Poker hands are the basis of every poker game: before you can read a table or judge your own position, you need to know which five-card combination beats which. This guide covers all ten poker hands from strongest to weakest with examples, the probability of each hand in a standard 52-card deck, and the rules for settling ties.
The ranking is the same in nearly every poker format, with a few exceptions. The guide also explains where hand rankings are used in casino games, and what is different in three card poker and video poker.
A poker hand is made of five cards. When a game deals more cards, such as the seven in Texas Hold'em, the strongest five-card combination counts. The order is:
The list has nine lines because the royal flush is simply the highest possible straight flush. Counted separately, there are ten hands.
A royal flush is ace, king, queen, jack and ten of one suit, for example A-K-Q-J-10 of hearts. It is the top hand and cannot be beaten. Any other five consecutive cards of one suit is a straight flush, such as 5-6-7-8-9 of spades. A higher straight flush beats a lower one.
Four of a kind is four cards of one rank plus any fifth card. A full house is three of a kind plus a pair, such as three kings and two fours. Between two full houses the three of a kind decides first, then the pair.
A flush is five cards of one suit that are not in sequence, for example K-J-9-6-2 of clubs. A straight is five consecutive cards in mixed suits, for example 4-5-6-7-8. The ace can be high (10-J-Q-K-A) or low (A-2-3-4-5), but a straight cannot wrap around, so Q-K-A-2-3 is not a straight.
Three of a kind is three cards of one rank and two unrelated cards. Two pair is two different pairs plus a fifth card. One pair is two cards of the same rank and three unrelated cards.
If a hand has none of the combinations above, its highest card decides. If the top cards match, the next card is compared, and so on.
Probabilities come from counting the ways to draw a five-card hand from 52 cards. There are 2,598,960 different five-card hands. The odds of each in a fixed five-card deal without draws are:
More than 92% of five-card hands are either a pair or a high card. The ranking follows this: the rarer the combination, the higher it ranks.
The figures change when cards are drawn or when seven cards are available, as in Texas Hold'em, where flushes and straights are noticeably more common than in the five-card table. These numbers describe a five-card deal only; they say nothing about what the next card will be. Every deal is independent of the last.
When two players hold the same type of hand, the cards inside the hand decide. Suits are not ranked against each other, so if all five cards match in rank the pot is split.
A kicker is a card outside the combination that settles a tie. K-K-Q-5-2 beats K-K-J-9-8, because the highest kicker Q is above J.
Casino poker differs from tournament or cash-game poker in that you play against the dealer or a paytable, not other players. The hand ranking is still how results are read.
In Casino Hold'em you and the dealer each get two cards and five community cards are dealt. The strongest five-card hand wins. The dealer usually needs a minimum hand, commonly a pair of fours, to qualify, but check the game's rules. Our catalogue includes Mascot Gaming's Casino Hold'em at an RTP of 99.30% and Playtech's live version at 99.18%.
In three card poker a hand has only three cards, so the ranking differs. With three cards a straight is rarer than a flush, so the straight ranks higher. The order is straight flush, three of a kind, straight, flush, pair, high card. Habanero's Three Card Poker has an RTP of 97.99%.
In video poker you are dealt five cards, choose which to hold, and the paytable pays by your strongest final hand. Paytables vary from game to game and change the RTP, so check it before playing. In Caribbean Stud you play a five-card hand against the dealer; Habanero's version has an RTP of 97.48%.
Oasis Poker is another five-card game with exchanges against the dealer. Betsoft's version has an RTP of 99.39%, and Evoplay's Texas Hold'em Poker 3D has 99.37%.
Hand ranking tells you which hand is strongest, not whether it is worth playing. In casino games the house edge is built into rules and paytables, and no knowledge of hands removes it. The better you know the order, the easier it is to follow the game and understand why a round ended the way it did.
From strongest to weakest: straight flush (royal flush at the top), four of a kind, full house, flush, straight, three of a kind, two pair, one pair and high card.
Yes, in five-card poker a flush beats a straight because it is rarer. In three card poker the order is reversed and a straight beats a flush.
A straight flush made of ace, king, queen, jack and ten of one suit. It is the highest hand, with a probability of 0.000154% in a five-card deal.
High card, at 50.1% of five-card hands. One pair follows at 42.3%.
A kicker is a card outside the main combination that breaks a tie. Between two equal pairs, the highest remaining card decides.
Yes. A-2-3-4-5 is a valid straight and the lowest one, but straights cannot wrap around, so Q-K-A-2-3 does not count.
Almost. Three card poker ranks a straight above a flush, and in video poker the win depends on the game's paytable.