Poker Hand Rankings
The following poker hands are ranked in descending order, from best to worst.
Royal Flush
The Royal Flush is the best hand in Poker. No other hand can beat it. The only downside is that it is extremely rare! Even players who play poker regularly will rarely see the Royal Flush. The Royal Flush, is a straight flush, all the same suit, but with cards from Ten to Ace.
Straight Flush
This hand is not as good as the Royal Flush but it is still a gem. A Straight Flush contains any five cards in a row with all being the same suit.
Four of a Kind
This hand means that you have all four cards of the same kind.
Full House
A Full House occurs when you have Three of a Kind and a Pair in the same hand. If two players have a Full House, the Three of a Kind is used first to determine who has the higher hand. If both players have the same Three of a Kind then the player with the higher Pair is the winner.
Flush
A Flush occurs when you have any five cards but all the same suit. If more than one flush occurs in the same hand, the player with the highest card wins the hand.
Straight
A Straight is when the player holds five cards that are numerically sequential. The exception to the rule is the Ace card. The Ace may be used as either a low card (like a 1), or as the Ace. Ex; A 2 3 4 5 or T J Q K A. Both are Straights with the latter one being the higher Straight.
Three of a Kind
This hand means that you have three cards of the same kind.
Two Pair
Two Pair occurs when you have two separate pairs of cards. Ex; Q Q 8 8 3. The person with the largest pair wins the pot. For example, A A 3 3 8 will beat K K Q Q 5. If both players have the same high pair, the second higher pair of cards determines the winner.
Pair
This is a very common hand in poker. The highest pair wins. If both players have the same high pair then the High Cards are looked at next to determine which hand is higher.
High Card
This hand means that there are no pairs, straights, or flushes. The person with the highest card will win the pot. If two players have the same high card, the next highest card is used to determine the winner. Ace is the highest card in this instance.
| Hand | Example |
| Royal Flush | T♠ J♠ Q♠ K♠ A♠ |
| Straight Flush | 5♥ 6♥ 7♥ 8♥ 9♥ |
| Four of a Kind | 7♥ 7♠ 7♣ 7♦ 4♦ |
| Full House | Q♣ Q♦ Q♠ 4♥ 4♠ |
| Flush | 8♣ 4♣ T♣ 2♣ A♣ |
| Straight | 6♣ 7♦ 8♣ 9♣ T♠ |
| Three of a Kind | 2♣ 2♥ 2♠ 8♦ T♠ |
| Two Pair | A♣ A♠ 8♥ 8♦ T♦ |
| Pair | 5♠ 5♥ 9♦ Q♦ A♣ |
| High Card | A♠ 2♣ 5♦ 8♣ T♦ |
Royal Flush
The Royal Flush is the best hand in Poker. No other hand can beat it. The only downside is that it is extremely rare! Even players who play poker regularly will rarely see the Royal Flush. The Royal Flush, is a straight flush, all the same suit, but with cards from Ten to Ace.
Straight Flush
This hand is not as good as the Royal Flush but it is still a gem. A Straight Flush contains any five cards in a row with all being the same suit.
Four of a Kind
This hand means that you have all four cards of the same kind.
Full House
A Full House occurs when you have Three of a Kind and a Pair in the same hand. If two players have a Full House, the Three of a Kind is used first to determine who has the higher hand. If both players have the same Three of a Kind then the player with the higher Pair is the winner.
Flush
A Flush occurs when you have any five cards but all the same suit. If more than one flush occurs in the same hand, the player with the highest card wins the hand.
Straight
A Straight is when the player holds five cards that are numerically sequential. The exception to the rule is the Ace card. The Ace may be used as either a low card (like a 1), or as the Ace. Ex; A 2 3 4 5 or T J Q K A. Both are Straights with the latter one being the higher Straight.
Three of a Kind
This hand means that you have three cards of the same kind.
Two Pair
Two Pair occurs when you have two separate pairs of cards. Ex; Q Q 8 8 3. The person with the largest pair wins the pot. For example, A A 3 3 8 will beat K K Q Q 5. If both players have the same high pair, the second higher pair of cards determines the winner.
Pair
This is a very common hand in poker. The highest pair wins. If both players have the same high pair then the High Cards are looked at next to determine which hand is higher.
High Card
This hand means that there are no pairs, straights, or flushes. The person with the highest card will win the pot. If two players have the same high card, the next highest card is used to determine the winner. Ace is the highest card in this instance.
