How much bankroll do you need for $3/$5?
$3/$5 is a popular middle step between $1/$3 and $5/$10 in many US card rooms. Buy-ins are often uncapped or capped at $1,000 or more, so you will regularly play 200 big blind stacks. The player pool mixes strong regulars with recreational players who like bigger action.
| Approach | With $500 buy-ins (100bb) | With $1,000 buy-ins |
|---|---|---|
| Aggressive (20 buy-ins) | $10,000 | $20,000 |
| Moderate (30 buy-ins) | $15,000 | $30,000 |
| Conservative (40 buy-ins) | $20,000 | $40,000 |
Live games are slower than online games, so live players can use fewer buy-ins than online players at the same stake. If poker money comes from your salary and you can top it up, the aggressive figure is fine. If your bankroll is all you have, use the conservative one.
What can you expect to win?
A solid live player might win 5–10 big blinds per hour, which is $25–$50 an hour at these stakes before tips. Results swing a lot in the short term: see how big your swings could be with the variance calculator, and check your chance of going broke with the risk of ruin calculator.
Move-up and move-down rules for $3/$5
- Move down if your bankroll drops below 20 buy-ins ($10,000).
- Move up when you have 30 buy-ins for the next level.
- Take shots with a fixed number of buy-ins set aside, and step back down if you lose them.
Open the bankroll calculator for $3/$5 to plug in your own bankroll, track your real win rate in the free poker bankroll tracker, or read our full poker bankroll management guide.