Preflop cooler

What Are the Odds of Pocket Aces vs Pocket Kings?

1 in 263.90%

At a 9-handed table, when you look down at pocket aces the chance at least one opponent also has kings is about 3.90% — roughly 1 in 26. The often-repeated "1 in 250" is a myth; the real number is close to ten times higher.

The odds

Measured asProbabilityOddsPer 100 hands
You hold aces, someone at a 9-handed table has kingsheadline3.90%1 in 263.9
You hold aces, someone at a 6-max table has kings2.46%1 in 412.5
Aces and kings both dealt at a 9-handed table, per deal0.158%1 in 6330.16
Aces and kings both dealt at a 6-max table, per deal0.067%1 in 1,4850.07
You hold aces, one specific opponent has kings0.490%1 in 204
Two named players dealt exactly aces vs kings0.0044%1 in 22,560

What we measured

Aces versus kings is the classic preflop cooler. There are three different questions people mean, so we compute all of them: (1) you hold aces and at least one opponent holds kings; (2) two specific named players are dealt exactly this matchup; (3) aces and kings are both dealt somewhere at the table. Figures (1) and (3) depend on how many players are dealt in.

How it was calculated

Monte Carlo for the table and conditional figures. Exact combinatorics for the two-named-players and single-opponent figures.

Computed 2026-07-12 using app/lib/poker-eval.js — the same 7-card evaluator behind /tools/odds-calculator. Want to test a specific matchup? Run it through the odds & equity calculator.

Share this

At a 9-handed table, when you look down at pocket aces the chance at least one opponent also has kings is about 3.90% — roughly 1 in 26. The often-repeated "1 in 250" is a myth; the real number is close to ten times higher.

https://pokerpro.tools/odds/aces-vs-kings

Drop it in your poker chat, home-game thread, or the next bad-beat argument.

Frequently asked questions

What are the odds of aces against kings?+

If you hold pocket aces at a 9-handed table, the chance at least one opponent holds kings is about 3.90% (1 in 26). Against a single specific opponent it is 0.49% (1 in 204).

Is aces vs kings really 1 in 250?+

No — that is a persistent myth. With eight opponents each having a 0.49% chance of holding kings, the combined chance is about 3.90%, or 1 in 26. Every number on this page is computed, not repeated from folklore.

How rare is aces vs kings heads-up?+

For two specific players to be dealt exactly aces versus kings on a given hand is about 0.0044% — 1 in 22,560.

Related coolers

Take it further