Want to perform better in cash games and poker tournaments? Then make sure you understand the different positions at the poker table. Where you sit matters a lot more than a beginner might realize, especially when in the button poker position.

In this article, you’ll learn everything you need to know about playing from the button. This includes easy-to-apply tips you can implement right away.

What is the Button in Poker?

The definition of the button in poker is that it is a round disk that reads “dealer” and passes around the table by one seat every hand.  It is used to designate whose turn it is to deal. Of course, in most live events, a professional dealer will be used so that players can concentrate solely on the game. Similarly, if you play poker online, you won’t actually need to deal. However, the button is still essential, as it determines who must post the blinds and who acts first.

But what is the button position in poker? There could be as many as ten seats at a poker table, depending on the specific format. Where you sit relative to the dealer button affects when you’ll have to make a decision. This, in turn, impacts your choice of poker strategy.

Action always begins with the player sitting to the immediate left of the dealer button. In Hold’em poker, the player in the small blind must post the small blind, and the player in the following position posts the big blind. The player first to act after the blinds are posted is referred to as being “under the gun.” Collectively, these spots are known as “early position.” 

Next up is the “middle position,” followed by the “late position,” which includes the cut-off and dealer button positions.

Postflop, the button is the player who acts last. That’s the primary characteristic of this position. In this spot, you’ll see every player’s decision before making your own. That’s extremely important, given that poker is a game of hidden information. The more details you determine, the better optimized your decisions can be.

Characteristics of the Button in Poker

The most essential characteristics of the button are its physical presence and its placement. The “dealer” disk is usually white and stands out from the chips and cards. As it rotates around the table, it indicates each player’s position relative to it. This leads to the ultimate importance of poker positions. 

Thus, button position poker is a key part of that picture. Here’s an example that can help make its importance even clearer. Imagine you’re playing from an early position, under the gun. Your hand is okay but not spectacular; your hole cards are J-9 suited. What are you going to do with that?

If you raise the big blind, you have an entire table to act behind you. Anyone could have pocket aces or kings and raise back. Someone might try bluffing you off the pot. Even if you call, you’ll be out of position on every other street, constantly guessing what your opponent will do next.

If you were on the button, you’d see exactly how the other players acted first. If nobody puts in a raise, you can feel safe that your hand might be one of the best at the table. If you show some aggression, you might even take it down there and then. Similarly, if two people ahead of you are raising, you can safely muck your average hand in poker.

As you can see, it requires a much stronger hand to raise from an early position than from the button.

Button Strategy and Tips

Below, you’ll learn poker button tips and strategies. You’ll quickly learn why it’s considered the optimal position in poker, and why its relation to flop, turn, and river cards is a key part of any strategy.

Steal the Blinds

If nobody raises before you and the players in the blinds seem hesitant, it’s a good idea to raise. Your hand’s strength doesn’t matter much in this spot, especially if most players are playing tight. With this maneuver, you might steal the blinds. If those two positions are using an obvious blind vs blind poker strategy, there’s minimal risk.

Of course, if other players call or raise you, you’ll need to consider the strength of your hand before deciding how to proceed. If you expect players to call more often because the table is playing loose, you don’t want to raise with too many bad and mediocre hands. Despite this, you should still generally look to steal more.

Widen Your Range

On that subject, you can safely widen your range, not just when raising. More information is available to you, so take advantage of this and look to play more hands than you would in early and middle positions.

Of course, you still need to pay attention to the action on the table. If two raises are in front of you, you probably don’t want to call with an offsuit A-6. However, if there was a single raise, it might be a good idea to play back with such a hand.

This way, you’re putting pressure on the initial raiser. They know they’ll have to play the entire hand out of position against you, per most preflop poker strategies. That’s how you leverage the button’s advantage.

Adjust for Your Opponent’s Skill

When you’re playing at low stakes, some players don’t know as much as you. Perhaps they just play for fun, so they don’t bother studying and optimizing their decisions. Of course, you can and should take advantage of that.

However, once you start winning more, you’ll probably move to a stronger level of competition and play for higher stakes. At that point, you should adjust your poker strategy to your opponent’s skill level, based on your observations. They’ll likely know you’re playing a wider range of hands from the button as they do the same thing.

Thus, they’ll make decisions based on that. Perhaps they’ll also widen their range and call more often than a beginner would. In such a scenario, you may need to shrink your range while still keeping it wider than in the early positions.

Always Pay Attention to Others

When you’re having poker positions explained for the first time, it’s easy to focus on one thing and forget about the bigger picture. Having read this article, don’t wait for the button to come around and dive into action. It’s important to constantly pay attention to what’s going on around you. The best players focus on multiple levels of thinking in poker during each hand.

As previously explained, your decisions should change in response to other players’ actions. If you don’t know which players are tight and which are loose, the advantage of the button won’t help you as much.

Thus, while considering the unwritten rules of poker, you should always note the playing style of your opponents, no matter which position you’re in. Once you pin down the patterns of a few players, you’ll be able to leverage that button position much more.

Is the Button the Best Position in Poker?

Every player has their own preferences for their favorite positions at the poker table. Still, most who study the importance of table positions say the button is the best and most advantageous of all.

Before the flop, the button acts after early and middle position players. By that time, you will know how the rest of the table feels about their hole cards, and you can play accordingly. If you have a strong hand, you can play along with action players or raise on the button to prompt action or folds from the blinds. If the players fold around to you, based on your cards and the table image of the players in the blinds, you can play against the blinds. All the while, you know that you will be the last to act after the flop, turn, and river, and your position is ideal. 

What Hands Should You Raise on the Button?

For starters, you should always raise the top hands in poker, like pocket aces, kings, or queens, when on the button, but all pairs actually qualify for a raise in this position. While you should use some caution if several players raise from early and middle positions, the general rule is to raise with any pocket pair. Further, you can consider playing suited connectors and hands that include a high card (an ace or a king) from the button. 

The most crucial factor to consider when raising on the button and deciding how much to raise is the actions of the players before you.

How Does the Button Compare to the Hijack or Cutoff?

The hijack position in poker is two spots before the button, and the cutoff position is just to the right of the button. Both are considered late positions and can directly impact the button’s action. The button may have great latitude in raising with a range of hands; a significant raise from the hijack or cutoff should prompt the button to reconsider. A premium hand is still in play and should usually prompt a reraise, but suited connectors and ace-high or king-high hands might do best to call or even fold, based on the raiser’s table image.

Get in Position at BetMGM

Now you know how to play on the button in poker, it’s time to put your poker button strategy and theory into practice. Register at BetMGM to play poker with real money, with dozens of cash tables and poker tournaments daily. And don’t forget to use the BetMGM online poker welcome bonus to make the most of your first deposit.

If you have the dealer button, you’re in the best position at the poker table. Learn how to take full advantage of such spots in this article.