There is a common poker hands ranking system at the heart of all forms of poker. It ranks the relative ☀️ strengths of all the different poker hands so players can understand and determine which is the best.
All the popular forms ☀️ of poker such as Texas Hold’em or Omaha and poker-based casino games like three-card poker use these rankings, so it ☀️ is essential to know exactly what each of them means.
The poker hand rankings are listed below, from high to low, ☀️ and we have also produced a useful poker hand rankings chart that you can save to your phone and desktop, ☀️ which can be used as a poker hand rankings cheat sheet.
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Poker-hand rankings: from strongest to weakest
1. Royal flush
The royal flush is the best ☀️ hand available in poker. It features five consecutive cards, all of the same suit, in order of value from 10 ☀️ through to ace.
2. Straight flush
Any five cards of successive values in the same suit that’s not a royal flush is ☀️ a straight flush. A royal flush or a straight flush with cards of higher ranking are the only hands that ☀️ can beat a straight flush.
3. Four of a Kind
Four of the same card in the four suits. The five-card hand ☀️ is completed by the highest card among the others on the table or in your hand.
4. Full house
Three of the ☀️ same value card in three different suits plus a different pair of the same rank card in two different suits ☀️ in one hand. If more than just one player has a full house the player with the highest value three ☀️ of a kind will win the hand.
5. Flush
Five cards of the same suit in no particular order. If more than ☀️ one player has a flush, the hand with the highest valued card will win.
6. Straight
Five cards of consecutive numerical value ☀️ composed of more than one suit. An ace can normally rank as low (below a 2) or high (above a ☀️ king) but not at the same time in one hand.
7. Three of a kind
A poker hand containing three cards of ☀️ the same rank in three different suits. The two highest available cards besides the three of a kind complete the ☀️ hand.
8. Two pair
Two different sets of two cards of matching rank. The highest-ranked left available card completes the hand.
9. Pair
A ☀️ pair of cards of the same rank in different suits. The remainder of the hand is formed from the three ☀️ highest-ranked cards available.
10. High card
The lowest-ranked hand available. The highest card in the hand is your ‘best hand’. In this ☀️ case it's the king of clubs.
Poker hand-rankings cheat sheet: Download here (pdf)
Our poker hands ranking cheat sheet is a great ☀️ aid to help you commit the poker hand rankings to memory and will serve you well whether you are playing ☀️ online poker or physical poker in the meantime.
Poker hand rankings: ‘Hi’ games, ‘Lo’ games and ‘Hi-Lo’ games
It is vital that ☀️ you note that not all poker games decide the winning hand according to the highest ranked on the poker hand ☀️ rankings. There are three typical ways that the poker hand rankings determine the best poker hand.
Hi or high-hand poker
The most ☀️ simple way the ranks are used is in ‘Hi’ or High hand games where the best poker hand is decided ☀️ according to the hand which ranks highest on the poker hand rankings detailed above.
Commonly played examples include: Texas Holdem, Seven-Card ☀️ Stud
Lo, low-hand or lowball poker
Lowball poker hand rankings work in the exact opposite way to High hand games. The usual ☀️ poker hand rankings are reversed so the lowest ranking hand is the best possible hand. Variations often centre around whether ☀️ the Ace is high or low and whether straights and flushes are counted.
Commonly played examples include: Razz
Hi-lo or high-low split ☀️ poker
The third and final use of the poker hand rankings is high-low split games. This is where the pot is ☀️ split evenly between the players with the highest ranking poker hand and lowest ranking poker hand.
Commonly played examples include: Omaha ☀️ Hi-Lo
Learn how to play popular types of poker and the rules specific to each game
Want to know the rules specific ☀️ to popular types of poker? Check out the links below.
