What poker costs: follow the money, not the headline rate

A fee ceiling changes the effective rate

Suppose the pot is 20, the rate is 5% and the fee ceiling is 0.50. The uncapped fee would be 1. The lower of 1 and 0.50 is charged: 0.50. Relative to the pot, that is 2.5%, not 5%.

For this example: fee = min(pot × rate / 100, ceiling). Read the actual rules before using that model: a ceiling may depend on the table or number of players, and additional charges may sit outside it. A headline percentage alone cannot tell you the total cost.

Equity cashout and withdrawal answer different questions

An equity cashout exchanges a share of an unresolved pot for a calculated payout. A withdrawal moves an account balance to an external payment destination. A cashout result does not establish that a withdrawal is available, fee-free or completed.

Here the commission applies to your equity share after rake, not to the entire pot. Use payout = (pot − rake) × equity / 100 × (1 − commission / 100). Equity is an input supplied by you; this tool does not calculate winning chances from cards. Equity is the expected share of the pot, including ties: a certain two-way tie gives 50% equity, not a 50% chance of winning outright. The equity input is a percentage; gross equity (grossEquity) is a monetary amount, pot × equity / 100 before costs.

Two equities, the same pot and commission rate

Assume a pot of 1,000, rake of 50 and a hypothetical 3% commission. Change only equity from 90% to 10%. No intermediate rounding is used.

The 90% case uses the four inputs from the operator's indexed help example; the 10% case is our constructed comparison. At 90% equity the steps are 950 → 855 → 25.65 → 829.35. At 10% they are 950 → 95 → 2.85 → 92.15. Charging 3% of the whole pot would instead be 30, a different calculation. Both 25.65/855 and 2.85/95 equal 3%: the denominators are the equity shares after rake, before commission. A smaller commission amount does not mean a lower rate.

The 90% case starts with gross equity of 900. Its difference from 829.35 is 70.65: 45 from the mathematical effect of rake (50 × 90%) plus 25.65 commission. The 10% case gives 100 − 92.15 = 7.85: 5 plus 2.85. Both 70.65/900 and 7.85/100 equal 7.85%: the denominators are gross equity amounts before rake and commission, so these ratios measure the combined reduction relative to that amount.

That mathematical rake share is not an operator's rakeback attribution. The payout is not profit after your stakes. Without your contributions and full account ledger, neither example measures your financial result.

Net cost is not profit; a bonus promise is not cash

Constructed example, using the same dates and currency throughout: fees attributed to you 100 + cashout commission 12 + other charges 8 − cash actually credited 15 = net cost 105. Fees before credits were 120. The 105 remains a cost, not a gain or a measure of poker winnings. If 100 is merely the total rake from pots, personal fees cannot be inferred by dividing by player count or multiplying by equity. Without a personal fee record, net personal cost is indeterminate.

A promised conditional bonus of 500 is not subtracted: record it separately, like points or an advertised maximum, until actual cash is credited. Never subtract the whole offer from fees. Even a cash credit does not prove that the balance is withdrawable; restrictions and any withdrawal or conversion charges need separate evidence. Avoid counting the same charge twice.