A video poker strategy chart is a ranked list of the correct hold for every hand, so you play perfectly without any math at the machine. This video poker strategy chart shows the exact hold priority for the games that matter — scan from the top and play the first pattern your dealt hand matches.
A video poker strategy chart turns perfect play into a single ordered list. Every possible hold is ranked by expected value, so you never have to calculate at the machine — you just find the highest pattern your five cards contain and hold those cards. The charts below are ordered by our engine's exact per-hand EV. For the precise best play on any specific hand, including rare edge cases the simplified chart rounds over, use the live analyzer.
Hold the first pattern that applies, reading top to bottom:
Deuces Wild strategy is organised by how many deuces you're dealt — always keep every deuce, then apply the rule for that count:
This is the simplified NSU chart. Deuces Wild has a few close edge cases; the analyzer below always gives the exact optimal hold.
Set a hand, pick a pay table, and the analyzer returns the exact optimal hold and the EV of every option:
The order is everything. When two patterns overlap — say a low pair that's also part of a four-card straight — the chart tells you which one wins by listing it higher. Memorise the top ten lines first (they cover the vast majority of hands), drill them in the trainer, and only then worry about the tail. And always confirm the pay table first: these charts assume 9/6 Jacks or Better and full/NSU Deuces — a poorer schedule shifts a few lines. See how much the pay table matters on our house edge page.
Jacks or Better is the foundation, and most video poker games borrow its strategy chart with small changes. Bonus Poker and Double Bonus Poker use nearly the same chart as Jacks or Better, adjusted for their bigger four-of-a-kind payouts. The wild-card games are the real departure: in Deuces Wild the two wild cards make big hands common, so pairs pay nothing and the whole strategy chart is organised by how many wild cards you hold. Whichever game you play, the principle is identical — a good strategy chart plus a full-pay pay table is the entire edge. Compare the returns of every game on our house edge page.
No strategy chart works without the max bet. Betting five coins is part of correct play because the royal flush only pays its full 800-for-1 jackpot at max bet — bet fewer coins and the biggest hand in the game pays a fraction of what it should. Whatever the game, always bet five coins; drop the coin denomination if you need to manage your bankroll. Perfect strategy on a short bet still leaves money on the table.
Scan the ranked list from top to bottom and play the first pattern your five cards contain. The chart is ordered by expected value, so the highest-listed match is always the correct hold.
No. Each game and pay table has its own optimal chart — ours are engine-generated separately for Jacks or Better and Deuces Wild.
A video poker strategy chart is a ranked list of every possible hold for a video poker game, ordered from the highest expected value down. You read it top to bottom and hold the first pattern your five cards match, which gives the mathematically optimal play with no calculation.
Chart order verified against our engine's exact per-hand EV over all 2,598,960 deals. Educational content, not gambling advice.