Four Card Poker is the bigger cousin of Three Card Poker. You get five cards and keep the best four. The dealer gets six cards, one of them face up, and keeps the best four. That extra dealer card is the house’s edge. In return you get two things back: ties go to you, and you choose how much to raise, from 1× to 3× your ante. Choosing the right size is the whole game. A simple pair-based rule gets you within a few tenths of a percent of perfect play.
How to play
- Place an Ante. Aces Up is an optional side bet.
- You get five cards face down. The dealer gets six cards, with one face up.
- Make your best four-card hand from your five cards and decide:
- Fold and lose the ante, or
- Raise 1×, 2× or 3× your ante.
- The dealer reveals the other cards and makes the best four-card hand from six.
- There’s no qualifying hand. If your hand is higher or equal, the Ante and Raise each pay 1 to 1. If the dealer’s hand is higher, both lose.
- The Ante Bonus pays on three of a kind or better, whatever the dealer holds. Aces Up pays on your hand alone.
Four-card hand rankings
The order is not the same as five-card poker. From high to low:
| Rank | Hand | Ways (of 270,725) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Four of a kind | 13 |
| 2 | Straight flush | 44 |
| 3 | Three of a kind | 2,496 |
| 4 | Flush | 2,816 |
| 5 | Straight | 2,772 |
| 6 | Two pair | 2,808 |
| 7 | Pair | 82,368 |
| 8 | High card | 177,408 |
The surprise is that three of a kind beats a flush and a straight. An ace can play high or low, so A-2-3-4 is the lowest straight.
Payouts
Ante and Raise
| Result | Ante | Raise |
|---|---|---|
| Your hand is higher or equal | Wins 1 to 1 | Wins 1 to 1 |
| Dealer’s hand is higher | Loses | Loses |
| You fold | Loses | — |
Ante Bonus (paid on the ante)
| Hand | Table 1 | Table 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Four of a kind | 25 to 1 | 30 to 1 |
| Straight flush | 20 to 1 | 15 to 1 |
| Three of a kind | 2 to 1 | 2 to 1 |
| House edge (optimal) | 2.79% | not published |
Aces Up (pays on your best four)
Pay tables are listed as quads / straight flush / trips / flush / straight / two pair / pair of aces.
| Pay table | House edge |
|---|---|
| 50-40-9-6-4-2-1 | 1.98% |
| 50-40-7-6-5-2-1 | 2.58% |
| 50-30-9-6-4-2-1 | 2.78% |
| 50-30-7-6-5-2-1 | 3.37% |
| 50-40-8-5-4-3-1 | 3.89% |
| 50-40-8-6-4-2-1 | 4.24% |
| 50-40-7-5-4-3-1 | 6.15% |
Only a pair of aces pays. Kings or lower lose.
Strategy
The beginner rule (what Casino Coach grades)
| Your best four | Action |
|---|---|
| Two pair or better | Raise 3× |
| Pair of 10s, jacks, queens, kings or aces | Raise 3× |
| Pair of 2s through 9s | Raise 1× |
| No pair | Fold |
That’s the beginner strategy published by Wizard of Odds. In Casino Coach’s 500,000-hand simulation it gives a house edge of about 3.08%, against 2.79% for perfect play.
Examples:
- Q♠ Q♦ 8♣ 5♥ 2♠: pair of queens, raise 3×.
- 6♥ 6♣ K♦ 9♠ 3♥: pair of 6s, raise 1×.
- A♦ K♠ J♣ 7♥ 4♦: no pair, fold. It looks strong, but the dealer chooses from six cards and usually makes at least a pair.
- 8♠ 8♥ 4♦ 4♣ J♥: two pair, raise 3×.
Why 2× is never right
The raise wins or loses exactly when your ante does, at even money. If a hand is a favourite, every extra unit you raise adds profit, so you want 3×. If it’s an underdog, every extra unit adds loss, so you want 1×, the smallest raise that keeps you in. A 2× raise is always beaten by one of the others.
Pick your best four
You throw one card away, and the right card isn’t always the obvious one. With 7♠ 7♦ 7♣ 2♥ 9♠, keep the trips and the 9. With 5♠ 6♠ 8♠ 9♠ 9♦, the four spades make a flush, and a flush beats the pair of 9s, so throw away the 9♦. Check for trips, flushes and straights before you settle on a pair.
Beyond the beginner rule
Optimal strategy fine-tunes small pairs and a few ace-king hands based on the dealer’s up card. For example, a pair of 3s is a 1× raise except against a dealer jack when your best kicker is a 10 or lower. Then it folds. These refinements are worth about 0.3% of the ante in total. Learn the beginner rule first. Casino Coach shows the EV of every option against the actual up card so you can see where those edge cases fall.
Common mistakes
- Raising 2×. It’s never the best option.
- Raising only 1× with a big pair. Tens or better should be 3×, because you win ties and the dealer’s best four from six is often only a pair.
- Playing no-pair hands. The dealer sees six cards, so unpaired hands are underdogs.
- Folding small pairs. A pair of 2s through 9s is worth a 1× raise.
- Keeping the wrong four. Discarding the card that breaks a flush or straight throws away a better hand.
- Betting Aces Up on a weak table. 50-40-7-5-4-3-1 has a 6.15% edge versus 1.98% for 50-40-9-6-4-2-1.
House edge explained
With the common 25-20-2 Ante Bonus table, Four Card Poker has a house edge of 2.79% of the ante with optimal strategy, per Wizard of Odds. The element of risk is 1.30% of total money bet, because you often raise 3×. The beginner rule costs a few tenths of a percent more (about 3.1%).
What drives the edge:
- Six cards versus five. The dealer’s best four comes from a bigger pool, so it’s stronger on average.
- What you get back: ties go to you, there’s no qualifier, and you size your raise after you see your cards and the up card.
- The Ante Bonus pays three of a kind or better even when the dealer wins.
What to look for:
- Aces Up 50-40-9-6-4-2-1 (1.98%) is the table to look for. Avoid 50-40-7-5-4-3-1 (6.15%).
- Fold rules for Aces Up vary. Some casinos take the Aces Up bet when you fold, so ask before you bet it.
The house keeps an edge with any strategy. Good play just keeps it near its minimum.
Practice in Casino Coach
Casino Coach’s Four Card Poker table has a trainer mode. It grades every fold, 1×, 2× or 3× choice against the beginner rule, and shows the EV of each option against the dealer’s actual up card. It explains why 2× is never best, and it can block wrong plays until you correct them. Three drills sharpen the skills: Fold, 1× or 3×? (adaptive raise decisions with the up card), Find the best four (which card to throw away) and Player or dealer? (best four of five versus best four of six, with ties going to you). Analytics record your accuracy and the EV each mistake cost. Train free with chips that have no cash value.
Four Card Poker FAQ
Should you ever raise 2× in Four Card Poker?
No. The raise pays even money and wins exactly when the ante wins, so if raising is good you want the most (3×), and if it costs you, the least (1×). 2× is never the best choice.
What hands should you raise 3× in Four Card Poker?
A pair of tens or higher, or any hand of two pair or better. Raise 1× with a pair of 2s through 9s and fold hands with no pair.
Does the dealer need to qualify in Four Card Poker?
No. There is no qualifying hand, and ties go to the player, so a tied hand pays your ante and raise at even money.
Why does the dealer get six cards in Four Card Poker?
The dealer's two extra cards are how the house gets its edge. In exchange, you win ties and decide how much to raise after seeing your cards and the dealer's up card.
What is the Aces Up side bet?
Aces Up pays on your own best four cards, starting with a pair of aces. The house edge ranges from 1.98% to 6.15% depending on the pay table.
Practise Four Card Poker until it's automatic
Real table, free chips, and a trainer that grades every decision with the expected value of each option.
Updated October 24, 2026