Rules reference
Poker Hand Rankings
From best to worst, the poker hands are: royal flush, straight flush, four of a kind, full house, flush, straight, three of a kind, two pair, one pair and high card. A hand in a higher category always beats a hand in a lower one, and hands in the same category are compared card by card. Suits never rank, so identical hands split the pot.
Article 1The ten hands, best to worst
These rankings apply to every high-hand game, including Texas Hold'em, Omaha, Seven Card Stud and Five Card Draw.
- 1A♠K♠Q♠J♠10♠Royal flushA, K, Q, J and 10, all of the same suit. The best possible hand.
- 29♥8♥7♥6♥5♥Straight flushFive cards in sequence, all of the same suit.
- 3Q♣Q♦Q♥Q♠7♦Four of a kindFour cards of the same rank, plus any fifth card.
- 4J♥J♦J♣4♠4♥Full houseThree cards of one rank and two cards of another.
- 5K♦10♦8♦4♦2♦FlushFive cards of the same suit, not in sequence.
- 610♣9♦8♥7♠6♣StraightFive cards in sequence, of mixed suits.
- 78♠8♥8♦K♣3♠Three of a kindThree cards of the same rank, plus two unmatched cards.
- 8A♥A♣6♦6♠J♥Two pairTwo cards of one rank, two cards of another, plus a fifth card.
- 910♥10♠A♦7♣2♥One pairTwo cards of the same rank, plus three unmatched cards.
- 10A♦J♣8♠5♥3♦High cardAny hand that does not qualify as any of the above.
1.1A poker hand consists of exactly five cards. In games where a player holds or can use more than five cards, only the best five-card combination counts.
1.2Cards rank, from high to low: A, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. The ace also plays low, below the 2, but only to complete the straight A-2-3-4-5 (see 2.5).
1.3A hand in a higher category beats every hand in a lower category, regardless of the ranks involved. The lowest straight beats the highest three of a kind.
1.4Suits have no rank. Hearts, diamonds, clubs and spades are of equal value in determining the winner of a pot.
1.5A royal flush is the highest straight flush. It is listed separately by convention but is not a separate category for comparison purposes.
Article 2Breaking ties within a category
When two hands are in the same category, they are compared using the rules below. Only the five cards that make each hand count; a sixth or seventh card never plays.
2.1Straight flush. The hand with the higher top card wins. A king-high straight flush beats a queen-high straight flush.
2.2Four of a kind. The higher rank of four wins. If both players share the same four of a kind (possible with community cards), the fifth card, or kicker, decides.
2.3Full house. The rank of the three of a kind decides first; the pair decides only if the trips are equal. Kings full of twos (K-K-K-2-2) beats queens full of aces (Q-Q-Q-A-A).
2.4Flush. Compare the highest card of each flush. If they are equal, compare the second-highest, then the third, and so on to the fifth. The first difference decides.
2.5Straight. The hand with the higher top card wins. The wheel, A-2-3-4-5, is the lowest straight; its top card is the 5. The highest straight is 10-J-Q-K-A (Broadway).
2.5(a) Straights do not wrap around the corner. Q-K-A-2-3 is not a straight; it is ace-high.
2.6Three of a kind. The higher rank of three wins. If both players hold the same three of a kind, the higher kicker decides, then the second kicker.
2.7Two pair. Compare the higher pair first. If equal, compare the lower pair. If both pairs are equal, the kicker decides. A-A-2-2 beats K-K-Q-Q, because the aces outrank the kings.
2.8One pair. The higher pair wins. If the pairs are equal, compare the three kickers in order, highest first.
2.9High card. Compare all five cards in order, highest first. The first difference decides.
2.10If two hands are identical in rank on all five cards, the hands tie and the pot is split equally. Suits are never used to break a tie at showdown.
2.10(a) Suits do have an order for some procedural purposes that are not showdowns, such as deciding the bring-in in stud games or the award of chips in a tournament chip race. The usual order, from lowest, is clubs, diamonds, hearts, spades.
Article 3Worked tie-break examples
Example
Two pair: the higher pair decides
Board: Q♦Q♠5♣3♥9♦
Player A holds A♥5♦ and Player B holds 9♠8♣.
A's best hand is Q-Q-5-5-A. B's is Q-Q-9-9-8. Both share the queens, so the lower pair decides: nines beat fives. Player B wins, despite A's ace.
Example
Two pair: the kicker decides
Board: K♣K♥7♠7♦2♣
Player A holds A♠4♦ and Player B holds Q♥J♥.
Both players hold K-K-7-7. A's kicker is the ace; B's is the queen. Player A wins.
Example
Flush against flush
Board: A♥9♥6♥2♣J♠
Player A holds K♥3♥ and Player B holds Q♥10♥.
A's flush is A-K-9-6-3. B's is A-Q-10-9-6. The aces tie; A's king beats B's queen. Player A wins, even though B's other cards are higher.
Example
The wheel is the lowest straight
Board: 2♦3♠4♥5♣K♦
Player A holds A♣Q♠ and Player B holds 6♥7♠.
A makes 5-high (A-2-3-4-5). B makes 7-high (3-4-5-6-7). Player B wins.
Example
Full houses on a paired board
Board: 8♠8♦4♣4♥J♦
Player A holds 8♥2♣ and Player B holds J♣J♠.
A has eights full of fours (8-8-8-4-4). B has jacks full of eights (J-J-J-8-8). The trips decide first, so Player B wins.
Example
A kicker that does not play
Board: A♠A♦K♣K♥Q♠
Player A holds J♥4♣ and Player B holds 9♦2♠.
Both players' best five cards are A-A-K-K-Q, taken entirely from the board. The queen is the kicker for both, and the hole cards do not play. The pot is split.
Article 4How often each hand occurs
There are 2,598,960 distinct five-card hands in a 52-card deck. The table shows how many fall into each category and the probability of being dealt one in five cards. The rarer the hand, the higher it ranks.
Five-card hands from a standard 52-card deck| Hand | Distinct hands | Probability |
|---|
| Royal flush | 4 | 0.000154% |
|---|
| Straight flush (excluding royals) | 36 | 0.00139% |
|---|
| Four of a kind | 624 | 0.0240% |
|---|
| Full house | 3,744 | 0.144% |
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| Flush (excluding straight flushes) | 5,108 | 0.197% |
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| Straight (excluding straight flushes) | 10,200 | 0.392% |
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| Three of a kind | 54,912 | 2.11% |
|---|
| Two pair | 123,552 | 4.75% |
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| One pair | 1,098,240 | 42.3% |
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| High card | 1,302,540 | 50.1% |
|---|
| Total | 2,598,960 | 100% |
|---|
4.1These figures are for exactly five cards dealt from a full deck. In seven-card games such as Hold'em and Seven Card Stud, the chance of finishing with each hand is higher, but the order of the rankings does not change.
Article 5Low hand rankings
In lowball games and the low half of split-pot games, the lowest hand wins. There are two main systems.
5.1Ace-to-five. Aces are always low. Straights and flushes do not count against a low hand. The best possible hand is 5-4-3-2-A, the wheel. Pairs are bad; an unpaired hand always beats a paired one. This system is used in Razz and for the low half of Omaha Hi-Lo and Stud Hi-Lo.
5.2Deuce-to-seven. Aces are always high. Straights and flushes count as high hands and so are bad for low. The best possible hand is 7-5-4-3-2 of mixed suits. This system is used in 2-7 Triple Draw and 2-7 Single Draw.
5.3Low hands are compared from the highest card down. 7-6-4-3-2 is a seven-low and beats any eight-low; between two seven-lows, 7-5-4-3-2 beats 7-6-4-3-2 because the second card is lower.
5.4In split-pot games with an eight-or-better qualifier, a low hand must consist of five unpaired cards of rank 8 or lower to be eligible for the low half of the pot.
| Ace-to-five | Deuce-to-seven |
|---|
| Ace | Always low | Always high |
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| Straights and flushes | Ignored | Count against you |
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| Best hand | 5-4-3-2-A | 7-5-4-3-2 (not all one suit) |
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| Used in | Razz, hi-lo games | 2-7 Triple Draw, 2-7 Single Draw |
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Article 6Games with different rankings
6.1Short Deck. In Short Deck Hold'em, the 2s to 5s are removed. Because flushes become harder to make, a flush beats a full house. A-6-7-8-9 counts as the lowest straight. Many venues also rank three of a kind above a straight; others keep the standard order. The venue's rules shall be checked before play.
6.2Badugi. Badugi uses four-card hands. The best hand is four cards of different ranks and different suits, with the lowest such hand winning. Aces are low. A four-card badugi beats any three-card hand.
6.3Chinese Poker. In Chinese Poker, the three-card front hand counts only high cards, pairs and three of a kind; straights and flushes do not count in the front.
6.4Wild cards. Games with jokers or wild cards allow a five of a kind, which usually ranks above a straight flush. Wild cards are not used in standard cardroom play.
For how these rankings are used within each game, see the glossary and the individual game pages, or start with how to play poker.
Article 7Frequently asked questions
Does a flush beat a straight?
Yes. A flush ranks above a straight in standard poker. A flush is five cards of the same suit; a straight is five cards in sequence. A flush is rarer, so it ranks higher.
Does a full house beat a flush?
Yes, in every standard game. The one common exception is Short Deck Hold'em, where a flush beats a full house because the reduced deck makes flushes harder to complete.
Is an ace high or low in poker?
Both. The ace is the highest card, but it can also play low to make the straight A-2-3-4-5. It cannot be in the middle of a straight: Q-K-A-2-3 is not a straight. In ace-to-five lowball games, the ace always counts as low.
Do suits matter in poker?
No. Suits never break a tie at showdown. If two players hold hands of identical rank, they split the pot. Suits are only used for procedural decisions, such as the stud bring-in or a tournament chip race.
Which two pair wins when both players have two pair?
Compare the higher pair first. If those are the same, compare the lower pair. If both pairs match, the fifth card (the kicker) decides. Aces and twos beats kings and queens.
What is the best hand in poker?
A royal flush: A, K, Q, J and 10 of the same suit. There are only four possible royal flushes, and the chance of being dealt one in five cards is about 1 in 650,000.