Push or fold chart
Heads-up with a short stack, the small blind has two moves and the big blind has two answers. Pick the stack size and the chart shows which hands go all-in and which hands call, from our own equilibrium calculation. It is the chart for the end of a Spin, for the blinds against each other, and for All In or Fold when everyone has folded to you.
Pairs run down the middle. Suited hands are above the line, offsuit hands below it.
K7o
Small blind, 10 big blinds, 12 combinations
Push
At 10 big blinds the small blind pushes with 58% of hands and the big blind calls with 37%. The push range is wider because every fold by the big blind wins the blinds.
The range at 10 big blinds, in words
The small blind pushes every pair. suited: A2s and better; K2s and better; Q2s and better; J3s and better; T4s and better; 95s and better; 84s and better; 74s and better; 64s and better; 53s and better; 43s and better. offsuit: A2o and better; K2o and better; Q7o and better; J8o and better; T8o and better; 97o and better; 87o and better; 76o and better.
The big blind calls every pair. suited: A2s and better; K2s and better; Q7s and better; J8s and better; T9s and better. offsuit: A2o and better; K5o and better; Q9o and better; JTo and better.
The words list the hands that are pushed or called at least half the time. Hands marked as close calls are at the edge, and either choice costs almost nothing.
How to use the chart
Set the stack to the shorter of the two stacks, counted in big blinds. If you are in the small blind and the big blind is the only player left, the chart says whether your hand goes all-in or folds. If you are in the big blind facing an all-in from the small blind, it says whether you call. Everything else, including a small raise, is left out on purpose: with these stacks the shove is the move that keeps the decision simple and the money in the middle.
The chart is built for two players with no antes, which is the end of every Spin, the blinds against each other at any table, and the small blind in All In or Fold when the others have folded. With antes, both ranges get a little wider. With players still to act behind you, the push range gets much tighter: use the seat-by-seat table on the All In or Fold page for that.
Against a real player, adjust from here. A big blind who calls too much makes your weak pushes worse and your strong pushes better, so push fewer of the bottom hands. A big blind who folds too much makes every push better, so push wider. As the caller, a small blind who pushes any two cards lets you call with much more than the chart shows; the hand strength calculator gives your equity against a range.
The figures are ours. We dealt 8,000 boards for every pair of the 169 starting hands to get their equities against each other, then found the pair of strategies where neither seat gains by changing any single hand, for every stack from 2 to 25 big blinds. Hands whose value sits within a hair of zero are marked as close calls rather than forced into one colour.
Questions
What is a push or fold chart?
A table of the starting hands to go all-in with, and the hands to call an all-in with, when the stacks are short and raising a smaller amount no longer makes sense. This one is for two players, the small blind against the big blind, with no antes.
At what stack size should I push or fold?
From about 12 big blinds down the chart is the whole game heads-up. Between 12 and 20 big blinds pushing is still correct for many hands, but a small raise with the strongest and the weakest hands can do better. Above 20 big blinds, raise rather than shove.
Why does the big blind call with so few hands compared with the small blind's pushes?
Because a push wins the blinds every time the big blind folds, while a call has no fold equity: it has to win the showdown often enough to pay for the whole stack. At 10 big blinds the small blind pushes about 58% of hands and the big blind calls with about 37%.
Do antes change the chart?
Yes. Antes put more money in the middle before anyone acts, which makes both the pushes and the calls wider. With antes, treat the chart as the tight end and add a few hands at each edge.
Where do these ranges come from?
We computed them ourselves: the chance of every starting hand against every other, from 8,000 dealt boards per pair of hands, then the equilibrium where neither player can do better by changing a single hand, for each stack size from 2 to 25 big blinds. Hands close to the line are marked as close calls.