Check, bet, call, raise, fold: the five poker actions
Every poker decision is one of five betting actions: check, bet, call, raise, or fold. Knowing which are legal on your turn, and what each one costs, is the core of the poker betting and raising rules and the foundation of the whole game.
Five actions run the whole game
Every decision in Texas Hold'em is one of five actions: check, bet, call, raise, or fold. On each betting round, when it's your turn you pick exactly one. Which ones are available depends on whether a bet is already facing you.
Check: pass with no bet facing you
Checking means you stay in the hand and put in no chips, passing the action to the next player. You can only check when no one has bet in the current round. If a bet is in front of you, checking is not an option; you must call, raise, or fold. Preflop the big blind counts as a bet, so the first player to act cannot check.
Bet: put chips in when nobody else has
A bet is the first wager in a round, made when everyone before you has checked or the round just opened (postflop). Once someone bets, no one behind can check that round. In no-limit Hold'em the minimum bet is usually the size of the big blind, and the maximum is your whole stack.
Call: match the amount to stay in
Calling means putting in chips equal to the current bet or raise so you can continue in the hand. If a player bets 50, calling costs you 50. If you've already put in 20 this round and the bet is 50, you add 30 more to call. Calling never increases the price for other players.
Is a call actually worth it?
Calling is only profitable when your chance to win beats the price you are paying. This is the single most useful piece of poker maths — set the pot, the bet you face and your outs in the pot odds calculator below, and it tells you instantly whether to call or fold.
Pot odds & outs calculator
The single most useful piece of poker maths. Set the pot, what you must call, and how many outs you hold — and see instantly whether the call is +EV.
- Pot odds
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- Rule of 4 / 2
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- If you call, you risk
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- to win
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Two cards to come assumes the money is all-in now. Facing a bet on a single street, use one card — you'll have to pay again to see the river.
Raise: increase the bet, and by how much
A raise increases the amount others must match. In no-limit Hold'em, a raise must be at least the size of the previous bet or raise. If someone bets 50, the smallest legal raise is another 50 on top, making it 100 total to call. If they bet 50 and someone raises to 120 (a 70 increase), the next re-raise must be at least another 70. Raising reopens the action, forcing everyone else to call, re-raise, or fold.
Fold: give up the hand
Folding means surrendering your cards and forfeiting any chips you've already put in the pot. You take no further part in the hand and cannot win it. You can fold whenever a bet or raise faces you. You would never fold when you can simply check for free, since checking keeps you in at no cost.
- Check only when no bet faces you; if there's a bet, you must call, raise, or fold.
- A bet opens the wagering; a call matches it; a raise increases it and forces others to respond.
- In no-limit, a raise must be at least the size of the previous bet or raise.
- Fold gives up the hand and any chips already in; never fold when you could check for free.
Test yourself
Answer them all — 16/20 to pass. Every answer gets an explanation.
When can you check?
Checking is passing with no chips, and it's only legal when no one has bet in the current round.
What does calling mean?
A call puts in chips equal to the current bet or raise so you continue in the hand.
What does folding do?
Folding gives up your cards; you take no further part and can't win the hand.
A player bets 50. What is the smallest legal raise in no-limit Hold'em?
A raise must be at least the size of the previous bet, so 50 more makes it 100 total.
If a bet is facing you, which action is NOT available?
You can only check when no bet faces you; with a bet in front, you must call, raise, or fold.
What is a bet?
A bet opens the wagering in a round; increasing an existing one is a raise.
What does it mean to be all-in?
Going all-in means committing your entire stack; you can't be forced out after that.
Preflop, can the first player to act check?
The big blind is a forced bet, so players before it must call, raise, or fold, not check.
You put in 20 earlier this round and the bet is now 50. How much to call?
You only add the difference: 50 minus the 20 already in equals 30 to call.
What happens to the action after a raise?
A raise increases the price, so all remaining players must respond again.
When would you never want to fold?
Checking keeps you in at no cost, so folding away a free look makes no sense.
In no-limit Hold'em, what is the maximum you can bet?
No-limit means you may bet any amount up to all the chips in front of you.
Everyone before you checked postflop. What can you do?
With no bet facing you, your options are to check or to open with a bet.
Does calling change the price for other players?
Only a raise increases what others must put in; a call simply matches.
A player bets 50 and another raises to 120. What was the raise increment?
The raise went from 50 to 120, an increase of 70 over the original bet.
After the 120 raise (a 70 increase), what is the minimum re-raise?
A re-raise must be at least as large as the last raise increment, which was 70.
Can you win chips from a hand you folded?
Once you fold you're out of the hand and cannot win any of that pot.
What is the usual minimum bet size in no-limit Hold'em?
The minimum opening bet in no-limit is typically equal to the big blind.
If you go all-in and an opponent has more chips, what can you win?
You can only win what your stack covers; extra chips go into a side pot.
On the flop shown A-K-7 with no prior bet, what CAN the first player do?
Since no one has bet this round, there's nothing to call, raise against, or fold to.
Review — all 20 questions & answers tap to expand
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When can you check?
Answer Only when no bet faces you this round
Checking is passing with no chips, and it's only legal when no one has bet in the current round.
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What does calling mean?
Answer Matching the current bet to stay in
A call puts in chips equal to the current bet or raise so you continue in the hand.
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What does folding do?
Answer Surrenders the hand and forfeits chips already in the pot
Folding gives up your cards; you take no further part and can't win the hand.
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A player bets 50. What is the smallest legal raise in no-limit Hold'em?
Answer Another 50 on top, making it 100 to call
A raise must be at least the size of the previous bet, so 50 more makes it 100 total.
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If a bet is facing you, which action is NOT available?
Answer Check
You can only check when no bet faces you; with a bet in front, you must call, raise, or fold.
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What is a bet?
Answer The first wager in a round when no one has bet yet
A bet opens the wagering in a round; increasing an existing one is a raise.
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What does it mean to be all-in?
Answer You've put all your chips into the pot
Going all-in means committing your entire stack; you can't be forced out after that.
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Preflop, can the first player to act check?
Answer No, the big blind counts as a bet they must at least call
The big blind is a forced bet, so players before it must call, raise, or fold, not check.
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You put in 20 earlier this round and the bet is now 50. How much to call?
Answer 30 more
You only add the difference: 50 minus the 20 already in equals 30 to call.
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What happens to the action after a raise?
Answer It reopens; everyone else must call, re-raise, or fold
A raise increases the price, so all remaining players must respond again.
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When would you never want to fold?
Answer When you can check for free instead
Checking keeps you in at no cost, so folding away a free look makes no sense.
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In no-limit Hold'em, what is the maximum you can bet?
Answer Your entire stack
No-limit means you may bet any amount up to all the chips in front of you.
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Everyone before you checked postflop. What can you do?
Answer Check or bet
With no bet facing you, your options are to check or to open with a bet.
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Does calling change the price for other players?
Answer No, calling only matches the existing amount
Only a raise increases what others must put in; a call simply matches.
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A player bets 50 and another raises to 120. What was the raise increment?
Answer 70
The raise went from 50 to 120, an increase of 70 over the original bet.
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After the 120 raise (a 70 increase), what is the minimum re-raise?
Answer At least another 70, making it 190
A re-raise must be at least as large as the last raise increment, which was 70.
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Can you win chips from a hand you folded?
Answer No, folding forfeits your claim to the pot
Once you fold you're out of the hand and cannot win any of that pot.
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What is the usual minimum bet size in no-limit Hold'em?
Answer The size of the big blind
The minimum opening bet in no-limit is typically equal to the big blind.
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If you go all-in and an opponent has more chips, what can you win?
Answer Only up to the amount you contributed from each opponent
You can only win what your stack covers; extra chips go into a side pot.
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On the flop shown A-K-7 with no prior bet, what CAN the first player do?
Answer Check or bet
Since no one has bet this round, there's nothing to call, raise against, or fold to.