Seven Card Stud rules deal every player a private set of seven cards and leave nothing in the middle of the table. Two hidden cards and one visible card start the hand, three more visible cards follow, and a final hidden card closes it, with a round of betting after each deal. The best five of those seven make the hand, and the hands rank as in the other high games of this series. The sections below cover the five streets, the compulsory opening bet, how the visible cards decide who acts, the sizes of bets and the crowded-table case where eight players strain the deck. To finish, four exercises present complete seven-card hands and ask who wins.
Key Takeaways: Seven Card Stud Rules
- Deal Structure: Players get seven private cards across five streets (three down, four up) with no community cards, picking their best five.
- Action Order: The lowest upcard pays the compulsory bring-in on third street; from fourth street onward, the strongest showing hand acts first.
- Betting Limits: Fixed limits dictate stakes, using small bets on third street and shifting to big bets by fifth street or upon an open pair.
- Seventh Street Exception: If eight active players exhaust the deck on seventh street, a single shared card is dealt face up for everyone to use.
Five Streets, Seven Cards
Each deal is a street, and a betting round comes after it. Every player antes before the first cards go out, and a table seats two to eight players.
| Street | New cards | Cards you hold afterward |
| Third | Two down and one up | 3 in all, 2 down and 1 up |
| Fourth | One up | 4 in all, 2 down and 2 up |
| Fifth | One up | 5 in all, 2 down and 3 up |
| Sixth | One up | 6 in all, 2 down and 4 up |
| Seventh | One down | 7 in all, 3 down and 4 up |
Everybody sees your upcards, while your downcards are known to you alone.
Who Opens on Third Street
Third-street betting starts with a compulsory bet, the bring-in, and it falls to the player showing the smallest upcard. Equal ranks are separated by suit, clubs being lowest, then diamonds, hearts and spades. Poker rarely cares about suit order, and in this spot it settles who acts without ever deciding a winner.
Reading the Upcards
From fourth street the player whose upcards form the best poker hand is first to act. Pairs, two pair and three of a kind count in the usual order, and unfinished straights and flushes carry no weight.
Picture fourth street with Priya showing Qh Qd, Luc showing As Kc and Jean showing 8s 2h. Priya’s pair beats Luc’s ace-high, so she acts first although Luc has the two highest single cards.
Picking the Best Five
At the showdown every player chooses five cards out of their own seven, mixing downcards and upcards freely. Rankings and ties follow the rest of the series, and the kicker rules separate hands that match.
Say a player holds Qh Qd 9c 9s 4h 4d Ac. Three pairs are on offer, yet a hand has space for only two, and the highest leftover card takes the fifth place. That produces two pair, queens and nines, with an ace kicker.
Stud Beside Hold’em
Both games use one ranking. What separates them is which cards are private, which are shared and who acts first.
| Question | Texas Hold’em | Seven Card Stud |
| Seats at the table | Up to 10 | Up to 8 |
| Cards on the board | Five | None |
| Cards dealt to you | 2, both down | 7, four of them up |
| Forced bets | Blinds | Antes and a bring-in |
| Betting rounds | Four | Five |
| Who acts first later | The first player left of the button | The best hand showing |
| Where your hand comes from | Your two plus the five shared | Your own seven |
Bet Sizes and a Full Table of Eight
Fixed limits are normal in Stud, and they come as a small bet and a big bet. Third street uses the small bet. From fourth street the big bet may be used as soon as any player’s upcards show a pair or better, and by the usual casino rule every bet from fifth street onward is a big bet.
If eight players remain on sixth street, the deck may fall short. The dealer then turns a single shared card face up in the centre, and all players treat it as their seventh card. The highest hand using that card opens the seventh-street betting.
Exercises: Four Stud Showdowns
Every exercise lists all seven cards that each player holds after the last street. Pick the best five cards for each player and name the winner.
❓ Practice: Pick the Winner
Maya’s seven cards are Kh Kd 7c 7s 4h 4d Ac, and Jean’s seven cards are 8c 7h 6d 5s 4c Ad 2h. Who wins?
Maya’s seven cards are 9c 9d 9h Ks Kd 2c 3s, and Jean’s seven cards are Ah Th 8h 5h 2h Qc Qd. Who wins?
Maya’s seven cards are Ts Td 5c 5h 2s Kd 8c, and Jean’s seven cards are Tc Th 5d 5s 3c Qd 9h. Who wins?
Maya’s seven cards are 9s 8h 7d 6c 5s Kc 2d, and Jean’s seven cards are 9d 8c 7h 6s 5d Qc 3h. Who wins?
More Guides in the Series
Within the online poker series, Seven Card Stud supplies the pattern for the other games of this stage, and its lowball twin reverses the ranking. Good pages to read afterward:
- Razz poker rules: the Stud deal with a prize for the lowest hand.
- Poker showdown rules: the order of showing and the division of pots.
- Poker kicker rules: telling two hands of one kind apart.
- Texas Hold’em hands: five of seven cards, with part of the seven shared.
- Poker hand rankings: all nine kinds of hand, strongest first.
Limits for Stud Sessions
Seeing a share of each opponent’s cards can make a close hand look predictable, yet the next card is always unknown. Choose a spending limit and a playing time before the first ante, and keep to them. If gambling is causing problems, the Gambling: Help and Referral line in Quebec is 1-800-461-0140, and our responsible gambling page covers more tools and support services.
❓ Seven Card Stud Questions: Frequently Asked Questions
How many of my cards are face up?
Who bets first on each street?
What is the bring-in for?
What happens when eight players are still in?
Author:
Lucas Portela
Owner, BoldGambler • Avanhandava/SP
Oddsmaker, affiliate and content creator in the iGaming industry.