How to Read Hand Range Charts | A Beginner's Guide

How to Read Hand Range Charts

📊 What Is a Hand Range Chart?

Let's start by looking at the real thing.

What Is a Hand Range?

So what exactly is a "hand range"?

When you color in each cell of the chart to show "this player holds / doesn't hold this hand," the colored cells as a group represent that player's range.

In the diagram on the right, only AA, AKs, AQs, AKo, KK, and QQ are colored red. This set of colored hands is the range. In poker, strategy is built around these sets of hands — not individual hands in isolation.

🗺️ The 13x13 Grid Structure

Take another look at the chart above. Both the rows and columns list the 13 card ranks (A, K, Q, J, T, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2).

There are only 3 rules to remember:

• Diagonal = Pocket Pairs (AA, KK, QQ, JJ...)
• Above the diagonal = Suited hands (AKs, AQs, AJs...) — two cards of the same suit
• Below the diagonal = Offsuit hands (AKo, AQo, AJo...) — two cards of different suits

Check the diagram below. Yellow = pocket pairs, green = suited, blue = offsuit.

🔢 Combo Counts — Same Hand, Different Suit Combinations

Each cell on the range chart actually represents multiple "combos."

Pocket Pairs: 6 Combos

For AA, you're choosing 2 suits out of 4 (♠♥♦♣):

A♠A♥, A♠A♦, A♠A♣, A♥A♦, A♥A♣, A♦A♣ → 6 combos

Suited Hands: 4 Combos

For AKs, there are 4 same-suit pairings:

A♠K♠, A♥K♥, A♦K♦, A♣K♣ → 4 combos

Offsuit Hands: 12 Combos

For AKo, you combine different suits:

A♠K♥, A♠K♦, A♠K♣, A♥K♠, A♥K♦, A♥K♣ ... → 12 combos (4 x 3)

All 169 hand types x their respective combo counts = 1,326 total combos. This is every possible starting hand in poker.

🎓 Reading a Real Range Chart

Now that you understand the structure, let's look at a color-coded range chart. The chart below shows the preflop hand range for UTG (the first position to act). Red = Raise, Blue = Fold.

Let's read this chart together.

Where is the AA cell? → Top-left of the diagonal. Solid red, so you always raise.

Where is the AKs cell? → Above the diagonal (A row, K column). Solid red — always raise as well.

Where is the K4s cell? → Solid blue. Fold.

In other words, when you're UTG preflop, AA and AKs are opens, while K4s is a fold.

Two-Color Cells — Mixed Strategies

Look closely at the chart. Notice that some cells are split between two colors — red and blue?

For example, 77 is about 75% red and 25% blue. K7s also shows a mix. This is called a mixed strategy.

If the 77 cell is painted 75% red and 25% blue, it means "the optimal strategy raises 77 at a 75% frequency and folds it at a 25% frequency." Since either action yields the same expected value, use your reads on your opponent to guide your decision in real play.

Who Creates These Range Charts?

"Same expected value." "Optimal frequencies." — How are these numbers determined? The answer lies in a tool called a solver.

A solver runs massive calculations to determine the optimal raise, call, and fold frequencies for all 169 hand types. The range chart you saw above is the result of that computation. These aren't rules of thumb built from human experience — they're mathematically derived answers produced by computers.

Actions and Strategy

Let's clarify some important terms here.

A single cell on the range chart tells you the action (raise, fold, etc.) and its frequency for that hand.

The entire range chart — the collection of actions for every hand — is what we call a strategy. In poker, strategy isn't about "what to do with one hand." It's the big picture of how you act across your entire range.

🎓 Practice Scenarios

Q1: On the UTG range chart, where is the QJs cell?

Q2: How many combos does 77 have?

Q3: On the UTG range chart, the K7s cell is split between red and blue. What does this mean?

Q4: A single cell on the range chart shows an "action." What does the entire range chart represent?

⚠️ Common Misconceptions

1. "Red cells = strong hands"

The color indicates action frequency, not hand strength. For example, both A5s and ATs are solid red (always raise) at UTG, but ATs is the stronger hand.

2. "I need to memorize all 169 cells"

You don't. Start by learning the diagonal (pocket pairs) and the key parts of the upper triangle (suited hands). The next article will show you patterns that make this easier.

🎯 Summary

Now that you can read range charts, the next step is to learn which hands to open from each position using these charts.