PokerToast · study tools for mixed-game poker
In heads-up limit Hold'em, which hands should the button fold before the flop?
Heads-up, PokerToast's limit Hold'em solver plays 82% of hands from the button (raises 75%, limps 7%) and folds 18%.
The spot
Heads-up limit Hold'em, before the flop. You are on the button (the small blind) and act first.
The solver's numbers
| Play | Share of all hands |
|---|---|
| Raise | 74.6% |
| Limp (call) | 6.9% |
| Fold | 18.5% |
Every one of the 169 starting hands, weighted by how many of the 1,326 possible deals it stands for.
Hands it folds more often than not (21 of 169): J3o, T4o, T3o, T2o, 94o, 93o, 92o, 84o, 83o, 82o, 74o, 73o, 72o, 63o, 62o, 53o, 52o, 43o, 42o, 32s, 32o.
Example hands
| Hand | Plays (how often) | Worth (EV estimate, small bets) |
|---|---|---|
| 7-2 offsuit 7♥ 2♣ | Fold 99.9% | Fold +0.00 Raise −0.42 Limp (call) −0.39 |
| 9-4 offsuit 9♥ 4♣ | Fold 95.8% Raise 2.1% Limp (call) 2.1% | Fold +0.00 Raise −0.13 Limp (call) −0.13 |
| K-2 offsuit K♥ 2♣ | Raise 90.3% Limp (call) 9.7% | Raise +0.24 Limp (call) +0.22 Fold +0.00 |
| Q-3 offsuit Q♥ 3♣ | Raise 100.0% | Raise +0.13 Fold +0.00 Limp (call) −0.01 |
| 10-2 suited 10♥ 2♥ | Limp (call) 70.3% Raise 29.3% | Limp (call) +0.21 Raise +0.16 Fold +0.00 |
| A-K offsuit A♥ K♦ | Raise 100.0% | Raise +1.94 Limp (call) +1.78 Fold +0.00 |
An independent check
Cepheus, the University of Alberta program that essentially solved heads-up limit Hold'em (Bowling et al., Science, January 2015), folds about 17.4% of hands on the button. PokerToast's own solver folds 18.5%. Two different solvers landing this close is a good sign the numbers can be trusted.
What popular strategy articles say
No published fold chart for heads-up limit was found; the AI's own estimate was that "well over half" of hands are played.
What AI search answers said when we asked this question on 2026-10-08. They cited strategy articles written mostly between about 2007 and 2013, and most of that advice is for full-ring games with several players in the pot.
The solver agrees that most hands are played: 82% of them.
Heads-up vs multiway
This question is about heads-up play (two players), so there is no multiway version of it.
How these numbers were made
From PokerToast's own heads-up limit Hold'em solver, trained 9,047,710 iterations, exported 2026-10-07 01:24:47, 63,797 situations (version H-9047710-20261007012447). It learned by self-play (Monte Carlo counterfactual regret minimization) for limit betting, at most four bets a street.
- How often is the solver's average strategy for this situation.
- Worth (EV) is an estimate measured after training by playing the situation out many times against the solver's own strategy: small bets won or lost from this decision on, compared with folding (0). It assumes an opponent who plays like the solver.
- Hand groups: the solver groups similar hands, so the numbers are for the group, not only these exact cards. Before the flop it knows all 169 starting-hand types and your position (button or big blind). After the flop it groups your hand by how it uses the board (for example an overpair, top pair and its kicker, or a draw), the board's texture (paired, two or three of a suit, connected), the pot and the betting so far on this street.
- Looked up when this page was built (2026-10-19); a newly trained solver changes the page and its version number.
Practice it
Today's Hold'em Daily Spot Open PokerToast
Part of: Heads-up limit Hold'em before the flop
More Hold'em spots: Heads-up limit Hold'em: big blind defense against a button raise · Heads-up limit Hold'em: top pair in the big blind on the flop. Bet or check-raise? · Heads-up limit Hold'em: continuation-bet A-5 on a 9-6-2 flop? · Heads-up limit Hold'em: pocket 2s in the big blind against a button raise · Heads-up limit Hold'em: K-J offsuit on the button facing a 3-bet. Cap, call or fold? · Heads-up limit Hold'em: pocket Aces on the button. Raise or limp?