Poker Hand Rankings — Every Hand Ranked From Best to Worst
The complete, printable poker hand rankings chart — from Royal Flush to High Card with examples, probabilities, and what beats what.
Poker Hand Rankings — Every Hand Ranked From Best to Worst: A complete guide with practical tips you can use right away.
The 10 Poker Hands — Best to Worst
1. Royal Flush
A, K, Q, J, 10 — all the same suit
| Example | Description |
|---|---|
| A♠ K♠ Q♠ J♠ 10♠ | Royal Flush in Spades |
The best possible hand. Unbeatable. All four Royal Flushes are equal — suits don’t rank in standard poker.
Probability: 1 in 649,740 hands (0.000154%)
2. Straight Flush
Five consecutive cards, all the same suit
| Example | Description |
|---|---|
| 9♥ 8♥ 7♥ 6♥ 5♥ | Straight Flush, 9-high |
| 5♦ 4♦ 3♦ 2♦ A♦ | Straight Flush, 5-high (Ace plays low) |
A Royal Flush is technically the highest straight flush. Any other 5-card sequence of the same suit is a straight flush.
Tiebreaker: The highest top card wins. 9-high beats 8-high.
Probability: 1 in 72,193 hands (0.00139%)
3. Four of a Kind (Quads)
Four cards of the same rank + one kicker
| Example | Description |
|---|---|
| K♠ K♥ K♦ K♣ 7♠ | Four Kings |
| 3♠ 3♥ 3♦ 3♣ A♥ | Four Threes, Ace kicker |
Tiebreaker: Higher quad wins. If quads are the same (possible in community card games), the highest kicker wins.
Probability: 1 in 4,165 hands (0.024%)
4. Full House (Boat)
Three of a kind + a pair
| Example | Description |
|---|---|
| A♠ A♥ A♦ 8♣ 8♥ | Aces full of Eights |
| 10♠ 10♥ 10♦ 4♣ 4♥ | Tens full of Fours |
Tiebreaker: The three-of-a-kind rank is compared first. Aces full of Twos beats Kings full of Aces.
Probability: 1 in 694 hands (0.144%)
5. Flush
Five cards of the same suit (not consecutive)
| Example | Description |
|---|---|
| A♣ J♣ 8♣ 6♣ 2♣ | Ace-high flush in Clubs |
| K♥ 10♥ 7♥ 4♥ 3♥ | King-high flush in Hearts |
Tiebreaker: Compare the highest card, then the second-highest, and so on. A♣ J♣ 8♣ 6♣ 2♣ beats A♦ J♦ 8♦ 5♦ 3♦ (the 6 beats the 5).
Probability: 1 in 509 hands (0.197%)
6. Straight
Five consecutive cards of mixed suits
| Example | Description |
|---|---|
| Q♠ J♥ 10♦ 9♣ 8♥ | Queen-high straight |
| 5♦ 4♣ 3♥ 2♠ A♦ | Five-high straight (the “wheel”) |
The Ace can play high (A-K-Q-J-10) or low (5-4-3-2-A) but not wrap around (Q-K-A-2-3 is NOT a straight).
Tiebreaker: The highest top card wins. An Ace-high straight (“Broadway”) beats all others.
Probability: 1 in 255 hands (0.392%)
7. Three of a Kind (Trips/Set)
Three cards of the same rank + two unrelated kickers
| Example | Description |
|---|---|
| 7♠ 7♥ 7♦ K♣ 2♥ | Three Sevens |
| A♠ A♥ A♦ 9♣ 4♠ | Three Aces |
Tiebreaker: Higher trips win. If trips are equal, compare kickers.
Probability: 1 in 47 hands (2.11%)
8. Two Pair
Two different pairs + one kicker
| Example | Description |
|---|---|
| J♠ J♥ 4♦ 4♣ A♠ | Jacks and Fours, Ace kicker |
| A♠ A♥ 3♦ 3♣ K♥ | Aces and Threes, King kicker |
Tiebreaker: Highest pair is compared first, then second pair, then kicker. A-A-3-3-K beats K-K-Q-Q-A.
Probability: 1 in 21 hands (4.75%)
9. One Pair
Two cards of the same rank + three kickers
| Example | Description |
|---|---|
| 10♠ 10♥ A♦ 8♣ 3♥ | Pair of Tens, A-8-3 kicker |
| A♠ A♥ K♦ 7♣ 2♠ | Pair of Aces, K-7-2 kicker |
Tiebreaker: Higher pair wins. If pairs match, compare kickers from highest to lowest.
Probability: 1 in 2.4 hands (42.3%)
10. High Card
No matching ranks, no straight, no flush
| Example | Description |
|---|---|
| A♠ J♥ 8♦ 6♣ 2♥ | Ace-high |
| K♦ 10♣ 8♥ 5♠ 3♦ | King-high |
When nobody has any of the above hands, the highest card wins.
Tiebreaker: Compare cards from highest to lowest. A-J-8-6-2 beats A-J-8-5-3.
Probability: 1 in 2 hands (50.1%) — by far the most common “hand”
Quick Reference Chart
| Rank | Hand | Example | Probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Royal Flush | A♠ K♠ Q♠ J♠ 10♠ | 0.000154% |
| 2 | Straight Flush | 9♥ 8♥ 7♥ 6♥ 5♥ | 0.00139% |
| 3 | Four of a Kind | K♠ K♥ K♦ K♣ 7♠ | 0.024% |
| 4 | Full House | A♠ A♥ A♦ 8♣ 8♥ | 0.144% |
| 5 | Flush | A♣ J♣ 8♣ 6♣ 2♣ | 0.197% |
| 6 | Straight | Q♠ J♥ 10♦ 9♣ 8♥ | 0.392% |
| 7 | Three of a Kind | 7♠ 7♥ 7♦ K♣ 2♥ | 2.11% |
| 8 | Two Pair | J♠ J♥ 4♦ 4♣ A♠ | 4.75% |
| 9 | One Pair | 10♠ 10♥ A♦ 8♣ 3♥ | 42.3% |
| 10 | High Card | A♠ J♥ 8♦ 6♣ 2♥ | 50.1% |
Kicker Rules Explained
A kicker is an unpaired card used to break ties. Kickers matter most with pairs and two pairs.
Example 1: Pair Tiebreaker
- Player A: A♠ A♥ K♦ 9♣ 4♠ (pair of Aces, King kicker)
- Player B: A♦ A♣ Q♥ J♠ 7♦ (pair of Aces, Queen kicker)
- Player A wins — King kicker beats Queen kicker
Example 2: Two Pair Tiebreaker
- Player A: K♠ K♥ 8♦ 8♣ A♠ (Kings and Eights, Ace kicker)
- Player B: K♦ K♣ 8♥ 8♠ J♥ (Kings and Eights, Jack kicker)
- Player A wins — Ace kicker beats Jack kicker
Example 3: No Kicker Needed
- Player A: A♠ A♥ A♦ K♣ K♥ (Aces full of Kings)
- Player B: A♣ A♠ A♦ Q♣ Q♥ (Aces full of Queens)
- Player A wins — All 5 cards are used in the hand comparison; King pair beats Queen pair
When Kickers Don’t Matter
In hands where all 5 cards are part of the ranking (straight, flush, full house, straight flush), there are no kickers. All 5 cards determine the hand’s strength.
Common Mistakes
- Thinking a straight beats a flush — It doesn’t. Flush ranks higher.
- Thinking suits matter — In standard poker, suits never determine a winner. A♠ flush ties A♣ flush.
- Ignoring kickers — Players often forget that all 5 cards matter. A-A-K-7-2 beats A-A-Q-J-10.
- A-2-3-4-5 isn’t the lowest straight — It IS a straight (called the “wheel”), and it’s the lowest one.
- K-A-2-3-4 is NOT a straight — The Ace can be high or low, but not both. No wrapping.
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