This guide is based on official product information and verified third-party sources as of 18 October 2026. No hands-on testing was performed for this article.
What an equity calculator does
In poker, equity is the share of the pot a hand or range of hands expects to win on average. If your holding has 50% equity in a £100 pot, your mathematical share is £50. Equity calculators work out those percentages by comparing your cards against an opponent’s cards or — more usefully — against a range, the set of hands an opponent could plausibly hold in a situation.
Two adjacent concepts do the rest of the work. Pot odds are the price you are offered for a call: the current pot size against the cost of calling. Your equity compared with those odds answers whether the call is profitable. And board texture — how “dry” or “wet” the community cards are — determines how much a range has improved, which is exactly what the visual tools here show you.
Know the line to a solver while you are at it: an equity calculator answers “how often do I win this pot?”; a solver answers “how should I play this spot?”. The equity layer is the foundation, and for most players it should be built before any solver work. Our best poker solvers guide covers that layer.
The short answer
- Free, Windows, classic: Equilab
- Visual range-versus-board work: Flopzilla — free version, with a $25 lifetime upgrade
- Free, minimal, decades-old favourite: PokerStove
- Nothing to install, works on any device: the PokerNews Odds Calculator
The tools
Equilab
A long-standing staple of study routines, and completely free. Equilab (from PokerStrategy) is a classic hand-versus-hand and hand-versus-range equity calculator for Windows, with a heads-up focus — it is built for checking how a specific holding does against an assumed opponent range. There is no macOS or mobile version.
One clarification: Power-Equilab is a separate paid product (14-day trial) from the same publisher — it is not part of the free Equilab.
Flopzilla
The most visual tool in this category, from Eighty 3 — the same team behind GTO+. Enter a range and a board and Flopzilla shows how that range hits the texture: how many combos are top pair, middle pair, flush draws, gutshots and so on, with output as equity graphs, tables, “hotness” indicators and pie charts, plus a preflop statistics breakdown.
The defining feature is speed: there is no compute button. Change a card or a range component and the results update instantly, which makes rapid what-if experimentation possible. It handles heads-up and multiway equity for up to 14 players.
Pricing is the bargain of the poker software world: a free version is available to download, and the paid licence is $25 for life (taxes may apply), covering two computers you own, with all upgrades included — the purchase also covers FlopzillaPro and the original v1. Windows only.
PokerStove
The classic. Created by Andrew Prock and maintained via GitHub releases, PokerStove is a free, minimal Windows equity calculator: hand or range versus hand or range, preflop and postflop, no account, no licence, no frills. It runs on modest hardware and it has earned its reputation by doing one job correctly for years.
PokerNews Odds Calculator
The zero-install option: a free browser tool from PokerNews (a publication online since 2003) for Texas Hold’em win probabilities. Pick your cards, your opponent’s cards (or “unknown”), and any board cards; the percentages appear instantly, on any device. It is the fastest possible check — and the official PokerNews page itself notes that calculator rules vary by room, so treat this, like everything here, as off-table study.
Comparison table
| Tool | Type | Platform | Price (18 Oct 2026) | Multiway support | Standout strength |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Equilab | Hand/range equity | Windows | Free | No (heads-up focus) | The classic free equity check |
| Flopzilla | Range/board analysis | Windows | Free version; $25 lifetime | Yes (up to 14 players) | Instant visual range breakdowns |
| PokerStove | Hand/range equity | Windows | Free | No (heads-up) | Minimal, fast, free forever |
| PokerNews Odds | Win probabilities | Browser | Free | No (two-player) | No install, any device |
Which one to pick
- Free on Windows: start with Equilab; if you find yourself wanting to see why a range does what it does, go to Flopzilla’s free version.
- Browser or phone only: the PokerNews calculator is the whole answer — it is free and instant.
- Range and board-texture work: Flopzilla is the clear choice here, and the $25 lifetime licence removes the free version’s limits (multiway up to 14 players, full outputs).
- The cheapest paid upgrade in poker software: Flopzilla again — $25, two computers, all future updates.
There is no scenario where you need more than one of these to do equity work; pick by platform preference and visual style.
Where equity work fits in your study
Equity is the foundation layer, not the destination. A workable sequence:
- Check the number. Verify the actual equity of the spot instead of trusting the feeling.
- Understand the texture. See how the range in that spot interacts with the board — this is where Flopzilla earns its keep.
- Compare with the price. Pot odds against equity answers the call.
- Then move to strategy. Once the numbers are automatic, solver work (and drilling) is where the next level comes from.
Players who skip straight to solvers without the equity layer tend to treat solver output as magic; the calculator layer is what makes it legible.
FAQs
What is the difference between equity and pot odds? Equity is your chance to win the pot; pot odds are the price of the call against the pot. The comparison of the two is the call decision.
Do these work on a Mac? The desktop equity tools here are Windows-only; Mac players use the browser-based PokerNews calculator, or run Windows via Parallels/Bootcamp for Flopzilla or the others.
Can I use a calculator at the table? No — calculator use during a live hand is treated as Real-Time Assistance and is banned at major rooms; most live venues also ban devices at the table. These are off-table study tools, and room policies vary, so check yours.
Is Flopzilla worth the $25? For range work, yes — it is the cheapest paid tool in this entire guide, the licence is lifetime, and it covers two computers.
Does Equilab do multiway pots? It is built around heads-up comparisons; for multiway equity (up to 14 players), Flopzilla is the option in this guide.
How often should I check for updates? PokerStove ships via GitHub releases — check occasionally. Flopzilla’s paid licence includes all updates. The free tools here are stable, not fast-moving.