What is a Range in Poker

A range is the set of hands you'd play a certain way in a specific spot. It isn't a single hand, but a group: "all the hands I'd open from the button," for example. Thinking in ranges is what separates intuitive poker from structured poker.

The mindset shift is this: instead of asking "do I play this hand?", you think "what group of hands do I play in this spot?". And that group is measured as a percentage. If you open "20% from the cutoff," you're taking the 169 starting combinations ranked best to worst and keeping the top 20%. A 12% range is very strong (high pairs, good aces); a 50% range is very wide (almost anything decent).

It matters for two reasons. For you, a fixed range by position keeps you from playing too much out of boredom. And against your opponent, even though you can't see their cards, you can estimate their range from how they act —and decide against that whole group, not against one imaginary hand. Position moves the range the most: the more players who act after you, the tighter it should be.

If you want to understand in depth how a range is built by position and scenario, read the range analyzer guide.

To see the exact range for each position —open, call and 3-bet— use the range analyzer, free and with no account needed.