Poker is a popular card game that compares poker hands played between two or more players. It involves playing cards that make up the poker hands in order used in the game. Each hand has a specific ranking according to the cards that make up the hand. The highest to lowest hands are Royal Flush, Straight Flush, Four-of-a-Kind, Full House, Flush, Straight, Three-of-a-Kind, Two Pair, and One Pair.

Mastering the various hand rankings will give you an edge against your opponents. Understanding which hand can beat which hand is crucial for success.



Poker Hand Ranking

Knowing how poker hand combinations work will make it easier to remember them during a poker game so that you can make the right decisions at critical moments.
Keep on reading to know the poker hands ranked in order.

1. The Royal Flush

This hand is the highest-ranking poker hand that defeats all other hands in poker. It comprises five consecutive cards of the same suit, numbered 10 through Ace.

No other hand can beat a Royal Flush in poker, but there may be 2 or more players holding this hand. These players will have a tie and equally split the pot.

2. The Straight Flush

Comprises five consecutive cards of the same suit, such as 10, 9, 8, 7, and 6 of diamonds. Only a player with a royal flush or another straight flush with higher-ranking cards can beat this poker hand.

A Straight Flush can defeat all hands except the Royal Flush.



3. The Four-of-a-Kind

A Four-of-a-Kind poker hand is one of the more common sequences and refers to the same card in all four suits. The fifth card of this poker hand is known as the kicker. When two players have the same Four-of-a-Kind in a community card game, the player with the highest fifth card or kicker gets the pot.

It can beat all other hands except for a Straight Flush and Royal Flush.

4. The Full House

A Full House poker hand comprises three cards with the same value (also known as Three-of-a-Kind) and a pair of similar-ranking cards in two suits.

A Full House is dominated by a Royal Flush, Four of a Kind, and Straight Flush but wins against all other lower-ranking cards.

5. The Flush

This poker hand consists of five cards of the same suit arranged in any order. When there are more than two players with a Flush, the one with the highest value card wins.

A Straight, Three-of-a-Kind, Two-Pair, One Pair, and High Card all lose to Flush. On the other hand, a Flush is defeated by a Royal Flush, Four-of-a-Kind, Straight Flush, and Full House.



6. The Straight

A straight is five cards in a row that do not have to be of the same suit.

An Ace can be used as the highest or lowest card in the sequence, making it possible to form a high straight and a low straight. The highest Straight is A-K-Q-J-10, also known as "Broadway," while the lowest is 5-4-3-2-A, defined as "wheel."

If one player has a Straight with A-K-Q-J-10 and another with a Straight with K-Q-J-10-9, the first player will win.

Remember, A Royal Flush, Straight Flush, Four-of-a-Kind, Full House, and Flush are all card hands that can beat a Straight.

7. The Three-of-a-Kind

Three cards of the same rank in different suits and two unrelated side cards make up this hand. If there is a tie, the Three-of-a-Kind with the highest ranking cards gets to advance. If both players have the same Three-of-a-Kind, everything will be based on the highest side card and, if necessary, the second-highest side card.

A Three-of-a-Kind outperforms Two-Pair, One-Pair, and High Card. In contrast, this hand loses to Straight, Flush, Full House, Four-of-a-Kind, Straight Flush, and Royal Flush.

8. Two-Pair

In poker, two pair is a hand consisting of two cards of the same rank, plus two cards of another rank (also matching each other) and any fifth card. It ranks below three of a kind but above one pair.

The highest-ranking two pairs in Texas Hold'em are aces and kings (a pair of Aces are known as "American Airlines" while two kings are known as “Cowboys” ).

All other hands are ranked according to the highest card in each pair. For example, if you have a hand with two 4's and two 6's, it would be considered a "6-4" two-pair hand because the 6 is the highest card.

A Two-pair beats one pair and a High Card every time, while it loses to Royal Flush, Straight Flush, Four-of-a-Kind, Full House, Flush, Straight, and Three-of-a-Kind.

9. One Pair

In the poker game, one pair is when a player has two cards of the same rank.

This hand ranks below two pairs and above high cards. One pair can also be referred to as a pocket pair or simply a pair. It is important to note that suits do not matter in determining the rank of a one-pair hand; only the rank of the two matching cards matters.

If two players have a one-pair hand, the higher-ranking pair wins. In cases where both players have the same pair, the highest card in their remaining unrelated cards (kicker) decides who wins the pot.

For example, if both players had a pair of eights and player A had an Ace kicker, and player B had a King kicker, then player A would win the pot.

With the poker card hands in order, One Pair is beaten by Royal Flush, Straight Flush, Four-of-a-Kind, Full House, Flush, Straight, Three-of-a-Kind, and Two-Pair. On the other hand, it wins against a High Card or a lower-ranking pair.

10. High Card

This hand is the lowest-ranking poker hand and only defeats another card with a lower ranking. All hands can beat the High Card.

Conclusion

Furthermore, it's worth recognizing that while traditional poker hand rankings never change, there are times when a seemingly weak hand can end up being more valuable than an expected strong one.

For example, having two pairs may appear to be a good hand.

However, if your opponent continues to bet into you, and it is possible that he has a straight or flush, your two-pair is no longer looking so good. So always use the best poker hands in order at every game.

You may start your poker career by signing up at GGPoker today! Good luck!