Poker Hand Rankings: Chart From Best to Worst
There are ten poker hands. The order is: royal flush, straight flush, four of a kind, full house, flush, straight, three of a kind, two pair, one pair and high card. Below you see each hand with its five cards, and the rules that decide ties.
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The ten hands, from best to worst
Rank 1 is the strongest hand and rank 10 is the weakest. A hand of a higher rank always beats a hand of a lower rank. The cards below are one example for each rank.
Ten, jack, queen, king and ace of one suit. It is the highest possible straight flush.
Five cards in a row, all of the same suit.
Four cards of the same rank, plus any fifth card.
Three cards of one rank and two cards of another rank.
Five cards of the same suit, not in a row.
Five cards in a row, of mixed suits.
Three cards of the same rank and two unrelated cards.
Two cards of one rank, two cards of another rank, and one more card.
Two cards of the same rank and three unrelated cards.
None of the hands above. The highest card, here the ace, gives the hand its name.
How many five-card hands exist for each rank
A 52-card deck makes 2,598,960 different five-card hands. The table counts them by rank. The rarer the hand, the higher it ranks.
| Rank | Hand | Combinations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Royal flush | 4 |
| 2 | Straight flush (without the royal flush) | 36 |
| 3 | Four of a kind | 624 |
| 4 | Full house | 3,744 |
| 5 | Flush (without straight flushes) | 5,108 |
| 6 | Straight (without straight flushes) | 10,200 |
| 7 | Three of a kind | 54,912 |
| 8 | Two pair | 123,552 |
| 9 | One pair | 1,098,240 |
| 10 | High card | 1,302,540 |
It counts five-card hands. In Texas Hold'em you choose five cards out of seven, so the real chances of each hand differ from the counts above.
The ace in straights
The ace is the highest card, but it can also sit at the bottom of a straight. A-2-3-4-5 is a valid straight, and it is the lowest one. 10-J-Q-K-A is the highest straight.
A straight cannot wrap around the ace. Q-K-A-2-3 is not a straight. When two players both have straights, the one with the higher top card wins, so 2-3-4-5-6 beats A-2-3-4-5.
Suits never rank above one another
Spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs are equal in poker. Suits only matter for making a flush. If two players hold the same hand in different suits, the hands are equal.
How ties are decided
If two players have the same type of hand, we compare the ranks of the cards. The cards that are not part of the pair, the three or the four are called kickers. We compare from the highest card down, and the first difference decides.
Player A holds Ks Kd 9h 5c 2d. Player B holds Kh Kc 9c 4d 3s.
Both have a pair of kings, so the pair is equal. Both have a nine as the next card, so that is equal too.
The next kickers are 5 for player A and 4 for player B. Five is higher, so player A wins.
Player A holds 8s 8h 8d 3c 3s. Player B holds 6s 6h 6d Ac Ad.
For a full house we compare the three of a kind first, then the pair.
Three eights beat three sixes, so player A wins. The pair of aces does not help player B.
For two flushes, compare the highest card first, then the second highest, and so on. If all five cards have the same ranks, the hands are equal and the pot is split.
Best five of seven cards in Texas Hold'em
In Texas Hold'em you have two hole cards and there are five community cards. Your hand is the best five cards from these seven. You may use both hole cards, one of them, or none.
Your hole cards: 9h 9d. The board: 9s Kc Kd 4h 2c.
Your seven cards give three nines and two kings. The best five are 9h 9d 9s Kc Kd, a full house.
If you held 3h 5c instead, your best five would be Kc Kd 9s 5c 4h, which is only one pair of kings.
Common mistakes
- Thinking that a flush beats a full house. The full house is rank 4 and the flush is rank 5.
- Counting Q-K-A-2-3 as a straight. The straight never wraps around the ace.
- Ranking a hand by its suit. Suits are equal.
- Forgetting the kicker. Two hands with the same pair are not always equal, the next card can decide.
- Using only the hole cards. The board cards belong to every player.
Frequently asked questions
What is the highest hand in poker?
The royal flush is the highest hand: 10, J, Q, K and A of the same suit. It is the top straight flush, and there are only four of them in a 52-card deck.
Does a flush beat a straight?
Yes, a flush beats a straight. A flush is rank 5 and a straight is rank 6 in the chart above.
Is an ace high or low in a straight?
It can be both. The ace is high in 10-J-Q-K-A and low in A-2-3-4-5, but a straight cannot go around the corner, so Q-K-A-2-3 does not count.
What happens if two players have the same hand?
The kickers decide first. If all five cards are equal in rank, the pot is split equally between them.