play.
Common mistakes when using strategy charts
• Using a 9/6 Jacks or Better chart on an 8/5 or 6/5 machine, where the maths is different.
• Playing fewer than max coins in video poker, which removes the royal flush bonus the chart assumes.
• Treating the pre-flop chart as a complete strategy rather than a starting point.
• Folding Queen-high hands that meet the Q-6-4 rule, or playing Jack-high hands that don’t.
• Betting Pair Plus at a table with the weaker pay table without noticing.
FAQs
Where can I download a free video poker strategy chart PDF?
You can download our free pack, which includes a 9/6 Jacks or Better video poker strategy chart and a pay table quick-check card, sized for A4 and US Letter paper.
What does a video poker strategy chart do?
It ranks possible holds from best to worst. You find every way to play your five cards and keep the option that appears highest on the chart. Our simple Jacks or Better chart returns 99.46% on a full-pay machine.
What is a pre-flop poker strategy chart?
It shows which starting hands to play from each seat at a Texas Hold’em table. Our chart lists open-raising hands for each position in six-handed cash games, from about 15% of hands under the gun to about 45% on the button.
What is the best 3 card poker strategy?
Play any hand that is Queen-6-4 or better and fold everything worse. This keeps the house edge on the Ante at about 3.37%.
Is Pair Plus a good bet in Three Card Poker?
It depends on the pay table. A table paying 4 to 1 on a flush has a house edge of about 2.32%, while the common 3 to 1 version has about 7.28%.
Can I use a poker strategy chart in a casino?
Most casinos allow strategy cards at video poker machines. Rules at live table games vary, so ask the dealer or floor staff before using one.
Founder of PokerClubGames.com and a Poker Researcher with 10+ years of experience in SEO, WordPress development, and gaming content strategy. Specializes in researching online poker sites, poker apps, tournaments, bonuses, and poker strategies. Experienced in poker platform reviews, affiliate marketing, and creating SEO-focused poker content for global audiences.
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