Caribbean Stud Poker is a 5-card poker game played with a single deck of 52 cards, where you play against the Dealer. You place an Ante (initial bet), receive a hand, and decide whether you would like to bet against the Dealer’s hand. Caribbean Stud Poker Rules are crucial when trying to understand how the table game works. The poker variation is similar to playing a five-card poker with a few interesting differences. Before you sit at a Caribbean table and place your ante ensure that you understand the Caribbean rules and are confident of what is happening at the table.

Caribbean Poker or Caribbean Stud Poker is not a true poker game since the dealer and the player are pitted against each other, rather than players playing against each other. The descriptor “Stud,” which is commonly used when referring to the game, is also misleading. Basic Rules of Caribbean Hold’em Poker Ante Bet: A new hand of Caribbean Hold’em Poker begins with an ante wager. Place this in the circle marked “Ante”. Progressive Side Bet: The player also decides to make the progressive side bet or not. This is a blind bet, with no. The Deal: The player. Basic Rules of Caribbean Hold’em Poker Ante Bet: A new hand of Caribbean Hold’em Poker begins with an ante wager. Place this in the circle marked “Ante”. Progressive Side Bet: The player also decides to make the progressive side bet or not. This is a blind bet, with no. The Deal: The player.

Caribbean Stud Poker is a great casino game where you play against the bank, but there are multiple players at the table. It is simple to learn, but it is still important to know the game rules. The hand values are especially important, so that you know when you’re holding something valuable in your hands. Read our explanation of the rules and increase your chances of winning and knowledge!

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After you’ve fully familiarized yourself with the rules of Caribbean Stud Poker, you’re ready to play the game online. Of course, you can play the game for free, or for real money if you’re feel ready. New players receive a 100% welcome bonus at Royal Panda. This can also be used with Caribbean Stud Poker!

Play Caribbean Stud Poker at Royal Panda

The aim of Caribbean Stud Poker

The aim of Caribbean Stud Poker is to create the highest combinations possible with your cards. The higher the combination, the higher the payout. You play against the bank, and before you play you place a bet called the ante. The ante can differ from game to game, or casino to casino, but is always predetermined.

Betting options

Before the game can begin, each player has to have placed an ante. This is the term for the first bet. At this point you must also decide whether you’ll bet on the jackpot. Once you’ve been dealt your cards it’s possible to place one more bet to remain in the game. This is called the raise, or call bet. Often this is double the ante.

The following rounds

There are various rounds in Caribbean Stud Poker. The order of these rounds is as per follows:

Placing the ante
First, all players must place an ante bet. You can also place a separate bet if you wish to play for the jackpot. After the ante bets have been placed, all the players and the dealer receive five cards each. In the case of the dealer, four cards are hidden and one is open.

Carry on or fold
This is the moment when you decide whether to carry on or fold(quit). If you choose to fold, you’ll lose your ante and jackpot bets. If you choose to carry on, you must double your bet.

Seeing the hand
Should any of the players choose to carry on, the dealer will look at his or her own cards. If the dealer doesn’t have at least an ace and a king, you’ll win your ante back and receive the same value on top of that. Should the dealer have an ace and a king, the hands are compared. The winner is determined by the value of the cards in their hand.

Winner
The player with the highest hand wins their call bet back. Should the player and the dealer have hands of identical value, the player receives their bet back. Whenever you have a better hand than the dealer, the payout you receive is as described in the table below.

What profit do you hold in your hand?

Although the game is more based on luck than judgment, there are different Caribbean Stud Poker strategies that can increase your chances of winning. And whenever you make a good call, you’ll enjoy a nice payout. Payouts occur on the basis of poker hand rankings, as is explained in the table below. The payout depends on the rank.

Hand	Hand	Call-bet payout
One pair	2 cards of equal value	1:1
Two pairs	2×2 cards of equal value	2:1
Three of a kind	3 cards of equal value	3:1
Straight	Sequence of 5 cards of differing suits	4:1
Flush	5 cards of from the same suit	5:1
Full house	Combination of one pair and a three of a kind	7:1
Four of a kind	4 cards of equal value	20:1
Straight Flush	Sequence of five cards of the same suit.	50:1
Royal Flush	The five highest cards of any suit.	200:1

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The actual rules of Caribbean Stud poker are simple. The dealer at the table will deal out 5 cards, face down, to each player at the table that has placed the initial bet (ante) on the table.
The dealer will then deal a 5-card hand face down to themselves with one major difference:

• They will flip one card (typically the last) over to display face up

Once that card is flipped up you can look at your own 5-card hand and decide if you’d like to place an extra bet (generally 2x the ante bet) on top of your ante bet.
If you decide to fold, you will lose your ante bet and will have to wait until the next hand is dealt to play again. You can continue on in the hand only by making the additional bet.
Caribbean Stud Poker - When Does the Dealer Qualify?
Once every player at the table has decided either paid the extra bet or folded, the dealer will then look at the full hand in front of them.
To “open” their hand the dealer MUST have at least:

• Ace-King or higher

The lowest possible qualifying dealer hand would be A-K-4-3-2.
If the dealer can’t “open” their hand and you have made the additional bet you will get your original ante paid out 1-1. Your extra bet is a push and returned to you.
If the dealer can open their hand, you have made the additional bet and your hand is higher than the dealer’s hand you will be paid out:

• Ante bet paid out 1-1
• Additional bet paid out according to a chart at each table with a sliding scale for higher hands

Generally you can expect to be paid out 1-1 for a pair and up to 100x for a Royal Flush. See an example table below:

• Royal Flush pays 100 to 1
• Straight Flush pays 50 to 1
• Four of a Kind pays 20 to 1
• Full House pays 7 to 1
• Flush pays 5 to 1
• Straight pays 4 to 1
• Three of a Kind pays 3 to 1
• 2 Pair pays 2 to 1
• 1 Pair or less pays 1 to 1 (even money)

The payout table will vary slightly depending upon which individual Caribbean Stud poker table and casino (live or online) you play at. Be sure to check the table payouts before placing any additional bets.
If the dealer’s hand is higher than your hand, you will lose both the ante bet and your additional bets.
Remember: Each player is ONLY playing against the dealer alone, not the other players. Even if your 5-card hand is higher than another player’s you will still lose your bets if the dealer’s hand is higher than yours.
If your hand and the dealer’s are exactly the same all bets are a push and returned to the player.
Note: You will find that the dealer’s hand will qualify and be “opened” roughly 56% of the time.
Caribbean Stud Betting Limits
At a live casino, the smallest ante bet you’ll find at a Caribbean Stud poker table is likely $5 but there’s a chance you can stumble across a $3 table every now and then.
With online Caribbean Stud Poker you will find much lower limits – with the ante even capped at $2.50 in some cases.
Caribbean Stud Progressive Bet
There is also usually an additional optional wager you can place to qualify for the progressive jackpot. This supplemental bet has to be placed before the dealer announces bets are closed.
If your 5-card hand is a:

• Royal Flush
• Straight Flush
• 4-of-a-Kind
• Full House
• Flush

you will win the bet, regardless of whether you beat the dealer’s hand or not. You will be paid out according to a sliding scale, however, with a Royal Flush claiming 100% of the progressive jackpot and a Flush, for example, paying out a much smaller percentage (usually 10%).
The progressive jackpot will be different at every table depending, obviously, on when it has last been paid out and how much has been contributed since. The current amount of the progressive jackpot should be clearly displayed at each Caribbean Stud poker table.
The standard progressive bet on most live Caribbean Stud poker tables is $1 but again can be much lower online.
Additional Caribbean Stud Poker Bets
5+1 Bonus Bet
On some online casinos (eg. Evolution Gaming) an optional side can be made. This is called the 5+1 bonus bet and pays if the player can make three-of-a-kind or better on any 5-card hand combining their own 5 cards plus the dealer’s exposed card.
Progressively higher hands are paid out on an escalating scale with a Royal Flush paying out up to 1,000x the bet.
How to Determine a Winning Caribbean Stud Hand
The best 5-card hand in Caribbean Stud poker is the same as the best high hand according to the standard hand ranking chart for Texas Hold’em and Omaha. If you need a refresher, hands ranked from best to worst:

• Royal Flush
• Straight Flush
• Four-of-a-Kind
• Full House
• Flush
• Straight
• Three-of-a-Kind
• Two Pair
• Pair
• High Card

As in usual poker high-hand games, Aces can complete a straight at the high (A-K-Q-J-T or low (A-2-3-4-5) end.

Caribbean Stud Poker Rules

Caribbean Stud Poker Online Live Dealer
If you’d like to play Caribbean Stud poker online you can usually opt between a completely automated online Caribbean Stud Poker table or one with a live dealer.
A live dealer online Caribbean Stud poker table will operate very much like a live one with the dealer viewable via a live streaming camera set up by the table. The online player will commit to and transfer all bets online but can interact with the dealer via chat box.
Caribbean Stud Poker Online – Basic Strategy Tips
By learning how to play optimal Caribbean Stud poker strategy you can decrease the house edge from about 5% down to less than 1%, so it’s definitely worth your while to learn the basics.
Caribbean Stud Poker Strategy Tip #1 – Don’t Play the Progressive Bet
The first, and most important, is to avoid playing the progressive jackpot bet. Like most progressive jackpots, it looks really good. You’ve also got five different hands you can hit to get a share of it.
The truth, though, is your odds of making one of those 5-card hands in one deal are very, very low. So low, of course, that you will never make even money by playing the progressive jackpot bet.
The actual house edge in most cases with the progressive jackpot bet is 26%, which shows you how unfavorable it is.
By all means, of course, play the progressive jackpot bet if you’re just out to have a good time and like a little thrill to your gamble. But long term, it’s not a winner.
Caribbean Stud Poker Tip #2 – Always Raise with Pair or Better
By “raise” here we mean pay the additional bet after the hands are dealt. In this case, if you are dealt any pair (yes, this includes 22) you should ALWAYS pay the extra bet to face the dealer’s hand.
Caribbean Stud Poker Tip #3 – Always Fold Any Hand with Less Than AK
If you’re five-card hand has an Ace and a King or higher, play on. If you don’t have at least and Ace and a King, fold it. Every time.
Caribbean Stud Poker Tip #4 – If You Have AK, Bet if Up Card is Queen or Lower

Caribbean Stud Poker Rules Strategy

More sophisticated Caribbean Stud poker strategy is required if you are dealt Ace-King.

Caribbean Stud Rules

If you’re holding AK and the dealer’s up card is a queen or lower (and matches one of your cards – meaning it is less likely the dealer has a pair with that card), always bet.

Caribbean Poker Rules

If the dealer’s up card is an Ace or a King, but you have a Queen or a Jack as well, you should also play the extra bet.