Stud poker is a classic Americana trope that’s prominent in film and television programming featuring poker. It’s also enjoying something of a comeback, thanks to new poker players wanting a challenge. Today, stud poker is included in nearly every mixed game setup, whether in tournaments or cash games.

Poker players recognize that games like Five-Card Stud and Seven-Card Stud are played as peer-to-peer formats, meaning there’s no house or casino edge. Players compete against each other and pay only rake to the house. However, stud-style games are also frequently seen in casinos as table games, such as Caribbean Stud Poker and Mississippi Stud Poker. While these mimic the gameplay of the best stud poker games, they incorporate a house edge through dealer participation and bonus bet features.

Keep reading for a breakdown of the most popular stud poker variants and the distinctions between them.

What Is Stud Poker?

The term “stud poker” refers to a number of poker variants in which players receive a number of face-down cards (hole cards) and face-up cards over multiple betting rounds. When comparing stud poker vs Hold’em, the most important difference is that there are no community cards. Players have to go on their own hands and their opponents’ up cards.

Five-Card Stud Poker: The Original Stud Game

Few poker games are more traditional than Five-Card Stud. It rose to widespread popularity during the American Civil War and has made a comeback in recent years due to the increasing popularity of mixed poker games and variations beyond Omaha and Hold’em.

It’s easy to learn how to play Five-Card Stud poker. Players start with a 52-card deck. The dealer gives each participant one face-down card and one face-up card. A bring-in bet typically starts the first betting round, followed by additional face-up cards and betting rounds, until a fourth, final card is dealt. If a showdown takes place, the best five-card hand wins.

With its straightforward mechanics yet strategic depth, Five-Card Stud is one of the best poker game variations for beginners to get started with.

Seven-Card Stud Poker: The Most Popular Stud Variant

Seven-Card Stud has a rich history and serves as a strategic alternative to Five-Card Stud. Although it also uses a 52-card deck, this version includes more betting rounds and a mix of hidden and visible cards, making gameplay more complex. Unlike Five-Card Stud, it also features in many poker tournaments.

Learning how to play 7-card stud doesn’t take long. Players start with two face-down cards and one face-up card. The following three rounds each bring another face-up card, and the seventh card is dealt face-down. After the fifth and final betting round, the best five-card hand left in the showdown wins.

With each player holding seven cards and four up cards per player in view, it should be obvious how 7-Card Stud is different from Texas Hold’em. In stud, players have much more information at their disposal, but they can only play their own hand.

Razz Poker: The Lowball Stud Variant

Razz is effectively a lowball variation of Stud. Common in mixed games and even as a stand-alone game, it plays for the lowest hand, the opposite of most poker games. Razz, as a stud variant, is a seven-card game, similar to Seven-Card Stud, with a bring-in bet and several betting rounds. To make the best five-card hand, the player counts from the ace, which ranks as the lowest card, upward. For example, the best hand is A-2-3-4-5. Straights and flushes don’t count.

Razz is a great addition to your repertoire if you’re looking for a departure from popular poker variations and want to challenge your strategic thinking from a different perspective.

Caribbean Stud Poker: A Casino Favorite

Many casinos offer Caribbean Stud Poker as a table game. This means it’s not located in the poker room and isn’t a peer-to-peer game. Players compete against the house, which means the house has an advantage. This edge increases when players use options like bonus bets. These usually offer a chance at a jackpot, but the odds favor the house.

What’s the difference between Caribbean Stud compared to Five Card Stud? Both are played with a traditional deck of cards, and each player receives five cards. The difference is that in Caribbean Stud Poker, each player competes solely against the dealer. The players’ five cards are face down, and the dealer has four face-down cards with just one face-up card. Players can then fold and lose the ante or bet, in hopes their hand is stronger than the dealer’s hand.

In Caribbean Stud, there’s only one round of betting after receiving cards. This means it’s easier to learn how to play Caribbean Stud Poker than Five-Card Stud, but there’s only one shot at using any strategy, based on the dealer’s single face-up card. Strategy for Five-Card Stud, however, is multi-faceted, based on several betting rounds and the face-up cards of all opponents.

Mississippi Stud Poker: An Exciting Variant

Like Caribbean Stud, Mississippi Stud Poker is a house-banked table game, not played in traditional poker rooms. Bonus bets and jackpots often feature prominently, and players face off against the dealer, not one another.

To understand how to play Mississippi Stud Poker, each player starts with two face-down cards and three community cards placed face-down on the table. Players bet or fold based solely on their own cards. As each community card is revealed, players face further betting opportunities. After all the community cards have been revealed, players are paid out depending on the value of their hands. Payouts start with a pair of jacks or better, with pairs of 6-10 resulting in a push. Anything lower than a pair of sixes results in a loss.

More Stud Poker Variations to Explore

With so many betting rounds and the mix of face-up and face-down cards, stud presents numerous opportunities for poker players to get creative. Players searching for poker variations beyond Texas Hold’em and Omaha will be glad to know there are more stud games to explore.

Stud Hi-Lo Variations

One of the new and lesser-known poker variations that players are rediscovering these days is Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo.

Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo

Also known as Stud Eight or Stud Eight or Better, this split pot game is effectively a blend of Seven Card Stud and Razz. Rounds play out the same as in Seven Card Stud, but the pot is divided into a low and a high pot. The strongest high hand wins the high pot, same as in Stud, but it’s the strongest low hand that wins the low pot. Low hand rankings are the same as for Razz, with aces low and flushes and straights discounted.

Mexican Stud

One of the most interesting poker variants to explore is Mexican Stud. This fun variation of Five-Card Stud is played with a stripped 41-card deck with all 8, 9, and 10 cards removed. For added volatility, there’s also a Joker in the mix. Gameplay follows standard Five-Card Stud rules, except that you can also play five of a kind (with a Joker), and a flush ranks higher than a full house.

Follow the Queen

Those who enjoy a wild card game will appreciate Follow the Queen. Standard Seven Card Stud rules apply, but Queens are always wild if a Queen is dealt face up. On top of that, anytime a Queen is dealt face up, the next card to be dealt face up is also wild.

Any time another Queen after that is dealt face up, the next card dealt face up replaces the previous card as the wild card. If a Queen is the last card to be dealt face up, Queens are the only wild cards.

Mixed Games Featuring Stud Variants e.g. H.O.R.S.E

Players looking for a chance to practice different variants of mixed poker games should consider taking part in H.O.R.S.E tournaments. This is a mixed game format incorporating five different poker variants: Limit Texas Hold’em (a Texas Hold’em poker game variation with a cap on maximum bets), Omaha Hi/Lo, Razz, Seven-Card Stud, and Seven-Card Stud Hi/Lo.

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