Shorthanded poker is a popular variation played in cash games, tournaments, and Sit and Go’s. It’s spread online and in live events including WSOP bracelet events with heads-up, 6-handed, and 4-handed formats.
If you’re new to poker and wondering whether you should try shorthanded games, here’s a breakdown of the pros and cons of 6-max poker to help you decide.
Shorthanded Games Have Gone Mainstream
The popularity of shorthanded games online has spilled over to brick-and-mortar cardrooms. What was once only feasible online (due to floor space and dealer costs) is now offered by many live rooms as player demand has grown.
The rules are identical, but the dynamic is completely different. A by-the-book tight-aggressive strategy that prints money in loose 9-handed games will get crushed by attentive 6-max players. Hand values go up dramatically—KT and A8 in 6-max are roughly equivalent to KQ and AJ at a full table. The blinds come around 33% faster, so you simply cannot wait for premium hands.
5 Benefits of Playing 6-Max
1. More Hands Per Hour
With 3 fewer players than full ring, you’ll be dealt significantly more hands, likely over 100 per hour. That means a higher potential hourly rate, more action, and faster skill development through sheer volume of experience.
2. Aggressive Play Is Rewarded
Shorthanded games are built for aggressive players. Hand values go up: KT and A8 become playable because you’re facing fewer opponents. Players also need to be more active because the blinds come around more often. If you stick to a full-ring hand range, you’ll lose money.
Wider ranges mean more bluffing, more re-raising, and more check-raising. Hands still miss the flop most of the time, so players bluff more frequently as well.
3. Faster Bonus and VIP Clearing
More hands per hour means you can earn poker bonuses and VIP levels faster. This depends on whether the site uses the “dealt” method (points for every hand) or the “contributed” method (points only when you put money in the pot), but in general, 6-max accelerates your rakeback earnings.
4. Easier to Exploit Fish
Recreational players love 6-max because they get to play more often. Many of them over-adjust by playing far too many hands and overvaluing the hands they make. These are profitable opportunities for experienced players because the fish make bigger and more frequent mistakes in the faster format.
5. Accelerated Skill Development
If you want to learn aggressive poker, hand reading, range construction, and profitable bluffing, 6-max is the best classroom. The faster pace forces you to develop these skills quickly, and the wider hand ranges create more complex and instructive situations.
4 Downsides to Shorthanded Poker
1. Blinds Eat You Faster
With fewer players, you go through the blinds more often. Tight players need to squeeze extra value from the hands they do play. If you’re not skilled enough (tight or loose), the faster blind rotation will erode your bankroll and hourly rate more quickly than full ring.
2. Higher Variance
More hands, wider ranges, and more aggressive play all create bigger up-and-down swings. You need to be mentally prepared to handle them, and your bankroll needs to be large enough to absorb them. A standard recommendation is 30-40 buy-ins for 6-max versus 20-25 for full ring.
3. Not Ideal for Beginners
Wider hand ranges, aggressive play, and higher variance make 6-max difficult for beginners and ABC players. You’ll find yourself out of position too often, playing too many hands, and getting into awkward spots.
If you plan to study and improve, 6-max is great. If you want casual consistency, full ring is the better option.
4. Harder to Multi-Table
More hands per hour means more decisions per hour. Each 6-max table produces 33-100% more hands than full ring. If you multi-table, start with fewer tables than you think you can handle to avoid spewing your bankroll on autopilot decisions.