Rankings of Poker Hands

There are many different way to win in poker and it is important to understand which hands are better than others. Below are the standard hand rankings for poker along with examples showing which hands beat what. It is also paramount to understand which cards are valued more than others.

Cards are ranked in the following order (from highest to lowest): Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. This means that an Ace has more value than a 2 and a Queen greater value than a Jack.

The following hand rankings are listed from strongest to weakest. (Note: All hands are ranked for the best 5 card hand. There are some poker variations that consist of more than 5 cards which are not covered here).

1. Royal Flush

A royal flush is an ace high straight with all cards of the same suit. A royal flush must have the cards Ace, King, Queen, Jack and 10 suited in either Spades, Clubs, Diamonds or Hearts. When it come to a royal flush in poker (or any hand for that matter) all suits are created equal. This means that a royal flush suited in spades is of the exact same value of a royal flush suited in diamonds.

Royal Flush Examples:

Example 1 - Royal Flush

Example 2 - Royal Flush

The above examples both have the exact same hand strength and will beat any hand on the table.

2. Straight Flush

A straight flush is a suited set of cards all following in sequential order. All cards must be connected one after another and all consist of the same suit. For instance: 10 9 8 7 6 would be a straight flush. The straight flush with the highest card will win. For example: 8 7 6 5 4 will loose to 9 8 7 6 5. An ace may also be used as a low card in a straight flush (or any type of straight for that matter). For instance: 5 4 3 2 A would be the lowest possible straight flush. However, 3 2 A K Q is not an eligible hand and therefore would only count as a flush, not a straight flush.

Straight Flush Examples:

Example 1 - Straight Flush two to six

Example 2 - Straight Flush king high

Example 3 - Straight Flush ace to five (Notice the ace being used as a low card)

3. Four of a kind

A four of a kind consists of four cards of the same rank. For instance: 7 7 7 7 10 would be a four of a kind. A four of a kind can be created with any four cards. In the case of two hands having a four of a kind the 4 of a kind with the highest kicker wins the pot. For example: 9 9 9 9 A is better than 9 9 9 9 K.

Four of a kind examples:

Example 1 - Four of a kind Jacks

Example 2 - Four of a kind fours

4. Full House

A full house is 3 of a kind and a pair. This can be any 3 cards of the same rank and any 2 cards of the same rank. For instance: Q Q Q 3 3 is a valid full house. This would be called "Queens full of threes" or "Queens over threes". The full house with the highest 3 of a kind is valued as the best hand. For example: K K K A A would loose to A A A 2 2.

Full House Examples

Example 1 - Full House sixes over threes

Example 2 - Full House tens full of kings

5. Flush

A flush is all cards suited as the same suit in any sequence. For instance: 5 10 9 K 2 is a flush. The flush with the highest flush card will win the pot. So a flush with Q K 10 8 7 will loose to 2 4 5 7 A. Having an ace in your hand that is part of the flush is know as having the "nut flush". It is not possible for a flush to beat your hand if you are holding an ace that follows the suit of the flush.

Flush Examples:

Example 1 - Flush Queen high

Example 2 - Ace high flush (also the nut flush)

6. Straight

A straight is a sequence of cards all listed in order of any suit. For example: 3 4 5 6 7 is a valid straight. Straights can also use the Ace as a high straight and as a low straight like in the straight flush. For instance: A 2 3 4 5 is also considered a straight. But once again, straights may not wrap around from low to high like K A 2 3 4. The straight with the highest card wins.

Straight Examples:

Example 1 - Straight Ten high

Example 2 - Straight Ace to Five (Notice the ace being used as a low card)

7. Three of a kind

Three of a kind is any 3 cards that are of the same value. For instance: 5 5 5 K 10 is four of a kind fives (also known as trips). In the case that two 3 of a kinds go up head to head in a pot the three of a kind with the higher rank will win. For example: K K K 3 4 will beat Q Q Q A K.

Three of a kind examples:

Example 1 - Three of a kind eights

Example 2 - Queen Trips

8. Two pair

Two pair consists of a pair and another pair of different rank. For instance: 3 3 Q Q 10. In the event that two 2 pair go head to head the hand with the highest pair will win. Therefore K K Q Q A will loose to A A 2 2 3. It does not matter if both pairs added together are higher than the other pairs added together. All it takes is the highest single pair to win the pot. It is usually slightly better odds if you are holding a higher pair such as Ace, King or Queen. If the top 2 pair are the same but the bottom two are different the hand with the higher bottom pair will win. For instance: 10 10 5 5 8 will beat 10 10 5 5 7. In the event of two hands holding the same two pair the winning hand will be based off the remaining non-paired card in the hand (the kicker). For example: K K Q Q 3 will loose to K K Q Q A.

Two pair examples:

Example 1 - 2 pair jacks and tens

Example 2 - A pair of fives and a pair of kings

9. Pair

A pair is any two cards of the same rank. For instance: 4 4 7 Q 3 is a pair of fours. The higher pair will win in the event of 2 pairs going up against each other in a pot. For example 10 10 K A Q will loose to A A 10 2 3. In the event of two hands with a pair going head to head with the same pair the pair with the highest "kicker", or non-paired card, will win.

Pair examples:

Example 1 - Pair of threes

Example 2 - Pair of nines

10. High Card

A high card is the single highest card of all the hands. For instance A 6 5 3 2 will beat K Q 10 9 5. In the event of both hands consisting of the same high card the next highest card will be used to determine the best hand. For instance 8 6 4 3 2 will loose to 8 7 6 4 3. This same pattern follows all the way down to the highest card that is not matched. For example: K 10 8 6 5 will beat K 10 8 6 4.

Examples of high card:

Example 1 - High card ace

Example 2 - High card ten

Once you have determined what beat what we recommend you try out our poker odds calculator to determine which hands have the best odds.