AQ vs a 4-betting range: Equity & Strategy

Ace-Queen (AQ) has 34.1% equity all-in preflop against a 4-betting range — 42 combos, 3.2% of all starting hands. It wins 32.4% of runouts outright, loses 64.3% and chops 3.3%. These are exact figures from full board enumeration against every unblocked combo in the range, not a simulation.

The range this is computed against

Four-betting is the tightest voluntary action in preflop poker. The standard construction is QQ+ and AK for value plus a token pair of blocker bluffs — A5s and A4s, which remove combos of AA and AK from the opponent's continuing range and still flop wheel and nut-flush draws when called. About 3% of hands.

4-bet — 42 combos, 3.2% of all starting hands: AA, KK, QQ, AKs, A5s, A4s, AKo

After card removal, 30 of those 42 combos are still available (12 are blocked by the cards AQ holds). AQ is ahead of 6 and behind 24.

Hardest parts of the range for AQ

Easiest parts of the range for AQ

Put AQ up against a 4-betting range — 42 combos, 3.2% of all hands — and the exact answer is 34.1% equity: 32.4% outright wins, 64.3% losses and 3.3% chops. Your own two cards remove 12 of those combos before the flop is even dealt — a blocker effect this number already accounts for, because every combo containing one of your exact cards is stripped out of the range first. You are ahead of only 6 of the 30 combos still live (20%) — the rest of the range is level with or in front of you, which is why the figure sits below even money.

The range behind this number is not a guess. Four-betting is the tightest voluntary action in preflop poker. The standard construction is QQ+ and AK for value plus a token pair of blocker bluffs — A5s and A4s, which remove combos of AA and AK from the opponent's continuing range and still flop wheel and nut-flush draws when called. About 3% of hands. AQ's worst spots in it are AA (8.6%), AKs (25.6%) and AKo (26.7%) — and its best are A4s (68.7%), A5s (68.3%) and QQ (31.3%). Across the whole range AQ's equity swings from 8.6% at the bottom to 68.7% at the top — the single 34.1% headline is the combo-weighted average of all of it.

A 4-bet is the tightest action in preflop poker, and 34.1% reflects that: AQ is behind, and against a range this narrow the only sane options are 5-bet-jam with the right blockers or fold. There is no flat-and-outplay-them line against 3.2% of hands with the stacks a 4-bet creates.

AQ vs 4-bet FAQ

What is AQ's equity against a 4-betting range?

AQ has 34.1% equity all-in preflop against a 4-betting range — it wins 32.4% of runouts outright, loses 64.3% and chops 3.3%. The range holds 42 combos (3.2% of all hands); AQ blocks 12 of them, leaving 30 live. This is exact full board enumeration, not a simulation.

Which hands in a 4-betting range beat AQ?

AQ is behind 24 of the 30 live combos and ahead of the other 6. The worst matchups are AA (8.6%), AKs (25.6%) and AKo (26.7%); its best are A4s (68.7%), A5s (68.3%) and QQ (31.3%). Every figure is exact, computed against that hand's unblocked combos only.

What hands are in a 4-betting range?

7 hand classes and 42 combos — 3.2% of the 1,326 possible starting hands. By combo count it is 43% pocket pairs (3 pairs, 18 combos), 29% suited hands (3 classes, 12 combos) and 29% offsuit hands (1 classes, 12 combos). That shape is why AQ runs at 34.1% against it rather than against a random hand.

Does AQ do better against a wider or a tighter range?

Wider, almost always. AQ has 62.7% equity against a loose-passive calling range (50.5% of hands) but 34.1% against a 4-betting range (3.2%). Equity against a range is mostly a question of how many weak hands the range still contains — which is why the same holding can be a monster against a button open and a fold against a 4-bet.

Run any hand vs range in the free equity calculator · All hand-vs-range matchups · aq vs utg-open · aq vs mp-open · aq vs co-open · aa vs 4bet-range · kk vs 4bet-range · qq vs 4bet-range