All ten poker hands from royal flush to high card, with a worked example of each and the tie-break rules that decide close hands. Works for Texas Hold’em, video poker and every other standard poker game.
| # | Hand | Example | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Royal Flush | A♠ K♠ Q♠ J♠ 10♠ | Ace-high straight, all one suit |
| 2 | Straight Flush | 9♥ 8♥ 7♥ 6♥ 5♥ | Five in a row, all one suit |
| 3 | Four of a Kind | Q♠ Q♥ Q♦ Q♣ 7♠ | All four of one rank |
| 4 | Full House | K♠ K♥ K♦ 4♣ 4♠ | Three of a kind plus a pair |
| 5 | Flush | A♣ J♣ 8♣ 6♣ 3♣ | Five of one suit, not in order |
| 6 | Straight | 10♦ 9♠ 8♥ 7♣ 6♦ | Five in a row, mixed suits |
| 7 | Three of a Kind | 8♠ 8♥ 8♦ K♣ 2♠ | Three of one rank |
| 8 | Two Pair | J♠ J♥ 5♦ 5♣ 9♠ | Two different pairs |
| 9 | One Pair | 10♠ 10♥ A♦ 7♣ 3♠ | Two of one rank |
| 10 | High Card | A♠ Q♦ 9♥ 6♣ 3♠ | Nothing above — highest card plays |
Every standard poker game — Texas Hold'em, five-card draw, video poker, seven-card stud — uses the same ten-hand ranking. Learn it once and it transfers everywhere. The order is driven purely by rarity: the harder a hand is to make, the more it beats.
When two players hold the same category of hand, the highest card within the hand decides it. Two flushes? The one with the highest card wins, then the second highest, and so on. Two pair? Compare the higher pair first, then the lower pair, then the kicker.
Suits never break ties. There is no "spades beat hearts" rule in standard poker — if two hands are genuinely identical, the pot is split.
In Texas Hold'em you see seven cards, but your hand is the best five of them. If the board plays better than your hole cards, the board plays — and if it plays better for everyone, the pot splits.
A-2-3-4-5 is a straight. Known as the wheel or the bicycle, it is the lowest possible straight — the ace plays low, so it loses to 2-3-4-5-6.
Straights do not wrap around. Q-K-A-2-3 is not a straight. The ace can be high or low, never both at once.
A flush beats a straight. This trips up new players constantly. There are simply fewer ways to make a flush than a straight, so it ranks higher.
Three of a kind beats two pair. Also purely a rarity question, and also frequently misremembered at kitchen tables.
What is the best hand in poker? A royal flush — ace, king, queen, jack, ten, all in one suit. It is the top end of the straight-flush category rather than a separate hand.
Does a full house beat a flush? Yes. Full house is the fourth-strongest hand, flush is fifth.
What beats four of a kind? Only a straight flush or a royal flush.