Blind structures for your home tournaments

Small blind, big blind, ante and level length: here are Blindissimo's three ready-made structures, and the ones its generator suggests for 2, 3 or 4 hours of play, with the length the app estimates for your number of players.

Three ready-made structures

Pick one for the time you have: the length mostly depends on the number of players.

Turbo
Fast and intense action
- Starting stack: 1,500 (30 big blinds)
- 16 levels of 5 min
- No breaks
Estimated end, breaks included
4 players
≈ 23 min (18 min – 33 min)
6 players
≈ 33 min (23 min – 38 min)
8 players
≈ 33 min (28 min – 43 min)
10 players
≈ 38 min (33 min – 53 min)
Classic
Recommended
Strategic balance
- Starting stack: 3,000 (60 big blinds)
- 16 levels of 10 min
- 2 breaks of 10 min
Estimated end, breaks included
4 players
≈ 1 h 25 min (55 min – 1 h 45 min)
6 players
≈ 1 h 45 min (1 h 25 min – 2 h 5 min)
8 players
≈ 1 h 55 min (1 h 35 min – 2 h 25 min)
10 players
≈ 2 h 5 min (1 h 45 min – 2 h 35 min)
Deep Stack
Deep and tactical play
- Starting stack: 10,000 (100 big blinds)
- 20 levels of 15 min
- 4 breaks of 15 min
Estimated end, breaks included
4 players
≈ 3 h 23 min (3 h 8 min – 4 h 23 min)
6 players
≈ 4 h 8 min (3 h 23 min – 4 h 38 min)
8 players
≈ 4 h 23 min (4 h 8 min – 5 h 23 min)
10 players
≈ 4 h 38 min (4 h 23 min – 5 h 38 min)

The three structures, level by level

Turbo

16 levels of 5 min · 1,500

Turbo
Level	Small blind	Big blind	Ante
1	25	50	—
2	50	100	—
3	75	150	—
4	100	200	25
5	150	300	25
6	200	400	50
7	300	600	75
8	400	800	100
9	500	1,000	100
10	600	1,200	200
11	800	1,600	200
12	1,000	2,000	300
13	1,500	3,000	400
14	2,000	4,000	500
15	3,000	6,000	1,000
16	4,000	8,000	1,000

Classic

16 levels of 10 min · 3,000

Classic
Level	Small blind	Big blind	Ante
1	25	50	—
2	50	100	—
3	75	150	—
4	100	200	25
5	150	300	25
6	200	400	50
10 min break
7	250	500	50
8	300	600	75
9	400	800	100
10	500	1,000	100
11	600	1,200	200
12	800	1,600	200
10 min break
13	1,000	2,000	300
14	1,500	3,000	400
15	2,000	4,000	500
16	3,000	6,000	1,000

Deep Stack

20 levels of 15 min · 10,000

Deep Stack
Level	Small blind	Big blind	Ante
1	50	100	—
2	75	150	—
3	100	200	—
4	150	300	25
15 min break
5	200	400	50
6	250	500	50
7	300	600	75
8	400	800	100
15 min break
9	500	1,000	100
10	600	1,200	200
11	800	1,600	200
12	1,000	2,000	300
15 min break
13	1,200	2,400	400
14	1,500	3,000	500
15	2,000	4,000	500
16	2,500	5,000	500
15 min break
17	3,000	6,000	1,000
18	4,000	8,000	1,000
19	5,000	10,000	1,000
20	6,000	12,000	2,000

A structure for the length of your evening

In Blindissimo, “Generate a structure” works out the blinds for the length you want, with your chips, your starting stack and the number of players: the big blind rises steadily to reach, after that time, a twentieth of the chips in play, when a tournament usually ends.

Here is what it suggests for 8 players, with a 3,000 stack and chips from 25: levels of about a twelfth of the evening, a 10-minute break every hour and antes from level 4.

2 h of play

10 min levels · starts at 30 big blinds

2 h of play
Level	Small blind	Big blind	Ante
1	50	100	—
2	75	150	—
3	100	200	—
4	125	250	25
5	150	300	50
6	200	400	50
10 min break
7	250	500	50
8	300	600	100
9	400	800	100
10	500	1,000	150
11	750	1,500	200
12	1,000	2,000	250
10 min break
13	1,250	2,500	300
14	1,500	3,000	400
15	2,000	4,000	500

Estimated end, breaks included

6 players: ≈ 1 h 45 min (1 h 25 min – 1 h 55 min)
8 players: ≈ 1 h 55 min (1 h 35 min – 2 h 5 min)
10 players: ≈ 1 h 55 min (1 h 45 min – 2 h 25 min)

3 h of play

15 min levels · starts at 60 big blinds

3 h of play
Level	Small blind	Big blind	Ante
1	25	50	—
2	50	100	—
3	75	150	—
4	100	200	25
10 min break
5	125	250	25
6	150	300	50
7	200	400	50
8	250	500	50
10 min break
9	300	600	100
10	400	800	100
11	500	1,000	150
12	750	1,500	200
10 min break
13	1,000	2,000	250
14	1,250	2,500	300
15	1,500	3,000	400
16	2,000	4,000	500

Estimated end, breaks included

6 players: ≈ 2 h 58 min (2 h 28 min – 3 h 13 min)
8 players: ≈ 3 h 13 min (2 h 43 min – 3 h 38 min)
10 players: ≈ 3 h 13 min (2 h 58 min – 3 h 53 min)

4 h of play

20 min levels · starts at 60 big blinds

4 h of play
Level	Small blind	Big blind	Ante
1	25	50	—
2	50	100	—
3	75	150	—
10 min break
4	100	200	25
5	125	250	25
6	150	300	50
10 min break
7	200	400	50
8	250	500	50
9	300	600	100
10 min break
10	400	800	100
11	500	1,000	150
12	750	1,500	200
10 min break
13	1,000	2,000	250
14	1,250	2,500	300
15	1,500	3,000	400
10 min break
16	2,000	4,000	500

Estimated end, breaks included

6 players: ≈ 4 h (3 h 10 min – 4 h 20 min)
8 players: ≈ 4 h 20 min (3 h 40 min – 4 h 50 min)
10 players: ≈ 4 h 20 min (4 h – 5 h 10 min)

With 6 or 10 players, only the top of the structure changes: it stops at 1,500/3,000 for 6 players and goes up to 2,500/5,000 for 10, as there are more chips in play.

Setting up your tournament

Depth: the starting stack counted in big blinds of the first level, 30 in Turbo, 60 in Classic, 100 in Deep Stack. The deeper it is, the longer the tournament lasts.
The end of the tournament: it usually ends once the big blind reaches about a twentieth of the chips in play. Blindissimo estimates the length from this rule, between a quick finish (a thirtieth) and a slow one (a twelfth).
Antes come in at level 4, in the three structures as in the generator's.
Breaks are a good time to color up: take the smallest chips off the table once the blinds no longer need them. In Classic, Blindissimo suggests it at the second break (25 chips → 100).
Chips: with Blindissimo's default set (450 chips of 25, 100, 500, 1,000 and 5,000), a 3,000 Classic stack is 12 chips of 25, 7 of 100 and 4 of 500, for up to 8 players.
Tournament running long: at the end of the structure, the blinds stay at the last level. Add levels in the Structure screen, even during the game.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a home poker tournament last?

It depends on the structure and the number of players. According to Blindissimo's estimate, with 6 players: about half an hour in Turbo, 1 h 45 min in Classic and a little over 4 hours in Deep Stack, breaks included.

What starting stack should we use?

Blindissimo's structures start at 1,500 chips in Turbo, 3,000 in Classic and 10,000 in Deep Stack, that is 30, 60 and 100 big blinds at the first level. The generator starts from your own stack.

How long should a level last?

5 minutes in Turbo, 10 in Classic, 15 in Deep Stack. For a given length, the generator aims at about a dozen levels: 10 minutes for 2 hours, 15 for 3 hours, 20 for 4 hours.

When should we take a break?

Classic and Deep Stack have one every hour, of 10 and 15 minutes; Turbo has none. The generator adds a 10-minute break every hour as soon as the evening lasts at least 1 h 30 min.

A tool, not a gambling app

Blindissimo measures time and does the maths from the amounts you enter: no bets and no payments ever go through the app. It works just as well for tournaments played for fun or for points.

In many countries, France included, poker games played for money are regulated: check what the law allows where you play.

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