What is the ICM value of an even stack with 6 players left and 2 paid?

Each seat is worth 16.67% of the prize pool, the same as its share of the chips, because equal stacks are equal in ICM. The bubble factor between any two seats is 1.16.

How far can ICM move a stack from its chip share with 6 players left?

Up to 1.67 points in the one chip leader pattern with 2 places paid at 65/35 percent. The biggest stack gives equity up and the smallest takes it.

Do these examples include the effect of blinds or antes?

No. ICM values stacks by chips alone, so blinds, antes, position and the skill of the players do not enter. Use the push or fold calculator to price a shove with blinds and a prize pool together.

ICM With 6 Players Left, 2 Paid

6 players, 2 paid places at 65/35 percent: across the stack patterns below, ICM puts a stack as far as 1.67 points from its share of the chips, and the highest bubble factor is 1.46.

How do the payouts shape ICM with 6 players left?

2 of the 6 players still in get paid, at 65/35 percent. The step from second to nothing is 35 points and the step from first to second is 30 points. That leaves 4 players short of the money.

How do the stack patterns compare with 6 players left?

Each pattern below is one way 6 players might split their chips. The table puts the biggest and smallest stack of each next to their chip share, with the highest bubble factor in the pattern. Open a pattern for the full table of every seat.

Biggest and smallest stack by pattern
Pattern	Biggest: share of chips	Biggest: prize equity	Smallest: share of chips	Smallest: prize equity	Highest bubble factor
Even stacks	16.7%	16.7%	16.7%	16.7%	1.16
One chip leader	28.6%	26.9%	14.3%	14.6%	1.19
One short stack	18.8%	18.7%	6.3%	6.6%	1.19
Two big stacks	30.0%	28.7%	10.0%	10.7%	1.46
Stack ladder	28.6%	27.3%	4.8%	5.1%	1.33

Prize equity of every seat, biggest stack first, in percent of the prize pool
Pattern	Seat 1	Seat 2	Seat 3	Seat 4	Seat 5	Seat 6
Even stacks	16.67	16.67	16.67	16.67	16.67	16.67
One chip leader	26.90	14.62	14.62	14.62	14.62	14.62
One short stack	18.68	18.68	18.68	18.68	18.68	6.59
Two big stacks	28.67	28.67	10.67	10.67	10.67	10.67
Stack ladder	27.27	23.45	19.28	14.80	10.07	5.13

Chance of finishing in the money
Pattern	Biggest stack	Smallest stack
Even stacks	33.3%	33.3%
One chip leader	52.4%	29.5%
One short stack	37.3%	13.5%
Two big stacks	56.2%	21.9%
Stack ladder	53.4%	10.6%

What does each pattern show with 6 players left?

Even stacks. Seat 1 turns 16.67% of the chips into 16.67% of the prize pool (+0.00 points), while Seat 6 turns 16.67% into 16.67% (+0.00 points).

One chip leader: 28.57% of the chips is worth 26.90% at the top of the table (-1.67 points), and 14.29% is worth 14.62% at the bottom (+0.33 points).

One short stack: 18.75% of the chips is worth 18.68% at the top of the table (-0.07 points), and 6.25% is worth 6.59% at the bottom (+0.34 points).

Two big stacks: 30.00% of the chips is worth 28.67% at the top of the table (-1.33 points), and 10.00% is worth 10.67% at the bottom (+0.67 points).

Stack ladder: the biggest stack holds 28.57% of the chips and is worth 27.27%, which is -1.30 points. The smallest holds 4.76% and is worth 5.13%, +0.37 points.

What does a call cost with 6 players left?

Break-even equity when the smallest stack calls the biggest
Pattern	All-in (chips)	Bubble factor	Chip break-even	ICM break-even
Even stacks	10,000	1.1628	50.0%	53.8%
One chip leader	10,000	1.1899	50.0%	54.3%
One short stack	5,000	1.0620	50.0%	51.5%
Two big stacks	5,000	1.1327	50.0%	53.1%
Stack ladder	5,000	1.0603	50.0%	51.5%

The costliest call for a short stack is in the "one chip leader" pattern, where it needs 54.3% equity rather than 50%. Put that number against the equity of the hand you hold before you call off a stack.

Where can I look at a different payout or player count?

The other seven structure pages cover three to six players left with two or three places paid. The ICM calculator takes any stacks and payouts of your own, up to ten players.

How were these ICM tables computed?

A player finishes first with chance equal to their share of the chips; each next place goes to the players left in proportion to their stacks. Equity is the payout of each place times the chance of finishing there. The bubble factor is prize equity lost by losing the all-in divided by prize equity gained by winning it, with the other stacks unchanged; a player whose stack reaches 0 busts and takes the lowest place.

Source: Malmuth-Harville ICM, computed by GeorgeLiPoker's own library. The model follows D. A. Harville, 'Assigning Probabilities to the Outcomes of Multi-Entry Competitions', Journal of the American Statistical Association, 1973.

Questions

What is the ICM value of an even stack with 6 players left and 2 paid?: Each seat is worth 16.67% of the prize pool, the same as its share of the chips, because equal stacks are equal in ICM. The bubble factor between any two seats is 1.16.
How far can ICM move a stack from its chip share with 6 players left?: Up to 1.67 points in the one chip leader pattern with 2 places paid at 65/35 percent. The biggest stack gives equity up and the smallest takes it.
Do these examples include the effect of blinds or antes?: No. ICM values stacks by chips alone, so blinds, antes, position and the skill of the players do not enter. Use the push or fold calculator to price a shove with blinds and a prize pool together.