Flop, Turn, and River in Poker Explained
The flop, turn, and river are the community cards dealt after the preflop round. Here's what each street means, when it comes, and a worked hand.
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The flop, turn, and river are the community cards dealt in Texas Hold’em after the first betting round. The flop is the first three cards, the turn is the fourth, and the river is the fifth and final card. Every player shares these cards, combining them with their two hole cards to build the best five-card hand.
The four betting streets
A Hold’em hand unfolds across four rounds, called “streets.” Only three of them involve community cards; the first is dealt before any shared cards appear.
| Street | Cards on the table | What’s new |
|---|---|---|
| Preflop | None | Your two hole cards only |
| Flop | 3 | Three community cards at once |
| Turn | 4 | One more card (also called Fourth Street) |
| River | 5 | The final card (also called Fifth Street) |
After the river betting round, any remaining players reveal their hands at showdown, and the best five-card combination wins the pot. If everyone but one player folds before then, the hand ends without a showdown.
What each card means for your hand
The flop is the biggest information jump in the hand. You go from two cards to seeing five-sevenths of your final hand at once. This is where most hands are effectively decided — you either connect with the board, pick up a draw, or miss entirely.
The turn narrows things. Draws that were live on the flop now have just one card left to hit, so their odds roughly halve. Bets tend to get bigger here because the pot has grown and there’s less room to catch up.
The river removes all uncertainty. There are no more cards to come, so your hand is now exactly what it is. Betting on the river is pure value or pure bluff — nobody is drawing anymore.
Where the terms come from
“Flop” describes the sound and motion of three cards being turned over together — they flop onto the felt. “Turn” refers to turning up the fourth card. The “river” has a murkier history, with the popular tale involving riverboat card sharps caught dealing off the bottom, though the true origin is disputed. In practice you’ll also hear the turn called Fourth Street and the river called Fifth Street.
Worked example: reading one hand across the streets
You hold 9♠ 8♠ from the button and call a raise.
- Flop: 10♠ 7♥ 2♣. You’ve flopped an open-ended straight draw — any 6 or J completes your straight. Nothing yet, but plenty of potential. You call a bet.
- Turn: J♦. You just made a straight (7-8-9-10-J). What looked like a speculative call now hides a strong made hand. You raise.
- River: 2♠. The board pairs the deuce, but it doesn’t help your opponent’s likely top pair beat your straight. You bet for value and get called.
The same two cards were worthless on the flop, a monster on the turn, and a payday on the river. That progression — draw, made hand, value bet — is the rhythm of the three streets.
Related terms
- Community cards — the umbrella term for the flop, turn, and river; the shared cards all players use.
- Board — the full set of community cards currently on the table.
- Run-out — the specific turn and river cards that come after the flop (“the board ran out low”).
- Showdown — revealing hands after the river to determine the winner.
Common misuse
- Calling any community card “the flop.” Only the first three cards are the flop. The single card on street four is the turn, not “the second flop.”
- Confusing turn and river order. The turn always comes before the river. If you’re unsure, remember the river is always the last card dealt.
- Assuming every game has them. Stud and draw variants don’t use a shared flop, turn, or river. These terms belong to community-card games like Texas Hold’em and Omaha.
- Thinking the river gives someone a new draw. It can’t — the river is the final card, so there’s nothing left to draw to. Any drawing decision happens on the flop or turn.
Keep going
The flop, turn, and river are the skeleton every Hold’em hand hangs on — learn to read how your hand changes across them and you’ll make sharper decisions on every street. See how draws develop over these cards in the drawing hands guide, get the equity math in the odds and math hub, and keep building your vocabulary in the poker terms glossary.
Frequently asked
What are the flop, turn, and river in poker?
They're the community cards in Texas Hold'em. The flop is the first three cards dealt face up, the turn is the fourth card, and the river is the fifth and final card. All players share them to make their best five-card hand.
What is the difference between the turn and the river?
The turn is the fourth community card and the river is the fifth. There's a betting round after each. The river is the last card, so once it's dealt no more cards come and the hand goes to showdown if two or more players remain.
Why is it called the river?
The most popular story is that cheaters caught dealing an extra card off the bottom of the deck were thrown 'down the river,' but the origin is disputed. What matters at the table is that the river is simply the final card dealt.
Do the flop, turn, and river exist in every poker game?
No. They're part of community-card games like Texas Hold'em and Omaha. Draw and stud games deal cards differently and have no shared flop, turn, or river.