55 vs 54s
Pair against one overcard — roughly 70/30 in the pair's favour.
- 55 Win
- 78.5%
- Tie
- 5.2%
- 55 Lose
- 16.3%
- Card combinations
- 12
- 55 vs random
- 60.3% · #27
- 54s vs random
- 41.4% · #138
Win, tie and loss for 55
When 55 and 54s get all in before the flop, 55 wins 81.1% of the time and 54s takes 18.9%. Broken down, 55 wins outright 78.5%, chops 5.2% and loses 16.3% — a margin of 62.2 points. Pair against one overcard — roughly 70/30 in the pair's favour.
The same matchup shifts depending on how the suits overlap. With no shared suit the number is 81.1% (for example 5s 5h against 5d 4d); with no shared suit it is 81.1% (5s 5h against 5d 4d). That is a spread of 0 points across the 12 distinct card combinations, and it comes almost entirely from whether the two hands are fighting over the same flush.
Add a third player holding a random hand and the split becomes 55 45.4%, 54s 16.5%, random 38.1%. 55 gives up 35.8 points and 54s gives up 2.4, so the favourite loses more than the underdog does. Extra players always eat into the leader's share faster than into anyone else's.
Taken on their own, 55 is worth 60.3% against a random hand (rank 27 of 169) and 54s is worth 41.4% (rank 138). The gap between them in the ranking is only 18.9 points, yet head to head the gap is 62.2 points — a reminder that a ranking table and a direct matchup are two different questions.
Framed as a run of one hundred identical all-ins, 55 scoops roughly 79 pots, splits about 5, and loses the remaining 16. Against eight random opponents rather than this one specific hand, 55 would be down to 13.2% and 54s to 12.6%, so the shape of this particular confrontation matters far more than either hand's standing in the overall ranking.
From 54s's side, 18.9% is the break-even point for calling an all-in at 4.29:1 pot odds. Put another way, the call is profitable as long as the amount you have to put in is less than 18.9% of the pot you are playing for. 55 holds the other 81.1% of that same pot.
Two caveats keep this figure honest. First, it is showdown equity across all 12 card combinations with five board cards still to come — there is no fold equity in it, so the value of shoving in practice is usually higher than the raw percentage suggests. Second, it assumes 54s really does hold exactly 54s; against the wider range a player would actually get all in with, 55's 81.1% moves. Use the individual pages for 55 and 54s to see how each of them fares against all 168 other holdings before treating this single pairing as the whole picture.
Overlapping suits move the number
200,000 simulated showdowns per condition. The example column shows one concrete four-card layout.
| Condition | Example | Combos | 55 Equity | Win | Tie | Lose |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No shared suit | 5s 5h vs 5d 4d | 12 | 81.1% | 78.5% | 5.2% | 16.3% |
Who leads on each street, and how often it flips
Exact counts from the 48 unseen cards: all 17,296 flops × 990 turn-and-river pairs, and all 194,580 four-card turns × 44 rivers, for every suit combination — no simulation.
When the three flop cards are out, 55 is ahead 96.8% of the time and 54s 3.18%, and the two hands are never level on the flop. "Ahead" means the better best-five-card hand from the cards showing plus the two hole cards; draws are not counted.
When 55 leads on the flop, 54s comes back on the turn and river 14.0% of the time. When 54s leads on the flop, 55 turns it around 3.93% of the time. The hand in front holds on to win 81.1% of the time from the flop and 87.5% from the turn (level spots left out).
With the turn out, 55 leads 89.8% and 54s 8.96%. Counted exhaustively, 55 finishes with 81.06% equity (the 81.1% at the top of the page is a 200,000-hand simulation).
| After the flop | How often | 55 wins | Tie | 54s wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 55 ahead | 96.8% | 80.9% | 5.12% | 14.0% |
| Level (same hand) | 0% | Never happens | ||
| 54s ahead | 3.18% | 3.93% | 8.02% | 88.1% |
| After the turn | How often | 55 wins | Tie | 54s wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 55 ahead | 89.8% | 87.0% | 4.11% | 8.89% |
| Level (same hand) | 1.20% | 2.25% | 93.0% | 4.79% |
| 54s ahead | 8.96% | 3.03% | 4.56% | 92.4% |
"Ahead" compares the best five-card hands available at that point (draws are not counted). "Flips" is the share of leads that end in a loss, with level spots left out.
Adding a random third hand
200,000 simulated showdowns, with the third hand dealt at random each time.
At a bigger table
| Random opponents | 55 | 54s |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 60.3% | 41.4% |
| 2 | 40.1% | 28.9% |
| 4 | 22.6% | 19.0% |
| 8 | 13.2% | 12.6% |
Related
FAQ
55 or 54s — which is ahead preflop?
55 is the favourite. 55 takes 81.1% and 54s 18.9%, a margin of 62.2 points, with 5.2% of hands ending in a chop.
Do the suits change 55 vs 54s?
Yes. With no shared suit it is 81.1%, and with no shared suit it is 81.1% — a swing of up to 0 points.
What happens three-way?
With one extra random hand in the pot the split is 55 45.4%, 54s 16.5%, random 38.1%. 55 drops 35.8 points compared with heads-up.
How often does the flop leader lose in 55 vs 54s?
The hand ahead on the flop goes on to lose 13.7% of the time (level spots left out). When 55 leads, 54s comes back 14.0%. When 54s leads, 55 comes back 3.93%. Exact counts over every flop, turn and river.
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