So, total card in Texas hold ’em—how many is it?

The short answer: 2 + 5 (plus burn cards)

In a standard hand of Texas Hold’em:

• Each player is dealt 2 private cards (hole cards).

• The table gets 5 community cards (the board): flop (3) + turn (1) + river (1).

That means each player uses up to 7 available cards to make a final hand (2 in hand + 5 on board), but the final hand is always the best 5-card hand you can form.

This is why learning Texas hold ’em poker hands is really about learning how to pick the best five cards from those seven.

What the dealer deals: the full dealing sequence

Hold’em deals community cards in stages, and between stages the dealer places “burn cards” (cards discarded face down) to reduce the chance of marked cards or accidental exposure affecting play.

A standard dealing pattern looks like this:

1. Deal 2 hole cards to each player (one at a time around the table, twice).

2. Burn 1 card.

3. Deal the flop (3 community cards).

4. Burn 1 card.

5. Deal the turn (1 community card).

6. Burn 1 card.

7. Deal the river (1 community card).

So beyond the hole cards and the 5 community cards, there are typically 3 burn cards used in a complete hand.

How many cards are used in total?

This depends on how many players are at the table.

Let’s calculate it:

• Hole cards: 2 × number of players

• Community cards: 5

• Burn cards: 3

So total cards used in a hand = (2 × players) + 5 + 3 = (2 × players) + 8

Examples:

• 2 players (heads-up): (2×2) + 8 = 12 cards

• 6 players: (2×6) + 8 = 20 cards

• 9 players: (2×9) + 8 = 26 cards

That’s still far from 52, which is why multiple hands can be played without worrying about “running out of cards.”

Why the number matters for hand probability

Knowing the structure helps you understand why some situations happen often:

• With 5 community cards, everyone shares the same board texture. That’s why multiple players can chase the same flush or straight.

• With only 2 hole cards, you can’t “force” a hand—you’re adapting to the board.

• Because each player chooses the best 5 cards, your hole cards sometimes don’t matter (you “play the board”), and that can lead to split pots.

This is also why position and betting matter so much: you’re making decisions with partial information, and the shared board creates shared danger.

How Texas hold ’em poker hands are formed (in practice)

At showdown, you don’t show “seven cards.” You show the best five-card hand you can build.

Examples:

• Board: A♠ K♠ Q♠ J♠ 9♠
  Your cards: 2♦ 2♣
  Your best hand is A-high flush from the board. Your pocket twos are irrelevant.

• Board: 10♥ 10♣ 7♦ 4♠ 2♥
  Your cards: 10♠ A♦
  Your best hand is three of a kind (tens) with A kicker, using one hole card.

This is why it helps to train yourself to ask: “What is my best five?” not “What do I have in my hand?”

A small beginner insight that saves embarrassment

Many new players think they must use both hole cards. You don’t. You can use:

• both hole cards

• one hole card

• or none

Once you internalize that, you stop making the classic mistake of “forcing” your hand into the board and missing a stronger combination that’s already available.

The total card in Texas hold ’em is easy once you see the pattern: 2 hole cards per player, 5 community cards, and typically 3 burn cards—a total of (2 × players) + 8 cards used in a complete hand. And because Texas hold ’em poker hands are always the best five-card combination you can make from your available seven, the real skill is learning to read the board, not falling in love with the two cards you started with