What are the small and big blinds?

The blinds are two bets you are forced to post before any cards are dealt. The player directly left of the dealer button posts the small blind; the player left of them posts the big blind, which is usually double the small.

In a $1/$2 game, those numbers are the blinds: the small blind posts $1, the big blind posts $2, and everything else at the table is measured against that $2 unit. When players talk about a “100bb stack”, they mean 100 big blinds — $200 here.

Both blinds move one seat left after every hand, following the button, so everyone pays them equally often. Over a full orbit at a six-handed table you post each blind exactly once.

Why do blinds exist at all?

To make folding cost something. If nothing were posted before the deal, the correct strategy would be to fold every hand that is not premium and wait — nobody would ever have to put money in with a disadvantage, and there would be nothing to fight over.

The blinds break that. Twice an orbit you have money in the pot before you see your cards, and every other player at the table has a reason to attack it. That forced seepage is what makes tight-but-not-smart play unprofitable, and it is why the game works as a game.

The blinds also set the stakes. “What are the blinds?” is the first question to ask about any cash game, because every raise, stack and win rate is denominated in big blinds.

Who acts first, the small blind or the big blind?

Before the flop, the small blind acts first of the two — but last of everyone except the big blind. The action starts left of the big blind, goes around the table, and reaches the blinds at the end because they have already paid to be in.

After the flop the order changes for the rest of the hand: the small blind acts first at the table, the big blind second, and the button last. This is the single most important fact about the blind seats. Whatever happens on the flop, turn and river, you act before everyone else, knowing the least — the exact opposite of the button. Our poker positions guide covers why acting last is worth so much.

Is the big blind a better seat than the small blind?

Yes, and it is not close. The big blind is the less bad of the two, for two reasons.

First, the discount. When someone raises, the big blind has already paid one blind, so continuing costs less than it costs anyone else. Facing a raise to $6 in a $1/$2 game, the big blind pays $4 more where the button would pay the full $6, and for a better price on the same pot.

Second, position. The small blind acts first on every street after the flop; the big blind acts second, with one player’s action already visible.

The small blind gets neither. It pays half a unit for the worst seat at the table and must complete the other half just to see a flop. That combination — money in dead, position at its worst — makes it the biggest long-term loser of the six seats.

How should you play from the blinds?

Expect to lose from both seats, and aim to lose less than everyone else does.

That reframing matters because blind play punishes optimism. The two mistakes that cost players most, in both seats, run in the same direction — doing too much:

  • Defending the big blind too wide. The discount makes calling feel cheap, but a weak hand played out of position for the rest of the hand is a losing proposition the discount rarely covers.
  • Playing the small blind too loose. Completing “because it’s only half a blind” buys the worst position at the table with a hand that was not worth a raise.

Here is what disciplined small-blind play actually looks like when everyone folds to you — note how much of it is not a raise at all:

Small blind vs big blind, folded to the small blind — 6-max 100bb — PlusEV solver data, exported 2026-08-26
AAAKsAQsAJsATsA9sA8sA7sA6sA5sA4sA3sA2s
AKoKKKQsKJsKTsK9sK8sK7sK6sK5sK4sK3sK2s
AQoKQoQQQJsQTsQ9sQ8sQ7sQ6sQ5sQ4sQ3sQ2s
AJoKJoQJoJJJTsJ9sJ8sJ7sJ6sJ5sJ4sJ3sJ2s
AToKToQToJToTTT9sT8sT7sT6sT5sT4sT3sT2s
A9oK9oQ9oJ9oT9o9998s97s96s95s94s93s92s
A8oK8oQ8oJ8oT8o98o8887s86s85s84s83s82s
A7oK7oQ7oJ7oT7o97o87o7776s75s74s73s72s
A6oK6oQ6oJ6oT6o96o86o76o6665s64s63s62s
A5oK5oQ5oJ5oT5o95o85o75o65o5554s53s52s
A4oK4oQ4oJ4oT4o94o84o74o64o54o4443s42s
A3oK3oQ3oJ3oT3o93o83o73o63o53o43o3332s
A2oK2oQ2oJ2oT2o92o82o72o62o52o42o32o22
FoldCallRaise 3

Which hands are worth defending, completing or 3-betting is a range question, and the answer is specific — hundreds of hands per situation, not a rule of thumb. A range chart shows the whole picture at once; our guide to reading the range grid explains how, and the PlusEV preflop trainer drills the blind-defense spots until the right response is automatic. Big blind defense is its own training category in the app precisely because it comes up twice an orbit, every orbit.

What is a straddle, and how is it different?

A straddle is a voluntary third blind, posted before the deal by the player left of the big blind, usually for double the big blind. It is optional, it is generally a paid way to make the game bigger and looser, and no rule of good play requires it. The blinds proper are the two forced ones; everything else is table culture.

The short answers

  • What is a blind in poker? A bet you must post before the cards are dealt. Two per hand: small blind and big blind.
  • What is the big blind? The larger forced bet, posted two seats left of the button. It sets the betting unit for the whole game.
  • Who posts them? The two players left of the dealer button, rotating every hand.
  • Do the blinds count toward calling a raise? Yes. Money you posted blind is money already in — you only pay the difference to continue.