Buy-in, rebuy, add-on: three words for putting money on the table. In a casino the rules are printed on the wall. In a home game they’re usually whatever the host remembers, which works fine until someone disagrees at 2 a.m. Here’s what each term means, the house rules worth settling before the first hand, and how to keep a record that holds up at the end of the night.
The buy-in
The buy-in is the money a player exchanges for chips when they sit down. In a cash game, chips are worth exactly what was paid for them: a $1 chip is a dollar, all night.
Most games set a minimum and a maximum, measured in big blinds. A common home-game range is 40 to 100 big blinds:
| Blinds | Minimum (40 big blinds) | Maximum (100 big blinds) |
|---|---|---|
| $0.25 / $0.50 | $20 | $50 |
| $0.50 / $1 | $40 | $100 |
| $1 / $2 | $80 | $200 |
| $2 / $5 | $200 | $500 |
Many friendly games simplify it to one fixed buy-in for everyone, which makes counting easier. See our guide to chip values and starting stacks for how to turn a buy-in into chips.
Rebuys and top-ups
A rebuy is buying more chips after the first buy-in, usually because you’ve lost some or all of them. In a cash game there’s no rebuy period like in a tournament: you can buy more chips whenever house rules allow, between hands.
Some groups separate a rebuy, after losing everything, from a top-up, buying a few chips to get back towards the maximum. The accounting is identical. Both add to what the player has put in, and both have to be counted when the night is settled.
One rule nearly every cash game shares: once chips are on the table, they stay there until you leave. Taking some off while still playing, sometimes called going south, isn’t allowed, because it lets a winner protect profits while still covering fewer bets.
Add-ons
In tournaments, an add-on is a single extra purchase of chips, usually offered when the rebuy period ends. Home cash games don’t need the distinction, but the word sticks around. If your group uses it, decide what it means, for example a fixed bonus purchase at a set time, and record it like any other buy-in.
House rules to agree first
Five minutes before the first hand saves an argument later. Agree on:
- The blinds, and whether they ever go up.
- The minimum and maximum buy-in, and whether the maximum applies to rebuys too.
- When rebuys are allowed: any time between hands, or only after losing everything.
- Whether players can buy in on credit, and if so, how much.
- A last time for rebuys, so the game can end on schedule.
- What happens when someone leaves early: they cash out their chips then.
- How you’ll settle up: cash at the table, transfers at the end, or both.
Recording each one
Most settle-up arguments start with an entry nobody wrote down. Record every buy-in, rebuy and add-on when it happens, with the player, the amount and the time, and let the player see it.
| Time | Entry | Amount | Put in so far |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7:30 PM | Buy-in | $100 | $100 |
| 9:15 PM | Rebuy | $100 | $200 |
| 10:40 PM | Top-up | $40 | $240 |
In Tally Poker the host logs each entry from the table, and it stays pending until the player approves it on their own phone, or the host confirms it. Rejected entries stay in the log, marked as canceled, so the history is complete. Guests without an account are handled by the host, and their entries are marked as host-confirmed.
At the end of the night, each player’s total put in is what you subtract from their cash-out to get their result. From there, settling up is arithmetic.
Settle your own tableEnter buy-ins and cash-outs and get the fewest payments, in any currency.
Open the calculatorQuestions
- What is the difference between a rebuy and an add-on?
- In tournaments, a rebuy is buying back in after losing chips during the rebuy period, and an add-on is a one-time extra purchase when that period ends. In cash games the words blur: both mean buying more chips, and many groups just call it a rebuy or a top-up.
- Can I rebuy in the middle of a hand?
- Not in most games. Buying more chips happens between hands, so you can only play the chips you had in front of you when the hand began.
- What is a good maximum buy-in for a home game?
- Many home games use 100 big blinds as the maximum, such as $100 at $0.50/$1 blinds or $200 at $1/$2, with a minimum around 40 to 50 big blinds.
- Should players be allowed to buy in on credit?
- That is a house decision. If you allow it, record the buy-in like any other and settle it at the end of the night, so it isn’t forgotten. Some groups cap how much any one player can owe.
Hosting soon? Start a game in Tally Poker and let each player approve their own buy-ins.
