At a glance
- On the HUD
- C4B
- Formula
4-bets / times their first decision faced an open and a 3-bet with no chips in, when they could raise- Typical range
1–6%
- Where it shows
- Badge: players still to act in 3-bet and 4-bet pots, and a cold 4-bettor. Panel on your turn: when you 3-bet, for players behind you.
- 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
A cold 4-bet is a re-raise over two raises from a player who hadn’t put anything in. The hijack opens to 2.5 bb, the cutoff 3-bets to 9 bb, and the button makes it 22 bb: that’s a cold 4-bet. It can also come from the blinds, whose posted chips don’t count as voluntary.
It isn’t the 4-bet stat, which is the opener re-raising after being 3-bet, and it isn’t a squeeze, which is a 3-bet over an open and callers. The opener’s 4-bet is often a defense of a wide open; the cold 4-bettor chose to step into two raises with nothing invested, in front of a player who has already shown strength. That’s why it’s usually the strongest action anyone takes before the flop.
The chance doesn’t depend on the player’s cards, so C4B reads almost directly as a share of all starting hands. At 1% that’s about 13 combos (0.01 × 1,326), roughly AA and KK. At 2% it’s about 27 combos: QQ+ and AKs are 22. Only near the 6% top, about 80 combos, is there real room for bluffs.
How it’s calculated
C4B uses the cold call 3-bet spot: the first thing the player does after the open is face both raises, with nothing in voluntarily. Spots where their stack only covered a call are left out, and a raise of any size scores.
- All-in raises count, so a short stack shoving over a 3-bet is cold 4-betting.
- Limpers, and anyone who flatted the open before the 3-bet came, are not in this spot.
- The opener’s re-raise is a 4-bet, not a cold 4-bet.
Formula: C4B = cold 4-bets ÷ times their first decision faced an open and a 3-bet with no chips in, when they could raise. There are no position or seat versions.
Example: Kai faced an open and a 3-bet with nothing in 50 times, with chips to re-raise every time, and 4-bet twice. His C4B is 2 / 50 = 4%, inside the typical range. Both times he showed down a premium pair, which fits.
Why it matters
C4B tells you how much to fear the player behind your 3-bet and what their re-raise means when it comes. A low or normal C4B makes their cold 4-bet close to a face-up premium hand; a high one means it can be a bluff with a blocker or a short-stack shove.
The pots get big fast. After a 2.5 bb open, a 9 bb 3-bet and a 22 bb cold 4-bet, the pot is 35 bb (2.5 + 9 + 22 + 0.5 + 1). If the 3-bettor calls, it’s 48 bb with 78 bb behind at 100 bb deep: a stack-to-pot ratio of about 1.6, all in on most flops. So the call is really a decision to play for stacks against their range.
It also shapes your bluffs. A cold 4-bet bluff risks 22 bb to win 13 bb and needs 62.9% folds (22 ÷ 35) from the 3-bettor and the opener together. Few players can make that work, which is why most cold 4-bets are value. And when you 3-bet with this player behind you, each cold 4-bet costs you your whole 3-bet unless you can continue, so their rate goes straight into your 3-bet bluffing math, next to their fold to 3-bet cold.
Too low, about right, too high
Too low: under 1%
What it says
Under 1% the player almost never cold 4-bets, maybe only with AA and KK, and often flats those too. That’s a tight, passive approach common among Rocks and recreational players. Be careful reading zeros: a player who cold 4-bets 2% of the time shows 0 of 30 a bit over half the time (0.98 to the 30th power is 0.55), so a low number on a small sample isn’t proof.
How to exploit it
- When they sit behind your 3-bet, you can 3-bet bluff as if they weren’t there, as long as their fold to 3-bet cold is high.
- When they finally cold 4-bet, give them aces or kings. Fold QQ, AK and everything below unless stacks are short.
- If they flat instead (check their cold call 3-bet), their flatting range can hold big pairs, so play the multiway 3-bet pot carefully.
About right: 1–6%
What it says
Inside the range the player cold 4-bets value hands, mostly QQ+ and AK, and the more aggressive ones near 6% add a few bluffs with blockers like A5s. It shows up more against 3-bettors who 3-bet light, and from players with position on both raisers. Near 1–2% treat it as value only; closer to 6%, it’s value-heavy with some bluffs.
How to exploit it
- As the 3-bettor, fold your bluffs and most medium hands (JJ, TT, AQ) to a cold 4-bet. Continue mainly with QQ+ and AK.
- As the opener facing a 3-bet and a cold 4-bet, fold almost everything but the very top: you’re facing two strong ranges.
- Near the top of the range, check their fold to 5-bet: an aggressive player who folds to 5-bets can be shoved on with AK and QQ.
Too high: over 6%
What it says
Over 6% the player cold 4-bets with more than premiums. Two kinds of player do it. An aggressive regular attacks light 3-bettors with blockers and broadway hands. A short stack or Maniac shoves over 3-bets with any pair, any ace or anything that looks good. The stack size usually tells you which one you face.
How to exploit it
- 3-bet a range that can stand a 4-bet when they sit behind you: fewer pure bluffs, more hands like TT+, AQ+ and suited broadway hands.
- Widen your 5-bet shoves against them with hands that are ahead of a wide range, such as JJ, TT, AQs and AK.
- Against a short-stack shover, call wider: price the call against a wide shoving range, not against aces.
- Don’t 5-bet bluff a short stack: they are already committed.
When it’s your own number
No read covers C4B, but observant opponents can still see yours. A near-zero number tells them your cold 4-bet is aces or kings, so they fold everything else to it and 3-bet freely in front of you. A high one tells them to 5-bet shove wider and to 3-bet hands that can continue.
A good cold 4-bet range is mostly value. If yours is over 6%, check whether the extra hands are bluffs against 3-bettors who actually fold to 4-bets; if not, cut them. If it’s at zero over a real sample, start 4-betting QQ+ and AK instead of flatting them: a flat gives both raisers a cheap flop against your best hands.
Using it on the HUD
Players who could still act in a 3-bet pot show C4B on their badge alongside CC3B, and it stays on their badges in a 4-bet pot. A player who cold 4-bets shows it on their badge as the 4-bettor. When you can 3-bet, the panel lists it for each player behind you, next to their fold to 3-bet cold, so you see how often the players behind you re-raise before you decide.
Gold means over 6%, blue under 1%, faded under 12 chances. Chances are rare, and a stat this small needs a big sample: 3% over 100 chances is still ±1.7 points (the square root of 0.03 × 0.97 ÷ 100). Until then, treat a cold 4-bet from an unknown player as premium. Read it with fold to 3-bet cold, cold call 3-bet and fold to 4-bet.
Questions
What is a cold 4-bet in poker?
A cold 4-bet is a re-raise over an open and a 3-bet from a player who hadn’t put chips in yet. If the hijack opens, the cutoff 3-bets and the button re-raises, the button cold 4-bet. The blinds can cold 4-bet too, since posted blinds aren’t voluntary chips.
What is a good cold 4-bet percentage?
The HUD’s typical range is 1–6%. Most solid players sit toward the low end, cold 4-betting QQ+ and AK, with aggressive regulars nearer 6% adding a few bluffs. Over 6% usually means light re-raises or short-stack shoves; under 1% means only aces or kings, if that.
How should you respond to a cold 4-bet?
Against most players, fold everything except premiums. A cold 4-bettor stepped into two raises with nothing in, so their range is narrow, often QQ+ and AK or tighter. Only widen your continuing range against a high C4B over a real sample, or against a short stack who shoves wide.
Is a cold 4-bet stronger than a regular 4-bet?
Usually. A 4-bet in the HUD’s sense comes from the opener after being 3-bet, often to defend a wide opening range. A cold 4-bettor had no investment to protect and acted into two raises, so most players do it only with premium hands.