At a glance
- On the HUD
- Flop Small·Turn Small·River Small
- Formula
bets under 40% of the pot / all their bets on the street- Typical range
Not colored on the HUD: it has no typical range, because a good number depends on the game. See “Too low, about right, too high” below.
- Where it shows
- In the player database, where you can see every stat for a player (not on the table badges).
- Trust it after
- 12 chances. Below that the number is faded; reads need 12 chances and a number at least one standard error outside the typical range.
What it measures
Small-bet share counts how often a player’s bets are small: under 40% of the pot before the bet. Each bet on a street is a chance, and it counts if the bet came in under that line. A 20% or 33% bet counts; a 40% bet doesn’t.
Two very different habits produce small bets. One is the range bet: a third of the pot with almost every hand on boards that favor the bettor, cheap to make and hard to attack well. The other is the block bet: a small bet, usually on the turn or river, made to see the next card or showdown for less than the opponent might bet. Range bets are sound strategy; block bets often mark a medium hand.
It sits at the opposite end from overbet share, and together they show how a player mixes sizes, which the average in bet size hides. It’s the bettor’s side of fold vs small bets, which tracks how players answer small bets.
How it’s calculated
Every bet a player makes on a street (not a raise) is one chance, and it counts when the bet was under 40% of the pot before it. Small-bet share = small bets ÷ all bets, per street.
- Size = the chips put in with the bet ÷ everything in the middle before it, including earlier streets and dead money.
- Edge: exactly 40% is not small; it’s the start of the medium bucket.
- All kinds of bets count: c-bets, donk bets, probes, stabs, bets in limped pots. Raises don’t.
- Kept for the flop, turn and river, with no position or pot-type versions.
Example: Pia bets the flop 24 times in a session. Into 5.5 big blind pots she mostly bets 2 big blinds (2 ÷ 5.5 = 36%), and a few times she bets 3 or more with a big hand. 17 of the 24 are under 40%: 17 ÷ 24 = 71%. Her river small-bet share is 4 of 6, 67%, but six bets tell you little: the error is about ±19 points (√(0.67 × 0.33 ÷ 6)).
Why it matters
A small bet sets a cheap price for you: a 33% bet asks for 19.9% equity to call, and as a bluff it needs only 24.8% folds. A player who bets small most of the time offers you that price over and over. You should continue with more hands, and you can raise more, because a small bet with a wide range can’t stand much pressure.
The share also decodes their average. A bet size of 50% can be a steady half-pot bettor or someone who bets 25% most of the time and pot with big hands. A high small-bet share with a middling average is the second type, and that’s the classic home-game sizing tell: small when unsure, big when strong.
Because it lives only in the player database, use it between hands or before a session against a regular, not as an in-the-moment number. Ten minutes with a regular’s sizing mix can tell you which of their bets to raise for the rest of the night.
Too low, about right, too high
The HUD gives small-bet share no typical range and no color, and it appears only on the player database page. These bands are our own guide; what’s healthy depends on the street, since range bets make small sizes normal on the flop and much less so on the river.
Rarely small: under 20%
What it says
They almost always bet 40% of the pot or more. On the flop that means they skip range bets and bet a narrower range bigger, or simply bet pot-sized by habit. On the turn and river it’s normal: a player who doesn’t block-bet. When this player does bet small, it’s out of pattern and worth a second look. On the flop, check whether they also c-bet less often than most: a narrow range bet big is easier to fold against than to attack.
How to exploit it
- Expect fewer, bigger bets. Their betting range is narrower, so fold weak hands to their bets more and attack their checks more.
- Read their rare small bet carefully. In home games a big bettor’s small bet is often either a trap with a monster or a weak hand wanting a cheap showdown; their showdowns tell you which.
- If their bet size average is also over 80%, check-raise more with strong hands: their big bets put more chips in for you to win.
Mixed: 20–60%
What it says
They mix small bets with bigger ones. On the flop this often reflects board-based sizing, small on dry boards and bigger on wet ones, which is sound. On the turn and river it can mean the same, or that they size by hand strength. Showdowns are what separate the two, so note what they turn over after each size. Until you have a few, a mixed share with a medium bet size average is the hardest profile to exploit from numbers alone.
How to exploit it
- Note which hands they show after small bets versus big ones. Two or three showdowns often reveal the pattern in home games.
- If small means weak, raise their small turn and river bets with strong hands and with some bluffs that block their best hands.
- If small means a range bet on dry flops, defend those flops wide: continue with any pair and backdoor draws, since a 33% bet asks for only 19.9% equity.
Mostly small: over 60%
What it says
Most of their bets are under 40% of the pot. On the flop that’s a range-betting player, possibly a strong one. On the turn and river it’s unusual and usually means block bets: a player who bets small to control the price with medium hands, or one who never wants a big pot. Check their c-bet size: if only their c-bets are small, it’s range betting; if every bet is small, it’s a habit.
How to exploit it
- Raise their small bets, especially on the turn and river. A raise to three times a 33% bet asks them to put in much more with a range built for a cheap showdown.
- Call wider. At 33% you need 19.9% equity, so gutshots and weak pairs can continue on the flop and turn.
- Float in position. Small bettors with wide ranges often check the next street; bet when they do.
- Give their occasional big bet full respect: it’s out of pattern, and in home games usually strong.
On the flop, turn and river
Flop: small bets
The flop is where small bets are most at home. Range-betting a third of the pot on dry, high-card boards is a standard strategy, so a high flop small-bet share from a player who c-bets often most likely means range betting. From a player who rarely bets, the same number is more likely small bets with weak or medium hands.
Fixed big blind betting distorts the flop: a player who always bets 2 big blinds shows small bets in single-raised pots (2 into 5.5 is 36%) and tiny ones in 3-bet pots (2 into 20 is 10%). That share says more about their habits than their plan.
Flop exploit: against a high flop share, check-raise flush draws, open-enders and two pair or better. A range that bets small with everything has many hands that can’t continue against a raise.
Turn: small bets
On the turn small bets are less standard. A player with a high turn small-bet share is usually block betting: leading small out of position, or barreling small to keep a medium hand’s pot under control. Some strong players use small turn bets with a wide range on blank turns, but in most home games small turn bets lean toward medium hands.
The pot is bigger now, so a small turn bet is a meaningful number of chips, but the price for you hasn’t changed: their bluff needs 24.8% folds at 33%, and your call needs 19.9% equity.
Turn exploit: raise small turn bets with strong hands and good draws. If they fold to the raise often, add a few pure bluffs; check their fold to raise on the turn before you do.
River: small bets
Small river bets are the classic block bet: a medium hand that wants to see showdown cheaply, or thin value expecting a call only from worse. In home games a high river small-bet share is often one of the easiest patterns to read on a player, because the hand behind it is usually exactly that: top pair or second pair that doesn’t want to face a big bet.
Against a 33% river bet you need 19.9% equity, so call with most bluff-catchers. The bigger edge is raising: a medium hand that bet small can rarely call a big raise.
River exploit: against a high river small-bet share, raise big with your strong hands for value and with a few missed draws as bluffs, preferably holding a card that blocks their thin value. Fold to their re-raise; a block bettor who re-raises has it.
When it’s your own number
Nothing is printed about your small-bet share on the badges, but anyone who opens your player database page can see it. If your turn and river small bets are mostly medium hands, observant players will raise them; if you never bet small, they know your bets are big and narrow.
The fix is to separate size from hand strength. On the flop, a small range bet on dry boards is fine with every hand; on later streets, if you use a small size, include some strong hands that are happy to face a raise. Compare your small-bet share with your bet size average to see whether you really mix.
Using it on the HUD
Small-bet share isn’t on the table badges. It’s on the player database page, where every stat for a player is listed, with one number each for the flop, turn and river. It has no typical range and no color, it’s faded under 12 bets on a street, and there are no narrower versions.
As a percentage it carries the usual sampling error: a 30% share is ±10 points over 20 bets and ±4.6 over 100, so the flop number becomes useful after a few sessions while the river number takes much longer. Read it with overbet share and bet size to see the whole size mix, with c-bet size to tell range betting from block betting, and with aggression frequency to see how often those small bets come at all.
Questions
What is a block bet in poker?
A small bet, usually on the turn or river, made by a player out of position to see the next card or showdown for less than the opponent might bet. It is often a medium hand. On the HUD, block bets show up in small-bet share, the share of a player’s bets under 40% of the pot. Raise them with strong hands.
What does it mean when a player always bets small?
Either they range-bet, betting a third of the pot with almost everything on boards that favor them, or they bet small to keep pots cheap with medium hands. Range betting is mostly a flop habit; small bets on the turn and river more often mean the second. Against both, call wider and raise more.
Is small-bet share shown on the HUD badges?
No. Small-bet share is kept for the flop, turn and river and shown on the player database page, where every stat for a player is listed. It has no typical range or color. Look it up between hands for regulars, alongside their overbet share and average bet size.
What counts as a small bet in small-bet share?
Any bet under 40% of the pot before it, where the pot includes earlier streets and dead money such as a folded small blind. The HUD’s 20% and 33% buttons make small bets; a bet of exactly 40% is medium. Raises are not bets and don’t count in small-bet share.