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.
