What bankroll management is
A poker bankroll is money set aside only for playing. Buy-ins come out of it and winnings go back in. The key rule: never mix it with living money, and losing it should not change your everyday life.
Bankroll management is a set of rules for choosing stakes based on the size of your bankroll. Even strong players lose dozens of buy-ins in a row: a 20–30 buy-in downswing is normal in NLH cash and 100+ in tournaments. Play with everything at once and such a run wipes you out before your edge shows. Bankroll management answers one question: how many buy-ins you need to ride out variance.
That is why bankrolls are counted in buy-ins, not dollars. $1,000 is 40 buy-ins at NL25 (comfortable) but only 10 at NL100 (near-certain ruin over the long run).
How many buy-ins: guidelines by game
These are common guidelines from the poker community, not exact math. The higher your winrate relative to variance, the fewer buy-ins you need; for a precise number use the Risk of ruin tab.
| Game | Aggressive | Standard | Conservative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cash NLH (100bb) | 20 | 30 | 50 |
| Cash PLO (100bb) | 50 | 75 | 100 |
| Cash in club apps | 30 | 40 | 60 |
| SNG / Spins | 50 | 75 | 100 |
| MTT | 100 | 200 | 300+ |
- The aggressive profile suits players who can easily top up from a salary — losing the bankroll is not a disaster.
- The conservative profile is for a bankroll you can’t refill, or when poker is your main income.
- Add buy-ins for 6-max and heads-up, PLO5 and PLO6, turbo tournaments, fields of 1,000+, jackpot Spins and bomb pots.
Example: a $1,000 bankroll, standard profile
- Cash NLH (30 BI): up to NL25 ($0.10/$0.25), needs $750; shot at NL50.
- Cash PLO (75 BI): up to PLO10 ($0.05/$0.10), needs $750.
- Club apps (40 BI): up to NL25 ($0.10/$0.25), needs $1,000.
- MTT (200 BI): up to $3.3, needs $660; shot at $5.5.
Risk of ruin explained
Risk of ruin (RoR) is the probability of ever losing your whole bankroll if you keep playing the same stake forever. It comes from a diffusion model: your results are a random walk with an average gain (winrate) and a spread (standard deviation).
- wr — winrate in bb per 100 hands (after rake).
- σ — standard deviation in bb per 100 hands. Your tracker shows it; typical values are NLH full ring ≈ 70, NLH 6-max ≈ 90, NLH heads-up ≈ 120, PLO 6-max ≈ 145.
- B — bankroll in bb (1 buy-in = 100bb). Winrate and deviation are measured over the same number of hands, so the units are consistent.
- Inverted, it tells you what you need for a target risk: B = −σ² · ln(RoR) / (2 · wr).
Worked example
An NL25 6-max regular: winrate 5 bb/100, σ = 90 bb/100, bankroll of 30 buy-ins = 3,000bb. Plug in: 2 · 5 · 3,000 / 90² = 3.7 → exp(−3.7) ≈ 2.5%. A 5% risk would need 24.3 buy-ins, 1% — 37.3.
With the same bankroll in PLO (σ ≈ 145) the risk jumps to 24%, and if your true winrate is half as high — 2.5 bb/100 — to 15.7%. That is why PLO needs more buy-ins and why you should be conservative with your winrate.
| σ at 5 bb/100 | RoR 10% | RoR 5% | RoR 1% |
|---|---|---|---|
| NLH full ring · 70 | 11.3 BI | 14.7 BI | 22.6 BI |
| NLH 6-max · 90 | 18.7 BI | 24.3 BI | 37.3 BI |
| NLH heads-up · 120 | 33.2 BI | 43.1 BI | 66.3 BI |
| PLO 6-max · 145 | 48.4 BI | 63 BI | 96.8 BI |
Calculate your own risk of ruin above →
Model assumptions: the winrate is known exactly and constant, you never move down and play forever, results are normally distributed. In practice moving down lowers the risk, while uncertainty about your winrate raises it.
Shot-taking and moving down
A shot is playing a higher stake before your bankroll fully covers it. Plan it: set aside 3–5 buy-ins of the new stake in advance and decide that if you lose them you step back down — no chasing losses.
Moving down is the same kind of pre-made decision. The move-down point sits below the move-up point (the calculator uses 75% of the requirement) so you don’t bounce between stakes every session. Stepping down after a downswing is not a defeat — it is exactly what keeps your risk of ruin low.
Bankroll in club poker apps
In ClubGG, PPPoker, PokerBros and other club apps, variance comes with counterparty risk: your chips are held by a club or agent, not a licensed operator with segregated player funds. A club can close, an agent can disappear, a balance can be frozen.
- Keep 3–5 buy-ins of your stake on the club balance and the rest of the bankroll off the app.
- Withdraw winnings regularly, and start with a small test withdrawal at a new club.
- Keep receipts for deposits and withdrawals and track your results together with rakeback.
- Club games often have bomb pots, straddles and PLO — plan for more buy-ins than classic NLH.
More in Bankroll management for club poker apps and Poker variance explained.
Bankroll FAQ
01What is a poker bankroll?
A bankroll is money set aside only for poker: you pay buy-ins out of it and your winnings go back into it. It is not your salary, savings or rent money. Bankrolls are measured in buy-ins of your stake: $1,000 is 40 buy-ins at NL25 or 200 tournaments at $5.
02How big a bankroll do I need for poker?
It depends on the game and your appetite for risk. Common guidelines: cash NLH 20–50 buy-ins of 100bb, PLO 50–100, SNGs and Spins 50–100 (Spins nearer 100–200), MTTs 100–300 or more. For example, NL25 at a standard 30 buy-ins needs $750, and $11 tournaments at 200 buy-ins need $2,200. These are rules of thumb, not exact math.
03What is bankroll management in poker?
Bankroll management is a set of rules for choosing stakes based on your bankroll: how many buy-ins to keep, when to move up and when to move down. Its goal is to survive inevitable downswings and not go broke through variance even when you are a winning player.
04How do I calculate risk of ruin?
With RoR = e^(−2·wr·B/σ²), where wr is your winrate in bb/100, σ your standard deviation in bb/100 and B your bankroll in bb. Example: 5 bb/100, σ = 90, a 30 buy-in (3,000bb) bankroll: exp(−2·5·3000/8100) ≈ 2.5%. The formula assumes your winrate is known exactly and you never change stakes.
05When should I move up in stakes?
When your bankroll covers the full requirement for the next stake. Before that you can take a shot: try the higher stake with 3–5 buy-ins set aside for it, and if you lose them, step back down. The calculator suggests a shot once you have 60% of the next stake's requirement.
06When should I move down?
Set the threshold in advance and stick to it without emotion. The calculator uses 75% of the current stake's requirement: at 30 buy-ins for NL25 ($750), move down to NL10 once you drop below $562.50. A gap between the move-up and move-down points stops you bouncing between stakes every session.
07How much should I keep on a club app balance?
Not much — 3–5 buy-ins of your stake is the usual advice. In club apps your money is held by a club or agent, not a licensed operator, so a bankroll sitting in a club also carries counterparty risk. Keep the rest off the app and withdraw winnings regularly.
08Should I include rakeback in my winrate?
Only if it is steady and actually paid. For risk of ruin it is safer to use your winrate after rake without rakeback: if the club stops paying, your bankroll should survive it. And remember your true winrate is uncertain by several bb/100 even after 100,000 hands.
The calculator is a guide, not financial advice. Buy-in counts are common rules of thumb; risk of ruin is a model with assumptions.