Poker Hands Rankings: What Hand Beats What in Poker?
One of the first steps towards
learning how to play poker is♣ to learn the poker hand rankings. If you want to know
what beats what in poker, you can use our♣ OFFICIAL poker hands rankings chart and see
all poker hands ranked from best to worst!
Poker Hands in Order Best To♣ Worst
Poker
Hands From Best To Worst 1. Royal Flush 10♠ J♠ Q♠ K♠ A♠ The best possible hand in Texas
♣ hold'em is the combination of ten, jack, queen, king, ace, all of the same suit 2.
Straight Flush 5♥ 6♥♣ 7♥ 8♥ 9♥ Five cards of the same suit in sequential order 3. Four
of a kind 3♣ 3♠ 3♦♣ 3♥ 4♦ Any four numerically matching cards 4. Full house J♠ J♥ J♣ K♣
K♦ Combination of three of a♣ kind and a pair in the same hand 5. Flush 2♦ 4♦ 5♦ 9♦ K♦
Five cards of the same♣ suit, in any order 6. Straight A♦ 2♣ 3♦ 4♠ 5♣ Five cards of any
suit, in sequential order 7.♣ Three of a kind 7♣ 7♦ 7♠ 4♣ 5♦ Any three numerically
matching cards 8. Two pair 9♦ 9♠ K♦♣ K♥ 4♣ Two different pairs in the same hand 9. One
pair 10♦ 10♠ 3♠ Q♦ K♣ Any two numerically♣ matching cards 10. High card K♣ 2♥ 4♦ 8♦ Q♠
The highest ranked card in your hand with an ace♣ being the highest and two being the
lowest
Poker Hand Rankings - Download our FREE printable PDF guide
From a royal flush
♣ to high card, understand what beats what in Poker with our free Poker Hand Rankings
Guide. Use as a reference♣ for yourself, or download and print to give them out at your
Home Games. Free Download
Here's everything you need to♣ host your own poker game!
What
Beats What in Poker?
Many consider poker less of a gambling game than other casino
games.♣ For that to be true, players need to improve their understanding of game play
and the strategy required to be♣ a winning player.
The first step toward learning how to
play poker is to learn the poker hand rankings.
Most poker players♣ have these rankings
memorized, which allows them to think about other things at the table when deciding the
best way♣ to play their hands.
The good news is these hand rankings tend to be the same
among a wide variety of♣ poker variants, whether it is Texas Hold'em, Omaha, seven-card
stud, or other games.
All of those games use the same traditional♣ poker hand rankings
that were first developed way back in the 19th century when five-card draw first
started to be♣ played.
On this page, you find a complete list of poker hand rankings
going from the highest possible hand (the Royal♣ Flush), down to the lowest hand in
which there is no pair among the five cards.
Hand rankings in poker correspond♣ to the
likelihood of making such hands.
A royal flush, consisting of the cards ranked ace
through ten all being the♣ same suit, is extremely rare — in fact, some players go their
entire lives without making a royal flush.
A regular♣ straight flush with any five
consecutive cards of the same suit is a little less rare, four of a kind♣ occurs
slightly more frequently, and so on.
Notice that a full house is ranked higher than a
flush.
That's because a full♣ house comes just a little less frequently than a flush,
thereby making it the higher-ranked hand of the two.
Additional readings♣ for beginners:
Poker Tips : A collection of tips " to bring your game from 'meh' to amazing " created
♣ to help beginners become better players.
: A collection of tips " " created to help
beginners become better players. Texas♣ Hold'em Strategy: a complete manual to read as
soon as you start to remember what beats what in poker.
a complete♣ manual to read as
soon as you start to remember what beats what in poker. Poker starting hands chart: the
♣ only article you need to read to learn how to use your cards to the
fullest.
Understanding Winning Poker Hands
Players new♣ to the game of Texas hold'em
often struggle, at least at first, with what the best poker hands are.
Once they♣ have
read this easy-to-digest guide that will no longer be the case.
The aim of Texas
hold'em is to make the♣ best five-card poker hand at showdown.
You can win without
having to show your cards if you force someone to fold♣ before the river. Nonetheless,
for the purpose of this article, we'll pretend that we've gone to showdown and need to
♣ know what beats what in poker.
Download the PokerNews Quick Guide to Texas Hold’em
Understand the Texas Holdem Poker Rules with♣ the 1-page handout and join the other
players and get involved in the game for your chance to win. Free♣ Download
Winning
Poker Hands: What Are The Best Hands In Poker?
First up is the weakest possible holding
you can make in♣ poker, a hand that can still win you the pot, although the likelihood
of that happening decreases in a pot♣ involving multiple players.
We are of course
talking about high card.
As the name suggests, you don't even hold a pair here♣ and
instead are using the highest card among the five you are playing.
Example: You have
Q♥10♠ and the board has♣ come 7♣6♣2♥9♦5♣. Your best five-card hand would be Q♥10♠9♦6♣5♣
where you would hold queen-high.
Next up is one pair, one of♣ the more common Texas
hold'em hands and one that will win you plenty of pots.
Example: You have A♠K♠ and the
♣ board comes A♦8♣5♠3♥2♣. Your five-card hand is A♠A♦K♠8♣5♠ — you have a pair of aces.
Nice poker hand!
One place higher♣ up on the poker hands chart is two pair.
Example: You
have 10♦9♠ and the five community cards are 10♣9♦5♣A♦3♣. Your♣ best five-card hand at
showdown is 10♦10♣9♠9♦A♦ or two pair, tens and nines.
One note of warning on this
specific poker♣ hand: if you are verbally declaring your hand, try to announce the
higher pair first as to help avoid confusion.
Good♣ Poker Hands
Now we're getting into
the realm of the best poker hands because once you make three-of-a-kind (sometimes
called a♣ set or trips), you are much more likely to win the pot than with any of the
previously mentioned hands.
Example:♣ Your five-card poker hand is K♣K♦K♥J♣7♦ — you have
three-of-a-kind kings, often a very powerful hand in hold'em.
To beat three-of-a-kind
♣ you're going to need at least a straight.
A straight is five consecutive cards where at
least one of them is♣ a different suit from the others.
Example:
Should your hand read
6♠5♣4♦3♥2♠ you would hold a six-high straight.
If someone held a seven-high♣ straight,
then that player would win the hand.
There are two straights that have nicknames that
are worth remembering.
A wheel is♣ a straight that runs from ace-to-five, and a Broadway
straight — the strongest straight — runs from ten-to-ace.
A flush is♣ one of the most
powerful Texas hold'em hands because it is only beaten by a handful of others.
Any hand
that♣ that has five cards of the same suit is a flush.
Aces are always high when it
comes to flushes, which♣ means a hand such as A♥Q♥7♥4♥2♥ beats K♥Q♥7♥4♥2♥.
There are few
hands that can beat a flush — one that does♣ is a full house. Also called a "boat," a
full house is when your five-card hand is made up of♣ three of a kind plus a
pair.
Example: With K♠K♦K♣2♥2♣ you have kings full of deuces, while 5♣5♦5♥Q♠Q♥ is fives
full♣ of queens.
When it comes to full houses, the higher three of a kind determines
which hand wins, so in this♣ case "kings full" would beat "fives full."
The Stronger
Hands in Poker
The next three holdings are so rare that if you♣ hold them, you can
almost guarantee that they are winning poker hands.
Four of a kind is the minimum
holding you'll♣ need to beat someone with a full house.
Again, as the name suggests,
four of a kind means having four cards♣ of the same rank.
Example: 10♠10♦10♥10♣7♦ is
four-of-a-kind tens and an extremely powerful holding.
Your only way to beat four of a
♣ kind, or "quads" as they are often called, is to hold either a straight flush or a
Royal Flush.
The former♣ is five consecutive cards all of the same suit, so 8♣7♣6♣5♣4♣
would be an eight-high straight flush and practically unbeatable.
If♣ you manage to make
A♥K♥Q♥10♥J♥ (or the same holding in any of the other three suits), you have a Royal
♣ Flush and the only way to lose the hand would be to fold by accident!
Poker Hands
Probability
If you are into♣ numbers (most poker players are), you might be wondering
about the probability of poker hands.
We said that some players might♣ go their entire
life without ever getting the highest hand in poker but, looking at the numbers, what
are the♣ odds of a Royal Flush?
In this section of our complete analysis of the poker
hand ranking and what beats what♣ in poker, you get a clear overview of the probability
of poker hands.
How to calculate the probability of poker hands?
When♣ you know that
there are 52 cards in play and 2,598,960 possible combinations, the calculation is
easy.
You just need to♣ divide the number of possibilities to build a specific poker
hand by the number of total poker hands.
Let's run a♣ few examples:
What are the odds of
a Royal Flush? 0.000,001,539
(4/2,598,960)
What are the odds of a Straight Flush?
0.000,015,39
(40/2,598,960)
Use the table♣ below to calculate the probabilities of all
poker hands.
Poker Hands Odds Table
As mentioned above, there are 2,598,960 possible
combinations to♣ make in poker. Below are the odds of making a poker hand in a game of
five-card draw.
Poker Hand No.♣ Ways Probability Odds against Royal Flush 4 0.000154%
649,739 to 1 Straight Flush 40 0.00139% 72,192 to 1 Four-of-a-Kind 624♣ 0.02401% 4,165
to 1 Full House 3,744 0.1441% 694 to 1 Flush 5,108 0.1965% 509 to 1 Straight 10,200
0.3925%♣ 255 to 1 Three-of-a-Kind 54,912 2.1128% 46 to 1 Two Pair 123,552 4.7539% 20 to
1 One Pair 1,098,240 42.2569%♣ 1.37 to 1 No pair / High card 1,302,540 50.1177% roughly
1 to 1
Poker Hand Absolute Value vs. Relative Value♣ of Poker Hands
It should be noted
also that while poker hand rankings never change, sometimes circumstances can make a
good♣ hand less valuable and a poor hand more valuable.
In other words, when it comes to
poker hands there's a difference♣ between absolute value (reflected in the list of poker
hands above) and relative value.
For instance, in a game of Texas♣ hold'em, if you have
two pair that might seem like a good hand.
But if your opponent keeps betting into you
♣ and it's possible he could have a straight or flush, your two pair is no longer looking
so good.
Meanwhile, if♣ you have just one pair but your opponent keeps checking to give
you a free play at the pot, you♣ might well have the strongest hand and should bet your
hand.
The "absolute" value of your hand may not be great,♣ but in that case the
"relative" value very well could be.
Also worth mentioning is the fact that in some
games♣ like razz, deuce-to-seven triple draw, Badugi, and others you might encounter
when playing online poker, the hand rankings listed below♣ do not apply.
These hand
rankings are for regular or "high-card" games, not "lowball" games with alternate hand
rankings.
Poker Hands -♣ What Beats What in Poker FAQs
What is the order of poker hands?
As shown in the poker hand rankings chart,♣ the order of poker rankings (from the
highest to the lowest) is: Royal Flush, Straight Flush, Four-of-a-Kind, Full House,
Flush,♣ Straight, Three-of-a-Kind, Two Pair, One Pair, High Card. What is the best hand
in poker? The Royal Flush is the♣ best hand in poker. To have a Royal Flush, you need an
Ace, a King, a Queen, a Jack, and♣ a 10. All the cards that compose the hand need to be
of the same suit. What beats what in♣ poker? As you can see in our poker hand rankings
chart, the hands in poker follow a clear hierarchy. In♣ a game of poker, the hand
rankings work as follows: a pair beats a high card; a two pair beats♣ a one pair; a
three-of-a-kind beats a two pair; a straight beats a three-of-a-kind; a flush beats a
straight; a♣ full house beats a flush; a four-of-a-kind beats a full house; a straight
flush beats a four-of-a-kind; a Royal Flush♣ beats a straight flush. The Royal Flush is
the best hand in poker, so no one other hands beat this♣ one. What is a straight in
poker? You have a straight when all the five cards that compose your poker♣ hand are
consecutive ones. E.g. 5-6-7-8-9.
If the cards are of the same suit, you have a
straight flush, which is♣ a considerably stronger hand compare d to the simple straight.
What beats a straight in poker? Although many see the♣ straight as a stronger hand,
there are many other poker hands that beat it. The list of hands that beat♣ a straight
includes: a flush; a full house; a four-of-a-kind; a straight flush; a Royal Flush.
What beats a flush♣ in poker? The list of hands that beat a flush includes: a full
house; a four-of-a-kind; a straight flush; a♣ Royal Flush. What beats a full house in
poker? The list of hands that beat a full house includes: four-of-a-kind;♣ a straight
flush; a Royal Flush. What is the highest suit in poker? All the suits in poker have
the♣ same value. In some games, different suits can be assigned different values. When
that happens, the value is as follows♣ (from the lowest to the highest): clubs,
diamonds, hearts, spades. In that case, spades is the highest suit. How many♣ poker
hands are there? The total number of poker hands in a game of poker is 2,598,960. Since
a game♣ of poker uses a 52-card deck of French cards, there are 2,598,960 different
possible combinations (aka. poker hands). What hands♣ to play in poker? The type of
hands to play in a poker game depends on the game you play♣ and other factors like your
position in the hand, your stack, and the action at the table. In a famous♣ poker
strategy article, professional player Jonathan Little shared which hands to play in
poker and how to play marginal hands.♣ Can you make three pairs? Although it is possible
to hold a pair in your hand and then have another♣ two pair appear among the five
community cards, you can only use a total of five cards to make your♣ poker hand, so you
don't win anything for three pairs. Which is better, a set or trips? They are both
♣ essentially the same hand because they are both three of a kind. The terminology "set"
is used when you have♣ a pair as your hole cards and then catch another one of those
cards on the board. "Trips" is when♣ there is a pair on the board and you have another
of those cards as one of your hole cards.♣ Sets are easier to disguise than trips so
many consider them to be a better hand, although they both rank♣ the same. What is a
chopped or split pot? If you and an opponent have the same five-card poker hand,♣ then
the pot is divided equally between you. Say you have A♦J♣ and your opponent has A♠J♦,
and the board♣ comes A♣8♦2♣3♥10♥. You both would be playing the same five-card hands in
terms of their value (A-J-T-8-3), and so would♣ split the pot. If there is four of a
kind on the board, who wins? Because the aim is to♣ make a five-card poker hand, whoever
has the highest fifth card in this case wins. If the board reads 7♣7♠7♦7♥3♣♣ and you
have A♠Q♠ in your hand and your opponent has K♣Q♣, then you win because you hand is
7-7-7-7-A♣ and your opponent's is 7-7-7-7-K. You would also win even if your opponent
holding was K♣K♠ in this example. Why♣ did my 4-4-4-T-T lose to my opponent's 7-7-7-8-8?
It is the three-of-a-kind element of a full house that dictates the♣ winner. If you're
new to the game and want a reference of all of Texas hold'em hands, you can keep♣ this
page open or you could always download and print our poker hands ranking chart that you
can find higher♣ up this page and keep it next to you while you're playing
poker.
Download the PokerNews Ultimate Guide to Texas Hold’em♣ An intro to Texas Holdem,
strategy, rules and styles of play, all combined for you to understand Texas Holdem
with♣ this ultimate guide. Free Download
