Hierarchy Of Poker Hands Texas Holdem
If you’re learning to play poker, you’ll need to understand poker hand rankings before you can do anything else.
There are ten Poker hands in total, ranked from High Card to the most prized Royal Flush. Whilst there are many different poker variants, nearly all of them agree on the very same poker hand hierarchy. A Poker hand’s strength or rank is decided by its likelihood of being drawn. Therefore, the more likely a hand is to occur, the lower it will. Amazon com poker texas hold em quick reference guide, poker hand ranking official world series of poker online, janean orsos blog, janean orsos blog, the museum outlet charts of hierarchy of poker hands.
The hand order is the same in all forms of poker. It doesn’t matter whether you’re playing Texas Hold’em poker, Omaha, Stud or any other form of the game, all poker hands use five cards. But which are the best poker hands and which are the worst? Keep reading for our handy guide to get you ready to join the Poker Club community!
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Poker Hand Rankings
In Texas Hold’em, you’ll receive two hole cards, which are the hidden cards only used by you. Throughout the course of the game, five more cards will be dealt into the middle of the table, and they’re called community cards. These community cards can be used by everyone at the table.Once all cards have been dealt, you’ll need to make the best five-card poker hand from the seven available cards. You can use any combination from your hand and the board. Here are the complete poker hand rankings, starting with the best hands first, down to the weakest hands in order.
NB: In the following poker hand hierarchy examples, the first character represents the rank of the card, while the second represents the suit. For example, Ks means “King of Spades”.
Royal flush
The “Royal Flush” is famously the best possible hand in poker, so-called because it contains all of the “royal” cards, i.e. the five best cards, in the same suit. It is really just an Ace high straight flush, thus it sits at the top of the poker hand rankings.
The probability of making a Royal Flush in Texas Hold’em Poker is tiny, just 1 in 649,739, so don’t expect to see them very often!
Example hand:
Ah Kh Qh Jh 10h
Straight flush
Next up, there’s the straight flush, which is simply a less regal version of the royal flush. You’ll have a straight flush if you have five consecutive cards, all of the same suit. So, for example, 5-6-7-8-9, all of clubs, would be a straight flush. In Texas Hold’em poker, with average luck, you will complete a straight flush once every 3,590 hands. If two or more players have a straight flush, the player with the highest card in their hand will be declared the winner.
Example hand:
7d 6d 5d 4d 3d
Four of a kind
Just as the name suggests, this poker hand contains 4 cards of the exact same rank, with any other random fifth card completing the hand. A relatively strong hand among the poker rankings, the chances of making four of a kind in Texas Hold’em are just 1 in 595. This is an exceptionally strong hand but if two players have four of a kind, the four of a kind made up of the highest cards will win. If this still doesn’t lead to a winner, the kicker is used. Kickers are discussed further down this page.
Example hand:
Js Jd Jc Jh 3s
Full house
The next hand is the first of the more commonly seen hands. A full house is a hand containing three cards of the same value, and two other identical cards of a different value. For example, A-A-A-K-K would be a full house. The three of a kind part plays first, so “aces full” would beat “kings full”, for example. The below example is referred to as “Aces full of fours”, since it’s three of a kind Aces, with a pair of fours.The odds against completing a full house in Texas Hold’em poker are around 37.5 to 1. If two or more players have a full house, the player with the highest three of a kind will win. If this doesn’t lead to a winner, the player with the highest pair wins.
Example hand:
Ah Ac Ad 4s 4h
Flush
A flush is a hand featuring five cards all of the same suit. These five cards won’t be consecutive ones – if they were, you’d have a royal flush or straight flush instead. It’s a reasonably strong hand, but be careful before shoving all your money into the middle of the table, as it can often be beaten.If more than one player has a flush, the winner will be the player with the highest card in their flush. The second highest, then third highest, and so on are then used to separate hands.
Example hand:
Ks 9s 7s 6s 2s
Straight
Sitting right in the middle of the poker hand hierarchy, a straight is a hand with any five cards in running order, but not of the same suit.
The chances of making a straight are a little under 21 to 1 against in a game like Texas Hold’em. The player with the highest card in their hand will be declared the winner if multiple players have straights.
Example hand:
Qs Jd 10c 9h 8d
Three of a kind
No prizes for guessing that this is a hand that contains three cards all of the same suit. The other two cards will be different from one another – if they aren’t, you’ve got a full house, which is a much better hand. In Texas Hold’em poker, you’ll make three of a kind roughly once every 20 hands. The player with the highest cards in their three is the winner if more than one player has this hand. In the event of two or more players having the same three of a kind, then kickers are used.
Example hand:
9c 9h 9s 7h 5d
Two pair
If you are holding two different pairs with a random, unmatched card in your hand, then you have “two pair”. The bigger of the two pairs plays first, with the lesser pair only acting to break a tie. So Kings and threes would beat Queens and tens, for example, while Jacks and nines would beat Jacks and sevens.
Example hand:
Qs Qc 3h 3c 8d
Pair
One of the more common poker hands, and towards the bottom of the hand rankings. A pair is simply two cards of the same rank, with no other matching cards. In Texas Hold’em poker, you will find a pair in your two starting hole cards once every 17 hands on average.
Example hand:
10s 10d 6s 5h 2c
High Card
If your final five card hand doesn’t fit into any category in the above poker hand rankings, then you have the worst possible type of hand – high card. The best card in your hand plays, so the below example is “Ace high”. Ace high beats King high, and so on.
Example hand:
As Jh 9s 5d 4c
Understanding Kickers
To really bring your A-game, it helps to have a grasp on kickers too. Kickers are essentially spare cards in your hand. For example, if you had A-A-K-K-10, you’d have two pair and your kicker would be the 10.You might not think that your kicker is important, but it can be the difference between winning or losing a pot. This is because the kicker will be used to determine the winner when two players have the same hand. For example, if both players have A-A-K-K in their hand, however, one has a 10 kicker and the other has an 8, the player with the 10 wins, as they have the higher kicker.If both kickers are also the same and the hand allows, the second kicker will then be used, then the third. If two players have exactly the same hands though, the pot will be split.
Now you’re ready to raise your game in Poker Club, available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X S.
See you at the table!
What Are The Poker Hands
Though the rules vary according to the poker tournament variant, the highest poker hand ranking always wins. Poker hand order is determined by the pattern formed by the cards. If the patterns formed are the same, then the poker card rankings determine the winner. Individual cards in poker order are ranked highest to lowest: A, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3 and 2.
Suits are not ranked, so hands that differ by suit alone are of equal rank. The top poker hands to play fall into nine categories using a standard deck of 52 cards. A player can form 2,598,960 distinct poker hands since the order in which they are dealt with are inconsequential. Since the suits are of equal rank, a player can form 7462 distinct texas Holdem poker hands.
What Are Poker Suits?
♣ Club
♦ Diamond
♥ Heart
♠ Spade
What Are Top Poker Hands To Play?
1. Pocket Aces - Every poker player knows the power of this poker card ranking. Pocket aces are also the strongest starting hand in poker hand order. They make the best poker hand pre-flop and the odds are 4:1 favourite over any other poker hand. One in every 221 poker hands is a pocket ace and if you're a serial grinder, you should know how to play this best poker hand.
Also known as Pocket Rockets, Two Pips.
2. Pocket Kings - Pocket Kings are a favourite against any hand (except aces). This texas Holdem poker hand is winning two-thirds of the time against Ace high and therefore ranks just below pocket aces in poker hand order in real money poker game.
Also known as Cowboys, King Kong, Ace Magnets.
3. Pocket Queens - One of the best poker hands to play poker strongly pre-flop. You should be raising or re-raising from any position with these Ladies. This texas Holdem poker hand is likely to be called by plenty of opponents with not the best poker hands.
Also known as Ladies.
4. Ace-King Suited - This is a texas Holdem poker hand easy to fall in love with. While pre-flop in remains a great hand beating post pocket pairs (except kings and aces). But it’s important to realize that if you don’t connect with the flop, then you only have an ace-high.
Also known as Big Slick, Anna Kournikova, Big Ugly.
5. Pocket Jacks - This is the best poker hand against any unpaired hand and strong pre-flop over any weaker waits. A great texas Holdem poker hand to play in late position with an unraised pot, but be wary of the early position raises.
Other Nicknames: Brothers, Suckers.
6. Pocket Tens - Pocket tens are a strong starting hand in poker. This texas Holdem poker hand will still win against overcards most times and is good enough not hitting a third on the flop. If the pot has witnessed a lot of action before you, it’s an easy fold with this texas Holdem ranking.
Also known as Dimes, TNT, Dynamite.
7. Ace-Queen Suited - This is a texas Holdem poker hand that ranks high in poker order due to its relative strength compared to other starting hands. It’s a tricky hand to play and might require you to fold even after hitting a pair on the flop. If you miss the flop with this poker hand, it’s best to fold and stay out of trouble.
Also known as Little Slick, Antony & Cleopatra, Mrs Slick, Rocket Queen.
8. Ace-King Offsuit - This is the best poker hand to be calling in position pre-flop to keep the pot small and also get paid if you pair one of the two hole cards. It’s not as strong as its suited counterpart and you have to keep in mind that you’ve reduced your chances of hitting a flush, however, it’s still 40% favourite.
9. Ace-Jack Suited - The potential of this hand like an AK or AQ suited are the odds of hitting a royal flush. However, this texas Holdem poker hand needs to be played wisely especially when you have a player raising in early position. An AK or AQ will have you beat and it’s wise to not fall in love with your AJ suited.
Also known as Hijack, Jackass, Apple Jacks.
10. King-Queen Suited - King-queen suited is a great texas Holdem poker hand that is known to flop well. It opens up a large number of straights and flushes, and the odds of hitting a high pair making it one of the best poker hands to play.
Also known as Marriage.
Poker Card Rankings Explained
Royal Flush - A♥ K♥ Q♥ J♥ 10♥
Straight Flush - Q♥ J♥ 10♥ 9♥ 8♥
Four of a kind - 3♣ 3♠ 3♦ 3♥ 8♥
Hierarchy Of Poker Hands Texas Holdemas Hold Em
Full House - Q♦ Q♠ Q♣ 2♣ 2♦
Flush - 5♦ J♦ 3♦ K♦ 4♦
Straight - 5♣ 4♠ 3♠ 2♥ A♦
Three of a kind or set - 8♦ 8♠ 8♣ K♠ A♠
Two Pair - 9♠ 9♥ 5♦ 5♥ A♠
One Pair - 6♦ 6♥ 2♥ 5♠ K♣
High Card - Q♠ 5♣ 4♦ 3♦ 2♣
Poker Hand FAQ
Question 1: What is the best poker hand?
Question 2: What is the worst starting hand in Texas Hold’em Poker Hands?
Texas Holdem Hands
Question 3: In which order are the poker hands ranked?
Question 4: How are poker hands constructed?