TLDR
- 360 is the “classic” cube size because an 8-player draft uses all 360 cards. Great consistency, tight archetypes, less chaos.
- 450 is the “I want variety but I still want my decks to function” size. You’ll see about 80% of the cube in an 8-player draft.
- 540 is the “replay value” sweet spot for a lot of groups. You’ll see about 67% of the cube per 8-player draft, so the cube feels fresh longer, but you need tighter curation.
- 720 is the “two full 8-player drafts without reshuffling” size. Big variety, big maintenance, and your narrow archetypes will sometimes vanish like they owe someone money.
Quick rule of thumb:
- Draft with 8 a lot, start at 360
- Want more variety, go 450 or 540
- Want two full drafts back-to-back, go 720
The hook
Choosing a cube size is the only time in Magic where you’re allowed to say “I’m going to build a limited environment” and nobody asks you to stop talking to them. Then you sleeve 720 cards, sort them, shuffle them, and realize you have accidentally adopted a very demanding cardboard pet.
This MTG cube size guide is here to keep you from making a size decision based on vibes, ego, or the dangerous thought, “How hard could it be?”
The only math you need
A “normal” cube draft usually mimics booster draft:
- Each player drafts 3 packs
- Each pack has 15 cards
- That’s 45 cards per player
So the total number of cards drafted is:
Players × 45
Common benchmarks:
- 8 players: 8 × 45 = 360 cards
- 6 players: 6 × 45 = 270 cards
- 4 players: 4 × 45 = 180 cards
This is why 360 is the famous number. It is the smallest cube where you can do a full 8-player, 3×15 draft without running out of cards.
Now here’s the part most people miss: going bigger does not change how many cards get drafted. It changes how often any specific card shows up.
For an 8-player draft, the “percent of your cube you’ll see” is basically:
360 ÷ cube size
So:
- 360: 360/360 = 100% (every card shows up)
- 450: 360/450 = 80%
- 540: 360/540 = 67%
- 720: 360/720 = 50%
That percentage is the real tradeoff meter.
What you give up each time you go bigger (the honest version)
Bigger cubes buy you variety. But you pay with:
- Consistency: Your key build-arounds show up less often.
- Archetype reliability: Narrow themes need more redundancy or they become “the deck that sometimes exists.”
- Balance effort: The bigger the list, the harder it is to notice what’s quietly broken or quietly unplayable.
- Time and friction: More sleeving, more shuffling, more sorting, more “who mixed the lands into the cube again.”
None of these are moral failings. They’re just physics.
Comparison table: the practical differences
| Cube size | Best for | What you gain | What you give up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 360 | One tight environment, lots of 8-player drafts | Maximum consistency, archetypes fire often | Less variety draft-to-draft, staples show up every time |
| 450 | Variety without losing structure | More room for pet cards, signposts, fixing | Some drafts miss key pieces, slightly more balancing work |
| 540 | High replay value, deeper card pool | Fresh drafts, more flex slots, more overlap options | Narrow archetypes need redundancy, more maintenance |
| 720 | Big groups or back-to-back drafts | Massive variety, supports “modules” and swaps | Archetypes dilute, shuffling and upkeep become a hobby |
360-card cube: the “tight and reliable” choice
If you like cube because it feels like a curated format, 360 is the cleanest expression of that.
Why it plays great:
- Every card is drafted in an 8-person pod, so your environment is consistent.
- Archetypes are easier to support because the density is high.
- Balance tweaks are more visible. If one color is underperforming, you’ll notice quickly.
What you give up:
- The cube can start to feel “solved” if your group drafts it frequently.
- Your spicy one-of build-around is not spicy anymore when it shows up every single week like a scheduled appointment.
Who should pick 360:
- You draft with 8 often.
- You want reliable archetypes and cleaner signals.
- You’re building your first cube and want something you can actually tune without needing a spreadsheet that has tabs.
450-card cube: the “more room, still coherent” choice
450 is the size a lot of people quietly end up at because it’s forgiving without being messy.
Why it works:
- You get extra slots for things that make drafts better, like:
- more fixing
- more interaction
- more “glue” cards that keep archetypes from being on rails
- You still see 80% of the cube in an 8-player draft, so themes remain pretty reliable.
What you give up:
- You will occasionally have drafts where a specific build-around or payoff just doesn’t appear.
- If your archetype needs one exact card to exist, that archetype is going to have a bad time. (This is also a good lesson.)
Who should pick 450:
- You want more replay value, but you still want the cube to feel like it has an identity.
- Your group drafts the cube regularly and you want “fresh” without “random.”
540-card cube: the “sweet spot for replay value” choice
A lot of cube owners land on 540 for a simple reason: it’s big enough to feel different each draft, but not so big that it collapses into soup.
With 8 players, you’ll see about two-thirds of the list each time. That’s a nice cadence:
- your staples show up often enough to anchor the environment
- your spice rotates enough to keep people guessing
What you give up at 540:
- Narrow archetypes become less reliable unless you build in redundancy.
- If “Wildfire” is your whole personality, you probably need more than one payoff.
- Same for “Storm,” “Reanimator,” “Aristocrats,” and other decks that depend on density.
- Balance takes more deliberate effort. You can hide problems in the extra 180 cards for a long time.
Who should pick 540:
- You want the cube to stay fresh across many drafts.
- Your group likes exploring and adapting more than memorizing.
- You want room for alternate archetype packages, pet cards, or swapping sections later.
If you’re not interested in curating from scratch, this is also the size we’ve standardized around at Hundred Dollar Cube:
It’s the “show up, sleeve it, draft it” size that still gives you real replay value.
720-card cube: the “big, modular, and maintenance-heavy” choice
720 is for people who want maximum variety or who like the idea of two full 8-player drafts without reshuffling the entire cube. That’s the clean selling point.
It can be awesome:
- You can support more archetypes, more variations, more “packages.”
- You can do seasonal swaps or modules (example: add a graveyard module for one night, artifact module the next).
What you give up at 720:
- You only see half the cube per 8-player draft, so consistency drops hard.
- Archetypes that need density will fail more often unless you add redundancy or make themes broader.
- Shuffling 720 sleeved cards is a real activity. Not a metaphor. An activity.
- Tuning is slower because a change might not even show up for a few drafts.
Who should pick 720:
- Your group drafts constantly and gets bored easily.
- You like “exploration” drafts where the meta shifts.
- You enjoy maintenance as part of the hobby (again, not a moral judgment, just an observation).
The decision framework (bookmark this)
If you want the simplest version of this MTG cube size guide, here it is:
- If you draft with 8 often and want consistent archetypes: 360
- If you want more variety but still want structure: 450
- If you want high replay value and don’t mind a bit more tuning work: 540
- If you want huge variety or two full drafts without reshuffling: 720
Then apply one more filter:
How much upkeep do you want?
- “Minimal” points to 360 or 450
- “I can handle some” points to 540
- “I have embraced the cube lifestyle” points to 720
A few practical notes people forget until it hurts
Bigger cubes need broader archetypes
At 360, you can support narrow decks because the density is high. At 540 and 720, archetypes need to:
- share cards with other archetypes (overlap)
- have multiple payoffs and multiple enablers
- not rely on one specific card showing up
Your typical player count matters more than your cube size
If you mostly draft with 4 players, you’re only drafting 180 cards. That means:
- a 360 cube already gives you tons of variation (you see half the cube)
- a 720 cube means you see only 25% of the list, which can feel random unless the cube is built to handle it
Storage and sleeves are real constraints
People love talking about archetypes and ignore the fact that:
- 720 sleeved cards is a brick
- sorting 720 cards after a draft is a group project
- “we’ll keep it organized” is a beautiful lie we tell ourselves
FAQs
Is 360 the “best” cube size?
It’s the most consistent size for 8-player drafting because you see the entire cube. If you value replay variety more than consistency, 450 or 540 will feel better.
What cube size is best if I usually draft with 4 to 6 players?
You can absolutely run a 360 cube for 4 to 6 players. You’ll naturally see fewer cards, which creates variety without needing a massive list. If your group drafts frequently and wants more novelty, 450 or 540 can help.
Is 540 too big for a first cube?
Not necessarily, but it’s more work to tune. If you are new to cube design and want faster feedback loops, 360 is easier. If you want a bigger list, build 360 first, then grow it intentionally.
Why do narrow archetypes get worse as cube size increases?
Because density drops. The bigger your list, the lower the odds that the enablers and payoffs for a narrow deck show up in the same draft pool. Overlap and redundancy solve this, but they take planning.
Why would anyone pick 720 if it’s harder to maintain?
Because variety is fun, modules are fun, and some groups draft constantly. Also, some people genuinely enjoy the curation and upkeep part. It’s a hobby inside the hobby.