What is the difference between a rebuy and an add-on?
A rebuy replaces chips you have lost and is usually only allowed when your stack is at or below the starting amount. An add-on is an extra purchase everyone can take at a fixed point, normally once, regardless of how they are doing.
The distinction matters for the maths at the end of the night. Both are money in, so both belong in the buy-in total, and the commonest settlement error is an add-on that nobody counted because it was not framed as buying in.
In a tournament the rebuy period has a defined end, usually after a set number of levels, and the add-on is offered at exactly that moment. After it, the money in play is fixed.
Cash games do not really have either — you can top up at any time, and the whole thing is just buying more chips. The terms come from tournaments and get borrowed loosely.
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