There are many kinds of poker games out there, and the main difference between them is how many cards each player receives when playing. If you have no experience with this version, you might now be wondering how many cards are dealt in Texas holdem.
The answer is rather straightforward: each player gets two cards. This is different compared to Omaha, where players get four down cards. In draw poker, for example, each player gets five cards.
What matters in Texas hold 'em is that the two cards need to be combined with the community cards which are placed on the table. There are a total of five community cards, with the first three being revealed after the initial betting round (the flop). After the flop, there is another betting round, in addition to betting rounds after the fourth and fifth cards' reveal.
Once all five community cards are facing up, each player needs to make a five-card hand out of the seven available cards (two hole cards + five community cards). These rules also apply to online poker, meaning players who play Texas hold ’em on the web also receive two down cards and get to combine them with the community cards.
Texas hold ’em actually uses just one deck with no jokers. The same deck is shuffled by the dealer after every round. The game's rules are such that they don’t allow using more than a single deck per round, unlike blackjack, where several decks of cards can be used at once.
The point of every type of poker is to show your cards in the end and compare them with other players who remained in the game to determine the winner. However, before that, you don’t actually have to show your hole cards while you’re in the game — they need to be available only to you.
If you’re unsure when to show cards, it’s best to start with live poker online as some things are automated in online poker games, which will help you better understand which cards are shown and when.
Poker is always exciting, no matter whether you play it online or in land-based poker rooms, and the most exciting variation is Texas hold ’em, which allows you to combine your two cards with the remaining five on the table.
Therefore, the final answer to how many cards are dealt in Texas hold ‘em is two. However, that number is different if you want to play other popular forms of poker, including draw poker or even Omaha, which is technically very similar to Texas hold ‘em.