Official Poker Rules BoardDocument OPR-527 · Updated 28 September 2026

Home game · Shared card

Elevator Rules

In Elevator, each player gets four cards face down and seven cards are laid on the table: two columns of three with a single elevator card between them. The table cards are turned up one at a time with betting after each. At showdown each player picks a line of three table cards through the elevator, adds their four hole cards, and makes the best five-card hand, usually with a high-low declaration.

Hole cards: 4 per player
Table cards: 7 (six in two columns, plus the elevator)
Betting rounds: 8
Wild cards: None, unless the elevator is made wild
Pot: High-low with declaration

Article 1Players, deck and layout

1.1

The game is played with a standard 52-card deck without jokers. High hands are ranked according to the standard poker hand rankings.

1.2

Seven cards are dealt face down to the table: three in a left-hand column (positions 1, 2 and 3, from top to bottom), three in a right-hand column (positions 4, 5 and 6), and one card between the two columns called the elevator (E).

Figure 1.1The seven table cards, with the elevator (E) between the left and right columns; the discs show the recommended order of turning, which ends with the elevator.

1.3

The elevator does not have a fixed floor. At showdown each player imagines it at the top, middle or bottom level, whichever suits their hand.

Level	Left column	Elevator	Right column
Top	1	E (may ride up)	4
Middle	2	E	5
Bottom	3	E (may ride down)	6

1.4

A line is any three table cards in a straight line that includes the elevator. There are five lines: the horizontals 1-E-4, 2-E-5 and 3-E-6, and the diagonals 1-E-6 and 3-E-4.

Article 2Antes and the deal

2.1

Each player places an agreed ante before the deal. Each betting round begins with the first active player to the dealer's left.

2.2

Each player is dealt four cards face down. The dealer then lays out the seven table cards face down as described in 1.2.

Article 3Revealing the cards and betting

3.1

There is a betting round after the deal. The seven table cards are then turned face up one at a time, with a betting round after each.

3.2

The cards should be revealed in an order that keeps usable lines hidden for as long as possible. The recommended order is 5, 1, 3, 2, 4, 6 and finally the elevator:

Round	Card turned before the round
1	None (after the deal)
2	Position 5 (right column, middle)
3	Position 1 (left column, top)
4	Position 3 (left column, bottom)
5	Position 2 (left column, middle)
6	Position 4 (right column, top)
7	Position 6 (right column, bottom)
8	The elevator

3.3

If all but one player folds at any point, the remaining player wins the pot without showing their cards.

Article 4Declaration and showdown

4.1

Each player's available cards are their four hole cards plus the three cards of any one line (1.4): seven cards in all. From these the player makes the best five-card hand. Cards from different lines may not be combined.

4.2

After the last betting round, each surviving player declares whether they are playing for high, low or both. The best high hand among those declaring high wins the high half of the pot, and the best low hand among those declaring low wins the low half.

4.3

A player who declares both must make both hands from the same seven cards, that is, from the same line. Under the usual declaration convention, such a player must win, or tie, both ways to take any part of the pot.

4.4

The source does not fix the ranking for low hands. Players shall agree it in advance; ace-to-five, in which straights and flushes are ignored and the best low is 5-4-3-2-A, is common in home games. See hand rankings.

Example

High on one line, both ways on another

Table: left column Q♠9♥4♥ (1, 2, 3), right column J♠8♣2♦ (4, 5, 6), elevator 10♠.

A player holds A♠K♠5♦3♣.

Using line 1-E-4 (Q♠10♠J♠), the player has a royal flush in spades, but no low hand.

Using line 3-E-4 (4♥10♠J♠), the 4 joins the player's A, 5 and 3 but there is still no fifth low card. Using line 3-E-6 (4♥10♠2♦) the player has A-2-3-4-5: a 5-high straight for high and, under ace-to-five ranking, the best possible low.

The player may declare high and play the royal flush, or declare both and play line 3-E-6, where the high hand is only a 5-high straight. They cannot use the royal flush for high and the other line for low.

Article 5Common variations

Wild elevator. The elevator card is wild. With a wild card five of a kind is possible, and it normally ranks above a straight flush; the dealer shall say whether the wild card may count as an ace in a low hand.
Separate lines for high and low. Some groups allow a player declaring both ways to use one line for the high hand and a different line for the low.
High-only H layout. A version described on onlinepoker.net deals each player two cards face down and two face up, and lays the table cards in an H shape. Players must use exactly two hole cards and three table cards, taken from the left column, the right column or the centre row. The first card turned may be any card except the centre card, which is turned last, and the pot goes to the best high hand.

Double Elevator extends the idea with three columns and two elevators. Other games with fixed lines include Criss Cross, Iron Cross and Pyramid.

Article 6Frequently asked questions

How many cards do you use in Elevator poker?

You have seven cards to choose from: your four hole cards and the three table cards of one line through the elevator. Your hand is the best five of those seven.

Which lines can you use in Elevator?

Five: the three horizontal lines 1-E-4, 2-E-5 and 3-E-6, and the two diagonals 1-E-6 and 3-E-4. Every line includes the elevator card.

Can you go both ways in Elevator using two different lines?

Not under the standard rules: a player declaring both must make both hands from the same line. Some home games allow separate lines, so check before the deal.

Final authority

Where any doubt remains in the application of this document, Rob is right.

Hand rankings, high to low: royal flush · straight flush · four of a kind · full house · flush · straight · three of a kind · two pair · one pair · high card. Suits never break ties.

Elevator Rules · OPR-527 · officialpokerrules.com/elevator/

OPR-527Uncontrolled when printed