Here are the poker hands ranked in order from best to worst: Royal Flush, Straight Flush, Four of a Kind, Full House, Flush, Straight, Three of a Kind, Two Pairs, One Pair, High Card. It really is as simple as that!
But that’s hardly the only thing there is to say about the different hands in poker. On this page, we will show you examples of all possible Texas Hold’em hands, and introduce you to some useful stats along the way. Let’s start with the basics!
Poker Hand Rankings
| Poker Hand | Description | Example |
| #1. Royal Flush | Five consecutive highest cards in one suit | AhKhQhJhTh |
| #2. Straight Flush | Five consecutive cards of the same suit | Td9d8d7d6d |
| #3. Four of a Kind | Four cards of the same ranking | 6s6h6c6dAc |
| #4. Full House | Three of a kind + one pair | 9s9d9c7h7c |
| #5. Flush | Any five cards of the same suit | As9s7s5s4s |
| #6. Straight | Any five consecutive cards of various suits | QhJsTd9c8h |
| #7. Three of a Kind | Three cards of the same ranking | KdKsKc9s7h |
| #8. Two Pairs | Two pairs of cards of the same rank | JhJs7h7sAd |
| #9. One Pair | One pair of cards of the same ranking | AcAd8h6c4s |
| #10. High Card | A hand that contains none of the above | KdQc8s5h2s |
#1. Royal Flush
The strongest hand in Texas Hold’em, a Royal Flush is made up of the five highest cards of a single suit. For example, AsKsQsJsTs makes up a Royal Flush.
#2. Straight Flush
Similar to a Royal Flush, a Straight Flush is made up of any five consecutive cards of the same suit. For example, 7c6c5c4c3c makes a straight flush.
#3. Four of a Kind
Also known as Quads, Four of a Kind is made up of four cards of the same ranking, along with one other card. For example, JsJhJcJdAh is Four of a Kind Jacks.
#4. Full House
A Full House is a poker hand made up of three of a kind and one pair, and rates as one of the strongest poker hands you make on a regular basis. For example, QdQsQh9s9h makes a full house.
#5. Flush
A Flush is a poker hand made up of five cards of the same suit that are not consecutive in ranking. For example, AhQh7h5h2h makes a Heart Flush.
#6. Straight
A straight is made up of five cards of consecutive rankings, which have any variety of suits. For example, JdTs9d8c7h is a Jack High Straight.
#7. Three of a Kind
Three of a kind is an interesting hand as it can be made in two ways in Texas Hold’em Poker. If made with two hole cards and one community card, it’s called a Set. If made with one hole card and two community cards, it’s called Trips. For example, JhJsJd7c4d is Three of a Kind Jacks.
#8. Two Pairs
Another complex hand, Two Pair is made up of two pairs of cards of the same ranking. For example, AdAcTdTs4h makes for Two Pair Aces and Tens.
#9. One Pair
One of the most common poker hands, One Pair is made up of just two cards of the same ranking, and three unconnected cards. For example, 6d6sAh9c3h makes One Pair Sixes.
#10. High Card
If a poker hand contains no pairs, straights, or flushes, it is called a High Card hand, and it’s beaten by any “made hand.” For example, KhJs9d6s3h makes High Card King.
Poker Hand Probabilities & Ranking Rules
Now that we have discussed the different Texas Hold’em hands and their ranking, let’s discuss some statistics.
After all, poker is a game of probabilities and odds. If you don’t know those odds yet, the table below will teach you some basic probabilities of getting dealt the different poker hands:
| Poker Hand | How Often You Get It | Odds |
| Royal Flush | 1 in 649,740 | 0.00015% |
| Straight Flush | 1 in 72,139 | 0.0014% |
| Four of a Kind | 1 in 4,166 | 0.024% |
| Full House | 1 in 695 | 0.144% |
| Flush | 1 in 510 | 0.1965% |
| Straight | 1 in 256 | 0.39% |
| Three of a Kind | 1 in 47 | 2.11% |
| Two Pair | 1 in 21 | 4.75% |
| One Pair | 1 in 2.37 | 42.2% |
| High Card | 1 in 2 | 50.1% |
How is the Winner Determined
Determining the winning hand in Texas Hold’em is quite simple. If a hand reaches showdown, the dealer asks the players to turn their hole cards over before making the decision.
The hands are compared according to the poker hand rankings, as the dealer determines the best possible card combination for each player.
Remember, all Texas Hold’em hands are made up of exactly five cards. You can use any combination of hole cards and community cards to make that five card poker hand.
In the end, the dealer will crown the winner of the hand based on how their poker hands are ranked, and there will be little confusion at the showdown.
If you are unsure as to why the dealer assigned the pot to the other person, you can always ask the dealer to compare the hands again and verbalize his process.
Kickers and Dealing with Ties
While determining the best hand is quite simple, it can sometimes get trickier. This is usually the case when two players have the “same hand.”
A good example of this is when two players have the same one pair hand. For example, both players have an ace in the hole, and there is an ace on the board. In this case, they both have a pair of aces, so who wins?
These ties are decided by looking at the “kicker.” The kicker is the highest ranked card you hold along with your one pair, two pair, three of a kind, or four of a kind.
When two players have the same hand in these scenarios, the dealer compares kickers to determine the winner. If the first kicker is also the same, the dealer moves on to the next card.
If two or more players have the exact same hand, the hand ends in a tie and a split pot is announced. In this case, the dealer will split the pot into two or more equal parts, and every player with the winning hand will receive their fair share.
Do Suits Matter in Poker?
One final question to ask in regards to poker hand rankings is how do suits affect them and do they actually matter?
For the most part, suits don’t really matter in Texas Hold’em poker. The only hand affected by suits in this game is a flush, and it is only possible for players to make a flush in a single suit in any Texas Hold’em hand.
In all other cases, suits don’t come into play. For example, if two players have a pair, the suits of their cards will never affect the outcome of the hand.
While poker suits are ranked in order of value (Spade, Heart, Diamond, Club), these rankings only apply to scenarios like determining the dealer at the start of the game and some situations in other poker games, such as Seven-Card Stud.
Top 10 Texas Hold’em Hands
If you ever find yourself in the situation where you are not sure which hands to play, refer to our poker preflop charts and push fold charts, and bookmark those pages. To make things simple, here are the ten best starting hands you can get dealt in Texas Hold’em, starting with everyone’s favorite, pocket Aces.
#1 – Pocket Aces
Pocket Aces is the best starting hand you can get in Texas Hold’em poker. A pair of Aces is the holy grail of poker, and you can expect to get it about once every 221 poker hands.
Pocket Aces are rare, but they are extremely powerful, holding at least 80% equity against any other poker hand.
That means when you get dealt Aces, you are very likely to win the pot, and quite a few times, it’s going to be a big one.
Always play your Aces aggressively and try to get another player to put all their chips into the pot before the flop is dealt.
#2 – Pocket Kings
A pair of Kings is the second best hand in poker, and it’s another one that you should be quite excited to see. Like Aces, Kings are dealt once in every 221 hands, making them a rare find.
If you do get dealt KK, make sure to play aggressively, try to commit your opponents to the pot, and don’t worry too much about someone having AA, as it happens very rarely.
Instead, do your best to conceal the strength of your hand and make sure to put in as many chips as you can into the pot on early betting streets.
The one time you will want to re-evaluate and be careful is when you get to the flop and there is an Ace out there, as your opponents could now easily have you beat with a single pair.
#3 – Pocket Queens
The next best pocket pair in the game is pocket Queens. Seeing a pair of beautiful ladies walk down the street is always a pleasure, as is seeing a pair of Queens at the poker table.
Don’t fall in love too quickly, though. Queens can be dangerous, and any AK combination will have nearly 50% equity against them.
Yet, QQ can definitely be a hand to win some huge pots with, so don’t be afraid to put in those re-raises and play your Queens like the monster hand they are.
#4 – Ace King Suited
The first hand in our top 10 ranking that’s not a pocket pair, Ace King Suited, is a very powerful holding that occurs once every 330 hands.
It may seem wrong that AKs is more rare than AA, but it is! There are only four combinations of suited AK, while there are six combinations of any pocket pair in poker.
That said, AKs is not a better hand than AA, but it is one that comes pretty close. You will usually want to play your AKs for a lot of chips and should not be too concerned about someone having AA or KK to crush you.
Be aware that your AKs will end up in many coinflips with other pocket pairs, but will always have close to 50% chance to win if things come that far.
#5 – Pocket Jacks
Players are often worried about how to play pocket Jacks, but we say push them to the limit and don’t be afraid of monsters.
Like other big pocket pairs, pocket Jacks can be susceptible to overcards on the board, but it can also win big against other pairs or overcards that commit money before the flop.
Once the stacks start getting deeper, you will want to stay away from putting all the money into the pot preflop, but in tournament play where the stacks are shallow, JJ will often be a hand to go with for your tournament life.
#6 – Ace King Offsuit
The offsuit version of AK is a lot more common than the suited one, but is only slightly less powerful than its suited counterpart.
For the most part, you will want to play your AK equally as aggressively as AKs, if not more, as winning the pot without resistance is even more important when you are not suited.
When playing with AK, be aggressive and try to win big pots without having to go to a showdown.
#7 – Ace Queen Suited
The next hand on our list is AQs, which look very pretty and pack quite a mean punch, although they are not quite as strong as AKs.
Your main concern with AQs is that someone else could have AK, which puts you in a very bet position from the get go.
However, barring the few better hands, AQs rates to be the best hand a majority of the time. Play it aggressively preflop and expect to win quite a few big pots against inferior Ax hands.
#8 – Pocket Tens
The next on the list of high pocket pairs, pocket Tens is a hand that starts looking a little less attractive when tons of chips start going in preflop.
For that reason, TT is a great hand to play a bit less aggressively preflop and try to get your opponents to put money in with smaller pairs and other hands that aren’t quite as strong.
You will still often get all-in before the flop with TT in tournaments, but playing with a deep stack, you should play your Tens a bit more creatively and find ways to win chips from players who don’t have stellar starting cards.
#9 – Pocket Nines
Pocket Nines are very similar to pocket Tens, which is why you should similarly play them and hope for similar outcomes.
Winning the pot before the flop with 99 is always amazing, and seeing a flop in a single raised pot is good news.
However, be very careful not to overplay your 99 and fall in love with a pocket pair, as there are simply quite a few hands that could have you beat.
#10 – Ace Jack Suited
AJs is the last hand on our list of the top ten poker hands. Although you might not consider it a premium, it’s still worth your attention.
AJs perform quite well overall, especially in single raised pots and when playing in position.
You want to refrain from playing AJs too aggressively or putting in too many chips with this card combo, but instead keep in the opponents with weaker cards and get them to lose more money when they improve on later streets.
What Beats What in Poker?
That’s it! You now know the poker hand rankings by heart and should be able to tell which hand beats which at any time.
We have given you a crash course on some basic probabilities and stats of poker hands in poker, and have shown you the best poker hands in order. The next step is to grab our Texas Hold’em poker cheat sheet, and master the rest of the basics.
If you haven’t yet, make sure to memorize the rankings before you play your first poker game. Knowing who is ahead is the most essential knowledge you will need to win.