4-Bet Strategy: Ranges and Sizing for Online Poker

Most players learn to 3-bet long before they learn to 4-bet, and that gap is exactly why a well-built 4-betting strategy is such a reliable edge. When someone re-raises your open and you raise again, the pot balloons, stacks become shallow relative to the money in the middle, and the player with the better plan wins a disproportionate share of those hands. Done badly, 4-betting is the fastest way to torch a bankroll. Done well, it quietly adds profit to every session.

This guide covers what a 4-bet is, which hands belong in your value and bluff ranges, how to size the raise, and how to respond when an opponent fires back with a 5-bet. It is written for 100 big blind cash games at six-max tables, the format most players use when working through offers from our best poker bonuses list, but the principles carry over to most formats.

What a 4-bet is and why it matters

A 4-bet is the third raise before the flop. The big blind counts as the first bet, the original open is a raise, the re-raise is the 3-bet, and the next raise is the 4-bet. Because each raise roughly multiplies the pot, a standard 4-bet pot at 100 big blinds often leaves effective stacks of only around three to five times the pot by the flop, which means most hands are played with very little room to manoeuvre.

That shallow stack-to-pot ratio changes how every hand plays. Top pair becomes a stack-off hand, drawing hands lose implied odds, and bluffing opportunities shrink after the flop. As a result, the real battle in a 4-bet pot is fought before the flop: whoever chooses better hands to put in the pot, and better hands to fold, comes out ahead. If you have not yet studied how stack depth shapes decisions, our guide to stack-to-pot ratio is a useful companion.

Building a value 4-betting range

Your value range is the set of hands that want to get the money in for the best of it against a 3-bettor's calling and 5-betting range. At typical online stakes, a sound value range includes the following hands:

• Aces and Kings. These are your automatic 4-bets in nearly every spot. Slow-playing them preflop gives opponents cheap chances to outdraw you and wastes the main benefit of the pot you are building.
• Queens and Ace-King. Queens are a strong 4-bet against most ranges, though you should be prepared to fold to a 5-bet from a very tight opponent. Ace-King is a premium hand with excellent blockers and plays well both as a value hand and a stack-off candidate.
• Jacks and Ace-Queen suited, depending on the opponent. Against frequent 3-bettors, these hands are comfortably ahead of the range and can be 4-bet for value. Against nits, they are often better as calls.

The right width depends heavily on your opponent. Against a player who 3-bets 12 percent of hands, you can value-bet far more thinly than against someone who 3-bets 3 percent. Tracking how often opponents re-raise, either with a notes system or with software where the room allows it, is worth the effort. Check the rules first, as our overview of HUDs and tracking software explains which rooms permit what.

Choosing bluff 4-bets

A balanced 4-betting range includes some bluffs, and the best bluffing hands share two properties: they block the strong holdings your opponent continues with, and they play poorly when you simply call.

Suited aces like A5s, A4s and A3s fit this profile perfectly. The ace removes one of the combinations of Aces and Ace-King from your opponent's range, and the suited wheel cards give you outs when you are called and need to make a hand. Compare that to a hand like K9s, which has little blocker value and looks pretty but does not want a big pot.

Typical bluff 4-bet candidates include:

• A5s through A2s, with the lower suited aces slightly less valuable than A5s and A4s.
• KQs or suited broadways against opponents who fold too often to 4-bets, because these hands can also continue profitably when called.
• Small pocket pairs occasionally, in specific spots, though these are usually better calls if the stacks and prices allow set mining.

How many bluffs do you need? As a rough guide, a standard 4-bet size of about 2.2 to 2.5 times the 3-bet when in position needs the opponent to fold around 55 to 60 percent of the time to make a pure bluff break even. If your value range is made of about 2 to 3 combinations for every bluff combination, you are roughly balanced. Against opponents who fold too much, add more bluffs; against those who never fold, drop them entirely.

Sizing your 4-bet

Sizing depends on position and stack depth. A useful default at 100 big blinds is:

• In position (button or cutoff against a blind 3-bet): about 2.2 to 2.3 times the 3-bet size. For example, if the 3-bet is to 9 big blinds, make it roughly 21 big blinds.
• Out of position (blinds against a late-position 3-bet): about 2.4 to 2.6 times the 3-bet size, because you will play the rest of the hand without the positional advantage.
• Against very sticky opponents: size up for value and bluff less. They will call regardless of price, so you are simply building the pot with your strongest hands.

At shallower depths, particularly 40 to 60 big blinds, the 4-bet often becomes a shove, and your range tightens: you are committing most of your stack, so only the hands that perform well against a calling range should go in. At very deep stacks the opposite is true, and you may prefer smaller 4-bets that preserve a postflop plan. Whichever you choose, keep the size consistent between value and bluffs so your opponent cannot read your hand from the bet.

Facing a 5-bet

Once you 4-bet, you will occasionally face a 5-bet, and your plan should be set before you click the button. Most 5-bets at a typical online table are all-ins with very strong hands, and the population as a whole under-bluffs in this spot. That means folding more than feels comfortable is usually correct.

A simple guide: against unknown opponents, continue with Aces, Kings and Ace-King, and treat Queens as a close decision that depends on your read. Fold your bluffs. Fold your marginal value hands against tight players, and widen only against players who have shown a history of aggressive 5-betting. If the stack sizes mean calling takes you to a flop with a very low stack-to-pot ratio, remember that you are effectively committed, so you should either be happy to get it all in or find the fold before the flop.

Adjusting to opponents and avoiding common mistakes

The most common errors in 4-betting are predictable. Players bluff with hands that have no blockers, they use inconsistent sizes that reveal their holdings, and they refuse to fold to a 5-bet after investing so much of their stack. Others become too passive and simply call 3-bets with hands that would be more profitable as 4-bets, leaving money on the table.

Adjustments are simple once you notice patterns. If a regular 3-bets you relentlessly from the button, widen your value range and 4-bet more bluffs in position. If an opponent rarely 3-bets but always has the goods, fold more and respect their range. In soft games, make the most of tilted or inexperienced opponents; our look at 3-bet pot strategy covers the other side of the equation, where you are the one making the first re-raise.

Variance deserves a note as well. Because 4-bet pots are large, results swing quickly even when your decisions are right. A sound bankroll helps you ride out the bad runs without changing your strategy, and our primer on downswings and variance shows how long those swings can last.

Putting it into practice

Start small. Pick a single position, perhaps the button against the blinds, and build a short list of value hands, bluff hands and sizes. Review your hands after each session and look specifically at 4-bet pots you won and lost. Over a few thousand hands you will form clear opinions about how your pool of opponents reacts, and you can refine accordingly.

Strong preflop play pays off most when you are playing with the best conditions available. If you are ready to put these ideas to work at a new room, compare current offers on our best poker bonuses page, and read how to claim a welcome offer so you pick up the extra value from your volume.