A rake in poker is the amount of money taken by the poker room or the game organizer from each pot (in cash games) or at the start of the tournament. For tournaments, the rake is often referred to as a tournament fee.
Rake in cash games is calculated as a percentage of the pot. So, if you’re playing in a game with a 5% take, the house will take 5% out of every pot and keep it for the services provided.
For example, if you win a $200 pot in this scenario, $10 will be taken out, and the remaining $190 will be yours.
The good news is that in most Texas Hold’em games, the rake is capped at a certain monetary amount. So, the game may have a 5% rake with a $10 max, so if you win a huge $2,000 pot in this game, you’ll still only have to pay $10 in rake and not $100.
