Moving up in stakes: When is the right time?

[thedarkman]

I play only very small stakes and only on-line. I haven't played live for well over a decade.

Moving up is a difficult question. If we're talking about tournaments, Jonathan Little said you should have at least 100 buy-ins at any stake. I can't disagree with that. With no limit hold 'em or no limit anything even very good players can go dozens of tournaments without cashing.

With regard to cash games, they are best avoided unless you are playing purely for fun or have so much money it doesn't matter how much you lose, in which case, why play/

 

[R.Melnyk77]

I only raise bets when my bankroll is big enough to do so. Otherwise, I play at the stakes I always play at or at the stakes my bankroll allows me to play at. For me, the bankroll is equal to the size of my bets as a percentage. Usually 5% of my bankroll is my limit for the day.

 

[888NOX888]

Probably, not only your bankroll is important for raising rates, it is important that you are mentally and technically ready to reach a new level.

 

[x patrice x]

One factor is clearly your own assets.
Playing beyond your means is not possible at all, because in order to play high-stack poker you need the corresponding equity. If you can't pay the buy-in for a tournament, you can't take part in the tournament.

Another factor is why someone plays poker.
If the ambition is to make money from poker, then it is certainly advisable to increase the stacks.
But that is not absolutely necessary if I play poker for the sake of poker, i.e. for the fun of the game.

 

[ChubbySin]

What stakes do you feel most comfortable playing? And what do you think it would take for you to move up in stakes? Or is it better to stick with what you know, like an old comfortable pair of shoes? Share your thoughts.

Thanks to @Mortis for this topic suggestion!

If my bankroll is $100 USD, my buy in is in the max $1USD, in this proportion.

 

[Sebbour]

What stakes do you feel most comfortable playing? And what do you think it would take for you to move up in stakes? Or is it better to stick with what you know, like an old comfortable pair of shoes? Share your thoughts.

Thanks to @Mortis for this topic suggestion!

Since I'm recreational player I'm not playing particularly high stakes. I'm mostly playing CC freerolls, MTTs up to 2,2$ and NL2 cash games and I'm playing them when I have time (CC Freerolls, MTTs) and great desire for poker (cash NL2). Since I have less and less time for a poker at the moment I'm not considering moving up in the stakes.

 

[valeski 28]

That will depend both on your bankroll and the hours you can play per day.INowadays, I play1 or 2 hours daily mostly freerolls and low buy-in games on GG, so I´m not planning to change that in the near future.It would be great CC could host some freerolls there again.

 

[thejuice1]

bankroll dependent... you should never risk more than 5% of your bank roll in any one tournament or cash game.
someone above said once you start crushing your current stakes, its time to move up... maybe, but i would say, if you are crushing your current stakes, no matter what they are, and constantly winning a lot at those stakes, why move up? just continue to crush and continue to add to your bankroll.

 

[WhiskeyFix]

It's good to keep a record of your wins, losses, money spent IMO. Gives you an idea of how well you're doing at current stakes and if you need to up your stakes, lower them or stay where you are based on your ROI/ITM%.

 

[Gdefender]

A comfortable bet is one that won't cause you a big headache if you lose! In order to play at a higher stake, maybe a higher salary at work would give me the courage!

 

[Mag_P1e]

You should always study your game statistics - there will always be visible prerequisites for moving on to the next more expensive game. Stable win rate, understanding of the opponents' game and bankroll, if you are an MTT player.

 

[RhinoRyan89]

I would only move up in stakes if i feel comfortable and winning at the stakes i am currently playing on a regular basis.

Also i would also only move up if i had sufficient Bankroll for the new stakes.

If i want to play a specific tournament out of my buy in level i would try to satellite in or sell some action.

 

[maronza1]

The best time to move up in stakes is when you have mastered the game at the micros, and have won much that continuing winning it does not increase your bankroll much, for example, playing $1-2.20 and winning a couple of hundreds, and your bankroll is at 1k, by then your bankroll gives you a cushion to take a stab on $10 games, and when you are confident in beating that stake you move on.

In short, you need deep understanding of the game, and confidence at the tables. You should be able to read your opponents in a higher level.

 

[ph_il]

i play $1, small field mtts.

i don't plan on moving up in stakes for 2 main reasons.

• i play for fun and entertainment. a $1 mtt is just as enjoyable as a $5 mtt, but I'd rather play 5x $1 mtts. more fun, for the same price.
• i don't know if I'm good enough to move up, if i wanted to. am i good at $1 mtts? or are my opponents just much worse than i am, and that gives a false sense of skill?

 

[pirateglenn]

As mentioned by many others (and its great advice) - the key decision here should always be bankroll management before ability or desire.
Many of us ( i am one of them) have rushed in before and maybe upped the stakes without due consideration, it was a rookie mistake i made many years back and i did learn from that.
If, you are in a position to afford to increase stakes, be honest with yourself - what is your motivation to do so? Have your results indicated you are ready to do so? Do you feel you have a solid enough game and are knowledgeable enough to mix it with better players (note - you do not always however get better players at higher stakes!).
i always advise a gradual increase to jump from micro stakes to high level is foolhardy in my honest opinion, variance is just as rife at all levels of the game.

 

[Igor G]

I increase my bets as my bankroll grows. And similarly, I reduce my bets if my bankroll decreases, especially after withdrawals. I have accounts on several sites and on average my bankroll on each of them is $150-200.

 

[eetenor]

What stakes do you feel most comfortable playing? And what do you think it would take for you to move up in stakes? Or is it better to stick with what you know, like an old comfortable pair of shoes? Share your thoughts.

Thanks to @Mortis for this topic suggestion!

I play small stakes to mid stakes and take shots higher when I can- anywhere from $2.50 to $55 regularly and I have taken shots at the venom on acr twice $2650--- As you study and play more you learn that the quality of the players in the field matters more than the actual buy-in. Players at larger buy-ins can give away more equity than players at a lower buy-in who are really fighting for every EQ% to get to maintain and build a bankroll.
That is why taking shots at higher levels and moving up faster based on how solid you are with your poker skills can be very advantageous.

 

[CNXRegie]

As a beginner, I feel most comfortable playing at the $1.10 stakes on pokerstars, particularly with my favorite games: Razz, HORSE, and 8-Game. I can also play at stakes of $2.20, $3.30, and up to $5.50. Only during the SCOOP and WCOOP seasons have I gone as high as a $100+ buy-in. I have no qualms about moving up in stakes when playing these games, but for NLHE, I usually play no higher than $5.50. All of these are tournament games. For cash games, I’ve only played at the lowest stakes in the Zoom format (NLHE) and up to $1/$2 for Razz and other stud games. However, I feel most comfortable with $0.25/$0.50.

 

[shanest]

What stakes do you feel most comfortable playing? Online I am most comfortable in 25-50c. Live 1-3 is the lowest stakes you will find.

And what do you think it would take for you to move up in stakes? As a rec i occasionally take a shot if i get a big win on sports or bink a tournament.
Or is it better to stick with what you know, like an old comfortable pair of shoes? Share your thoughts.

 

[VictorOd]

Freerolls, micro limits NL2, 5, 10, better to stick with it.

 

[userX]

I have a very simple indicator - my bankroll. If my bankroll is growing, it means that I'm doing well and I can afford to raise my bets. If the bankroll is decreasing, it means that things are going badly and I need to be hard enough on myself and reduce my bets.

 

[perrywh]

When you can win easy without much thought it’s time to move up! Poker is boring if your playing at a level you have mastered!

 

[Dougana]

When you feel to comfortable and crush the tables in the current stats.

 

[fundiver199]

When you can win easy without much thought it’s time to move up! Poker is boring if your playing at a level you have mastered!

If you can win "without much thought", you can probably also win at a higher limit and have a higher hourly winrate there. So rather than fighting boredom I would argue, that its more about optimizing, how you spend your time. Like if you can beat $109 MTTs or even $11 MTTs, why on earth would you prefer to play $1,1 MTTs? If its a question of bankroll, then get that bankroll as fast as possible and stop wasting your time. But you do have a point, that its also good to challenge yourself against better players to keep improving.

 

[TulasMoreno]

Theres some graphs in wich you can check that in the web