The order of poker hand rankings (from the highest/best to the lowest/worst) is: Royal Flush, Straight Flush, Four-of-a-Kind, Full House, Flush, Straight, Three-of-a-Kind, Two Pair, One Pair, High Card.
Below you will find a list of poker hands in order from highest to lowest to help you get started, as well as the top starting hands for Texas Hold’em. There’s also a quick quiz that will help you remember the hands next time you play poker.
Poker Hand Rankings:
1. Royal Flush (A♦ K♦ Q♦ J♦ T♦)
The best hand possible, a royal flush consists of A, K, Q, J and 10, all of the same suit.
2. Straight Flush (T♥ 9♥ 8♥ 7♥ 6♥)
Also very rare, a straight flush consists of any straight that is all the same suit.
3. Four-of-a-Kind (J♦ J♣ J♠ J♥ K♦)
Four of a kind, or ‘quads’, consists of four cards of equal value along with another card known as a side card.
4. Full House (A♥ A♣ A♦ 9♠ 9♣)
A full house consists of three cards of one value and two cards of another.
5. Flush (A♠ J♠ 8♠ 4♠ 3♠)
A flush is a hand which has all cards of the same suit.
6. Straight (9♥ 8♠ 7♣ 6♦ 5♣)
A straight has 5 cards of consecutive value that are not all the same suit.
7. Three-of-a-Kind (7♠ 7♦ 7♣ K♦ Q♣)
Also known as ‘trips’, three of a kind is 3 cards of the same value and 2 side cards of different values.
8. Two-Pair (9♣ 9♦ 6♣ 6♠ Q♥)
Two pair consists of two cards of equal value, another two cards of equal value, and one extra card.
9. One-Pair (A♦ A♥ K♠ 9♦ 4♥)
One pair consists of two cards of the same value, and three extra cards.
10. High Card (A♠ J♦ 8♣ 6♠ 2♥)
High card is when you have five cards that do not interact with each other to make any of the above hands.
Top 20 Best Starting Hands in Texas Hold’em
I wanted to add a little extra excitement to this article, so here’s a list of the top 20 starting hands in No Limit Hold’em, ranked by their raw all-in equity (or win percentages). While there’s some debate about the exact ranking of hands, this list will give you a general idea of which hands are stronger than others when it comes to going all-in.
#1. Pocket Aces (A♠ A♥)
The best starting hand in Texas Hold’em. Fun fact: the hand with the best chance of beating pocket aces in a one-on-one match is 6-5 suited (22.51% vs 77.49%).
#2. Pocket Kings (K♠ K♣)
The second-best hand. Kings are often called “ace magnets” by pessimistic players.
#3. Pocket Queens (Q♠ Q♥)
Queens come in third place. This strong pair often becomes an overpair on the flop.
#4. Pocket Jacks (J♠ J♥)
Known as fishhooks, jacks are a common source of frustration. If you struggle with them, check out tips on playing pocket jacks effectively.
#5. Ace-King Suited (A♠ K♠)
Also known as big slick, Ace-King suited is the best non-pair hand, but players often complain about missing the flop with it.
#6. Pocket Tens (T♠ T♥)
Pocket tens are another premium pair. It’s often worth betting heavily with these, but be cautious when there’s significant action.
#7. Ace-King Offsuit (A♠ K♥)
A powerful hand with a 45-50% chance of winning against most hands (except pocket aces and pocket kings).
#8. Ace-Queen Suited (A♠ Q♠)
This premium hand has lots of potential post-flop. It’s especially strong on queen-high flops, where it can give you top pair top kicker.
#9. Pocket Nines (9♠ 9♥)
A solid hand that’s almost always worth playing pre-flop, whether you raise, call, or 3-bet.
#10. Ace-Jack Suited (A♥ J♥)
Similar to Ace-Queen suited, Ace-Jack suited has strong post-flop playability and good potential for flushes and straights.
#11. King-Queen Suited (K♠ Q♠)
This hand has great playability as it can hit strong top pairs, straights, and flushes.
#12. Ace-Ten Suited (A♥ T♥)
A strong hand with flush and straight potential, though the large gap between the cards makes it slightly less strong than King-Queen suited.
#13. Ace-Queen Offsuit (A♠ Q♦)
Much like the suited version, Ace-Queen offsuit is valuable for hitting strong top pairs.
#14. Pocket Eights (8♣ 8♦)
A solid hand that often faces challenges when overcards appear on the flop.
#15. King-Jack Suited (K♦ J♦)
A hand that hits top pairs, straights, and flushes fairly often.
#16. King-Ten Suited (K♠ T♠)
Another hand with potential for strong pairs, straights, and flushes.
#17. Queen-Jack Suited (Q♦ J♦)
This hand is strong because it has potential to hit top pairs, flushes, and straights.
#18. Ace-Jack Offsuit (A♣ J♠)
A powerful hand, but proceed with caution on ace-high flops, especially when facing tight players with Ace-King or Ace-Queen.
#19. King-Queen Offsuit (K♥ Q♠)
This hand excels at hitting strong pairs and has the potential to make straights. The A-J-T flop is particularly favorable.
#20. Queen-Ten Suited (Q♠ T♠)
This suited Broadway hand rounds out the list with its potential for flushes, straights, and strong pairs.
Poker Hand Rankings FAQ
Here’s a more casual, simplified version of the paragraph:
How many poker hands are there?
In poker, there are 10 possible 5-card hands: royal flush, straight flush, four of a kind, full house, flush, straight, three of a kind, two pair, one pair, and high card.
What are the possible starting hands in Texas Hold’em?
In Texas Hold’em, there are 1,326 different possible two-card starting hands. The best hand to start with is pocket aces, and the worst is 7-2 offsuit.
Is three pair a valid poker hand?
No, three pair isn’t a hand in poker. A valid hand has only 5 cards, not 6. For example, if you have 7-6 and the board shows 7-6-A-A-2, you actually have two pair: aces and sevens, with a six as the kicker.
What’s the best hand in poker?
The best hand in poker is a royal flush, which is made up of the Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and Ten of the same suit. It’s unbeatable but extremely rare.
What are the odds of getting a royal flush?
The odds of getting a royal flush in Texas Hold’em are 1 in 649,740, or less than 0.000002%. If you have two suited high cards (like Q♠ J♠), your chance goes up to 1 in 19,600.
What is a straight flush?
A straight flush is five consecutive cards of the same suit, like 9♠ 8♠ 7♠ 6♠ 5♠.
What are the odds of getting a straight flush?
The odds are 1 in 72,193 (0.000013%) before cards are dealt. If you have suited connectors (like 5♠ 4♠), the chances improve to 1 in 4,900.
What are the odds of getting four of a kind?
The odds of getting four of a kind are 1 in 4,165 (0.024%). If you have a pocket pair, your odds are much better, like 1 in 407 with A♠ A♣.
What are the odds of getting a full house?
The odds of getting a full house are 1 in 694.1 (0.1441%).
What are the odds of getting a flush?
The odds of getting a flush are 1 in 508.8 (0.1965%). If your cards are already suited, the odds improve to 1 in 118, like with A♠ K♠.
What are the odds of getting a straight?
The odds of getting a straight are 1 in 254.8.