A free pot odds calculator for poker — type the pot, the bet, and your equity, and we'll tell you whether the math says call, fold, or marginal. No signup, no upsell. Just numbers.
Type the pot and bet — or click a preset bet size below (% of pot). Optionally add your equity for a verdict.
Count your outs — the cards left in the deck that improve your hand to the winner. Multiply outs by 4 on the flop (two cards to come) or by 2 on the turn (one card to come). That gives you a rough percentage.
| Outs | Flop equity (×4) | Turn equity (×2) | Common situation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | ~16% | ~8% | Gutshot straight draw |
| 8 | ~32% | ~16% | Open-ended straight draw |
| 9 | ~36% | ~18% | Flush draw |
| 12 | ~48% | ~24% | Flush draw + gutshot |
| 15 | ~60% | ~30% | Flush draw + open-ender |
Pot odds are the price the pot is offering you on a call. When someone bets, you're being asked to pay a certain amount to win the existing pot plus their bet. The bigger the prize relative to the cost, the less often you need to win for the call to pay off in the long run.
That denominator is the final pot if you call — the existing pot, your opponent's bet, and your matching call all combined. Your call is the numerator. Divide them, you get the percentage of the time you need to win for calling to break even.
Pot is $100. Opponent bets $50. To call, you put in $50 to win the $150 already in the pot. Your call is $50, the final pot is $200, so required equity is $50 ÷ $200 = 25%. If you think you'll win the hand more than 25% of the time, calling has positive expected value.
Pot odds are the floor. Real decisions factor in everything around them. But every poker decision starts here.
For the actual game-theory-optimal decision (taking ranges, blockers, and bet sizing trees into account), use the free GTO solver — same math, different tool.
The questions players ask most often about pot odds and calling decisions.
Pot odds are the price the pot is offering you on a call. When an opponent bets, you have to risk a certain amount (the call) to win the existing pot plus their bet. Pot odds compare that risk to that reward, usually expressed as a ratio like "3 to 1." The bigger the reward relative to the risk, the less often you need to win for the call to be profitable in the long run.
The formula is: required equity = bet ÷ (pot + 2 × bet). The denominator is the final pot if you call — the existing pot plus the opponent's bet plus your matching call. Divide your call by that final pot to get the percentage of the time you need to win for calling to break even.
Example: Pot is $100, opponent bets $50. Final pot = 100 + 50 + 50 = $200. Required equity = 50 ÷ 200 = 25%. If you'll win the hand more than 25% of the time, calling is profitable.
A half-pot bet (50% pot) gives you 3 to 1 pot odds and requires 25% equity to break even. If you think you'll win the hand more than 25% of the time, calling has positive expected value before considering implied odds.
A pot-sized bet gives you 2 to 1 pot odds and requires 33.3% equity to break even. This is the most common reference point in poker math: facing a pot bet, you need to win at least one out of every three times for the call to be break-even.
For drawing hands, count your outs (cards left in the deck that improve your hand to the winner) and use the rule of 4 and 2:
On the flop with two cards to come, multiply outs by 4 to estimate equity. On the turn with one card to come, multiply outs by 2.
For example, a flush draw has 9 outs, giving roughly 36% equity on the flop and 18% on the turn. The outs cheat sheet on this page covers the most common situations.
No. Pot odds are the floor — the minimum equity you need to break even on the immediate call. Real decisions also factor in implied odds (money you'll likely win on later streets if you hit), reverse implied odds (money you'll lose if you make the second-best hand), position, opponent tendencies, and your perceived range.
Pot odds tell you whether the immediate price is right; everything else tells you whether the situation is actually as good as it looks.
Yes. The Lifes a Gambol pot odds calculator is completely free, requires no signup or account, runs entirely in your browser, and does not track or store your inputs. It works on phones and desktops.
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