A flush beats a straight, a full house beats a flush, and three of a kind beats two pair. Use the chart below to compare five-card hands in standard high poker, including Texas Hold’em. It is a showdown reference, not a starting-hand or betting guide.
Poker hand rankings, strongest to weakest
Read downward: each category beats every category below it. A royal flush is the highest possible straight flush, shown separately here for quick recognition.
| Hand and pattern | Example |
|---|---|
| 1. Royal flush 10 through ace, one suit |
A♠ K♠ Q♠ J♠ 10♠ |
| 2. Straight flush Five consecutive ranks, one suit |
8♥ 7♥ 6♥ 5♥ 4♥ |
| 3. Four of a kind Four cards of one rank |
9♠ 9♥ 9♦ 9♣ 3♦ |
| 4. Full house Three of one rank plus a pair |
7♠ 7♥ 7♦ 2♣ 2♥ |
| 5. Flush One suit, without a complete sequence |
K♦ J♦ 8♦ 5♦ 2♦ |
| 6. Straight Five consecutive ranks, mixed suits |
9♠ 8♥ 7♦ 6♣ 5♠ |
| 7. Three of a kind Three matching ranks, two unmatched cards |
6♠ 6♥ 6♦ K♣ 3♥ |
| 8. Two pair Two different pairs and one other card |
J♠ J♥ 4♦ 4♣ 8♥ |
| 9. One pair One pair and three unmatched cards |
Q♠ Q♥ 9♦ 6♣ 2♥ |
| 10. High card No pair, straight or flush |
A♠ J♥ 8♦ 5♣ 2♥ |
For example, the three sixes in row 7 outrank the jacks and fours in row 8. Compare the category first; a high card inside a lower category cannot reverse the order.
When the category matches
Compare the defining cards first: the four matching cards, the three matching cards, or the pair. For two pair, compare the higher pair before the lower pair. Then compare any remaining cards in the five-card hand, highest first. These supporting cards are called kickers. Stop at the first difference.
The same pair, different kickers
Q♠ Q♥ A♦ 10♣ 4♠ ranks above Q♦ Q♣ K♥ J♦ 9♣. Both contain queens, but the ace kicker beats the king. The jack and nine cannot overturn that first difference.
The bigger second pair does not decide first
K♠ K♥ 3♦ 3♣ 8♠ ranks above Q♦ Q♣ J♥ J♦ A♣. Kings beat queens before the lower pair or kicker matters. The ace in the second hand does not change the result.
Full houses start with the three matching cards
8♠ 8♥ 8♦ 2♣ 2♥ ranks above 7♠ 7♥ 7♦ A♣ A♥. The three eights decide the comparison. Looking only at the pair of aces would give the wrong answer. If the three-card ranks match, compare the pair.
For a flush or high-card hand, compare the cards from highest to lowest until a difference appears. For a straight or straight flush, compare the top of the sequence. Suits themselves do not outrank one another.
Where an ace fits in a straight
A-2-3-4-5 is five-high; 10-J-Q-K-A is ace-high. Q-K-A-2-3 is not a straight. A sequence cannot wrap around the ace. A six-high straight therefore outranks the five-high wheel.
Compare five cards, not seven
Texas Hold’em uses the best five cards available from your two private cards and the five community cards. You can use both, one or neither private card.
Suppose the board is A♠ K♥ Q♦ J♣ 10♠. One player holds 2♠ 3♠; another holds 9♣ 8♣. Both use the board’s ace-high straight. Neither can make a flush. Their unused private cards cannot break the tie: their five-card hands are equal, so they share the pot under the game’s normal pot-allocation rules.
Check the game before using this chart
This reference covers standard high poker with a normal 52-card deck and no wild cards. Short Deck, lowball and other variants can use different ranking rules. Check the named variant rather than applying this chart automatically. The examples explain comparisons; they do not predict results or recommend a wager.
For a different card game, see our baccarat points and drawing-rules guide—poker rankings do not apply there. Our responsible gambling guide explains limits and warning signs.
Sources and corrections
Rules checked on 27 October 2026 against PokerStars’ traditional hand-ranking rules and Pagat’s independent hand-ranking reference. These sources support the rules, not an endorsement of a gambling service or its availability in the Philippines. Card examples and the text table were created for this article; no third-party chart artwork is reproduced.
Prepared for LaroAtlas. See our editorial standards, or report a correction with the example that needs checking.