Texas Holdem Poker Hands Wiki

These are standard hand rankings for most poker games and apply to all high-hand poker variations including Texas Hold'em, Omaha and Stud. You'll find a printable poker hand rankings chart below the hand rankings as well as answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about poker hands and poker hand ranking.

The above 3 sets of hands add up to form the common answer of 169 Texas Hold’em starting hands There are actually 1,326 combinations of starting hands if you count suits (e.g. A♣- A♦ and A♠- A♥ are different hands), but that is more of a “just for fun” number as suits have no value over each other in Texas Hold’em. Poker Hand Odds for Texas Hold’em. If you’re playing Texas Hold’em, you have 7 cards to chose your hand from. There are 133,784,560 to deal 7 random cards. This changes the odds and probabilities for all poker hands a bit. Those are the probabilities and odds for all Texas Hold’em Poker hands. Texas Hold'em hasn't been around that long, although it sometimes seems those old Texas Boys like Salior Roberts, Doyle Brunson, Amarillo Slim and the like had been playing the game for centuries, the way they dominated the early years of the WSOP! The first three cards in Texas Hold'em are called the Flop. These cards are “community cards” meaning everyone will use them in combination with their own hole cards to make the best hand. From the flop on, betting begins with the player to the dealer’s left, who can check or bet. A fourth card is dealt face up onto the board.

Texas hold'em is a popularversion of the cardgamepoker.

How to play[change change source]

Before any cards are dealt, two players to the left of the dealer make bets which are called the 'Small Blind' and 'Big Blind'. These forced bets must be at least matched by the other players in order to keep their hands. The big blind is twice as much as the small blind. If the big blind was $1000, then it is said that the blinds are 500 and 1000. This money is put into a place in the center of the table that is called the 'pot'

Each player is given two cards face down. These are called the player's 'Hole Cards' or what the player has 'in the hole'. Once all the players have their hole cards, the betting starts. The player to the left of the Big Blind player starts the betting. The lowest amount that can be bet is the amount of the big blind. Players can bet more than the minimum. This is called 'Raising'. The amount a player can raise is determined by the type of the game being played (see below) If a player raises, the amount he raised the bet to is the new minimum. Each player in turn may either 'Call' (pay the current bet amount), Raise, or 'Fold' (quit the hand). This action keeps going around the table until each player has called or folded his hand.

After the first turn of betting is over, the dealer lays three cards face up on the table. This is called the 'Flop'. These three cards are 'community cards'. This means they are used by every player in the game along with the two hole cards each player has. After the flop, another turn of betting takes place. There is no starting bet in this turn (no blinds) unless a player makes a bet. Players may 'Check' or bet nothing if no player before them in the turn has bet. If everyone checks, or if a player bets and all the others call or fold, then the round of betting is over.

Next the dealer lays another community card face up. This card is called 'the turn' (or 4th Street). Another series of betting comes after this. This betting is the same as after the Flop.

Finally the dealer lays the last community card known as 'the river' (or 5th Street). This card is again followed by a turn of betting, calling and folding by the players.

With the five community cards and their two hole cards, each player makes the best 5 card poker hand he can. The player with the best poker hand wins the round and the pot. If two or more players have the same hand, those players split the pot evenly. If one person bets and all other players have folded, the hand ends then and that player wins.

Styles of play[change change source]

Texas Hold'em can be played several ways, including Limit, Pot Limit and No Limit games. The version of the game usually is the maximum a player can raise at any one time.

Limit[change change source]

Limit games have a set amount that a player can raise at any time. If a game has a $10 limit, then a raise must be exactly $10. If more than one person raises, each one can only raise $10 more than the last raise. Typically, there is a 'cap' of 3 raises per round. Also, when playing limit, the bet and raise amount will usually double for the turn and river betting rounds.

Example[change change source]

In a 4 player game, Player A bets $10. Player B raises $10 (puts in $20 total), Player C calls Player B (puts in $20). Player D at this point can either fold, pay $20 (call player B) or raise $10 to a total of $30. Player A would go next and either call (paying the difference between his $10 bet and the current bet). This would continue until all players either call or fold.

Pot Limit[change change source]

In Pot Limit games, the most a player can bet or raise is the total amount in the pot. With each bet or raise, the amount in the pot gets larger. This allows for larger raises.

Spread Limit[change change source]

In Spread Limit games, there is both a minimum and a maximum raise specified. For example, one could play $5–50 spread limit. The big blind would be $5 and the minimum raise would be $5 and the maximum raise would be $50.

No Limit[change change source]

In No Limit, there is not a limit of how much can be bet at any time. That is, it is just like Spread Limit, but with no maximum. A player can bet up to all money as he has. If a player bets all of his money, he is said to be 'All In'. If a player bets more money than another player has, the second player can call by going All In. If only those two players stay in the hand (all other players fold), the first player takes back any money that is over the amount the player going All In has. At this point, all betting stops and the dealer deals out the rest of the cards.

If a player goes All In and two or more players are still betting, the other betters can raise each other until they both call (or one of them also goes All In). A 'side pot' is made in this case. It is the difference between the final bet and the first person's All In. Only the two players were not All In can win this pot. If the All In player wins the hand, he wins the main pot (his money plus an equal amount from each other player) and which ever of the other two players had the better hand wins the side pot. In an eight player game, it is possible to have several side pots with several people being All In at the same time. If there are not two player left who can bet, betting stops and all players turn their hands over.

Example[change change source]

Player A bets $5000. Player B only has $3000. He goes All In. Player C Raises $2000 (puts in a total of $7000). Player A calls (puts in $2000). At this point, the main pot is worth $9000 ($3000 from each player). The side pot is worth $8000 ($7000–3000 from Players A and C)

If player A or C wins, he wins both the main pot and the side pot ($17,000) and Player B is out of the game since he is out of money. If player B wins, he wins the main pot and the side pot goes to which ever player has the best hand between players A and C.

Tournaments[change change source]

Tournaments are what people often see when poker is shown on television. When a player enters a tournament, he pays an entry fee called the 'buy-in.' Most of his buy-in is placed with other player's money in the prize pool. Usually, a small portion of the buy-in is kept by the tournament officials for their expenses (and profit). The player is given a table and seat assignment, and a certain number of chips - the same amount as every other player. Unlike normal chips, these tournament chips have no cash value (though they often are referred to with dollar amounts). Players must continue to play until they run out of chips. The tournament continues until one player has accumulated all of the chips. The order in which people lose all their chips (or 'bust out'), is their finishing order. That is, the last player to bust out is the second-place finisher. The prize pool is divided amongst a fraction of the top finishers (usually about 10%). The first-place winner usually gets a much larger share, with the prizes diminishing until the prize pool is empty. The player who was the last player to finish without winning any prize is said to have finished 'on the bubble.'

As players bust out of the tournament, the average player's chip stack gets larger. In order to insure that the blinds do not become insignificant in the face of the growth in chip stacks, tournaments are played in timed 'rounds.' At the beginning of each round typically the blinds increase. Every few rounds there will be a short break between rounds. For tournaments that last longer than a day, there will be a last level for the day, and the tournament will resume the next day.

Most tournaments only allow a player to buy-in and receive chips once, at the beginning. These are called 'freeze out' tournaments. Some tournaments allow players to buy-in more than once for the first few levels of the tournament. These players are said to 're-buy' and the money they use to re-buy goes into the prize pool with the rest of the buy-ins.

Other websites[change change source]

• Poker Hand - Poker hands list

There are 10 different hands ranks in Texas Hold’em – from a Royal Flush to a Straight to a lousy High Card. Here’s a comprehensive list of all Texas Hold’em poker hand rankings:

You can also print and download the Official Texas Hold’em hand ranking as a PDF file.

Chart: Poker Hand Ranking

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Download the poker hand ranking charts image or PDF:

• Official Poker Hand Rankings Image
• Print: Poker Hand Rankings PDF

Official Poker Hand Rankings

• Royal flush: A straight from a ten to an ace with all five cards in the same suit.
• Straight Flush: Any straight with all five cards in the same suit.
• Four of a Kind or Poker or Quads: Any four cards of the same rank. If two players share the same four of a kind (on the board), the larger fifth card (the “kicker”) decides who wins the pot.
• Full House or Boat: Three cards of the same rank along with two cards of the same rank. In short: trips and a pair.
• Flush: All five cards of the same suit (not necessarily consecutive). The highest card determines the rank of the flush.
• Straight: Five consecutive cards (not necessarily the same suit). Aces can count as either high or low cards, but not as both at once. Meaning, a straight cannot go “around the corner”.
• Trips: Three cards of the same value. If two players have the same trips the highest kicker decides who wins the pot.
• Two Pair: Any two cards of the same rank together with two other cards of the same rank.
• One Pair: Any two cards of the same rank.
• High Card: Any hand that is none of the above hands.

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Poker Hand Rankings Explained

• If two players have a Straight or Straight Flush, the higher Straight or Straight Flush wins.
• If two players have a quads, the player with the highest quad wins. If they are identical, the highest kicker wins.
• If two players have a flush, the player with the highest card in the flush wins. If they are identical, the second highest card decides, then the third highest, and so on. The suit of the flush does not matter.
• If two players have a full house, the player with the higher trips wins. If they are identical, the player with the higher pair wins.
• If two players have two pairs, the player with the bigger pair wins. If they are identical, the player with the higher pair wins. If they are also identical, the player with the highest kicker wins.
• If two players have a pair, the player with the higher pair wins. If they are identical, the highest kicker wins, then the second highest, then the third highest.
• If two players have a high card, the highest card wins. If they are identical, the second highest card decides, etc.

How many Poker Hands are there?

There are only 10 distinct poker hand ranks, but if you randomly deal 5 cards from a deck of 52 cards there are exactly 2,598,960 possible card combinations.

Poker Hand Odds for 5-Card-Poker

The poker hand ranking charts are based on the probability for each distinct hand rank. More unlikely combinations are ranked higher. Those are the probabilities and odds for all 5-card poker hands:

Poker Hand Odds for Texas Hold’em

If you’re playing Texas Hold’em, you have 7 cards to chose your hand from. There are 133,784,560 to deal 7 random cards. This changes the odds and probabilities for all poker hands a bit. Those are the probabilities and odds for all Texas Hold’em Poker hands:

Technically it’s more likely that you’re dealt at least a pair in Texas Hold’em than holding only high card. But “High Card” still remains the lowest rank.

FAQ: Poker Hand Rankings

Does 2 pairs beat a straight?

When playing Texas Hold’em (or any other popular poker variant) 2 pairs are always ranked below a straight.

Does 3 Aces beat a straight?

3 Aces are just trips (or three of a kind) in poker. When playing regular Texas Hold’em a straight is ranked above trips. There are however rule variations where trips can bet a straight, namely Short Deck Hold’em, a poker variant where all cards below 5 are removed.

Does 5 of a kind beat a royal flush?

In regular poker variants there are is no 5-of-kind rank. When playing with wildcards (joker) 5 of a kind are possible. In this case 5 of a kind are the highest possible poker hand and beat a royal flush.

Does a full house beat 3 aces?

Every full house always beats trips, no matter the rank of the trips. Even trip aces are always ranked below every possible full house.

Does Royal Straight beat flush?

A Royal Flush is the best possible poker hand and of course always beats any other flush.

Does straight beat a full house?

Every common poker variant, including Texas Hold’em, ranks a Full House above a straight. So no, a Straight never beats a Full House in Poker.

What beats a royal flush?

In all regular modern poker variations (including Texas Hold’em and Omaha) a Royal Flush is always the highest possible hand rank. A higher rank is only possible when playing with a Joker. In this case 5 of a kind (4 Aces plus Joker) beats a Royal Flush.

What can beat a flush in poker?

A Flush is a very strong hand in poker. The only hands that beat a Flush are Full House, Quads, Straight Flush, and Royal Flush.

How rare is a royal flush?

A Royal Flush is extremely rare. When playing Texas Hold’em you’ll only get one every 31,000 hands. And that assumes you never fold. The hand is so rare that most poker players can remember all Royal Flushes they have been dealt in their life time.

What are the odds of hitting a straight flush?

Texas Holdem Poker Hands Wikipedia

Straight Flushes are almost as rare as Royal Flushes. When playing Texas Hold’em you will hit a Straight Flush roughly every 3,600 hands (assuming you never fold any hand that can make a Straight Flush).

Can you have 3 pairs in poker?

There is no “3 pair” hand rank in poker. When playing Texas Hold’em it’s technically possible to have three pairs, but since a poker hand only consists of 5 cards only the 2 highest pairs are in play. For example, if you hold Q-J and the board reads Q-J-6-A-A you only have two pair: Aces and Queens.

Does Royal Flush have to be spades?

A Royal Flush can be any of the 4 suits, spades, hearts, diamonds, or clubs. It’s just that usually a Royal Flush is depicted in spades or hearts. Nevertheless, it doesn’t matter which suit, a Royal Flush is always the best Texas Hold’em Poker Hand.

How many kickers can you have in poker?

A poker hand can consist of up to 5 kickers. A player with no pair only has kickers. A player with one pair has 3 kickers, a player with trips has 2 kickers, and a player with 2 pair or quads has 1 kicker.

Is Ace a 1 in poker?

When building a straight an Ace can be used as a virtual “1” in poker. Meaning, A-2-3-4-5 is a straight. There are also lowball poker variations where the Ace counts as the lowest card.

Is an Ace 2 3 4 5 a straight?

Yes, the ace can count as the lowest card in a straight and function as a “1” when combined with 2-3-4-5.

Is JQKA 2 a straight?

A straight cannot go “around the corner”, the Ace can only be either the highest or the lowest card, not a card in the middle. So no, J-Q-K-A-2 is no straight in poker.

Is Queen King Ace 2 3 a straight?

A straight cannot go “around the corner”, the Ace can only be either the highest or the lowest card, not a card in the middle. So no, Q-K-A-2-3 is no straight in poker.

Is there a kicker on a straight?

For a straight you need to use all 5 cards. There are no cards left for a kicker. The rank of the straight is determined by the highest card. E.g. an ace-high straight beats a queen-high straight.

What is a flush in poker?

A flush in poker is hand which consists of 5 cards of the same suit. The same color (red or black) is not enough. It has to 5 spades, hearts, diamonds, or clubs.

What is the highest royal flush in poker?

There are no distinctions between the 4 possible Royal Flushes in poker. A Royal Flush in spades is as good as a Royal Flush in hearts, diamonds, or clubs.

What is the highest suit in Texas Hold’em poker?

Only in very rare occasions (for example when dealing for the button) the suits are ranked in poker. In this case the ranking is: 1. spades, 2. hearts, 3. diamonds, 4. clubs. Suits are otherwise generally not ranked in poker. A Flush in spades is as good as a flush in any other suit, only the ranks of the cards matter.

What is the lowest pair in a game of poker?

In poker the lowest possible pair is a pair of Deuces (twos).

How do you win bad beat jackpots in poker?

Texas Holdem Poker Rules Wikipedia

To win a bad beat jackpot in poker you need to lose with a very strong hand, usually a strong Full House (Aces Full). It’s also necessary that both, the winning hand losing player, user both of their hole cards. E.g. losing with quads on the board does not count.

What are the odds of hitting a bad beat jackpot in poker?

The odds of hitting a bad beat jackpot in poker depend on the rules for the jackpot. If you have to lose with Aces Full or better your odds of hitting the bad beat jackpot are 1:58,948. If you have to lose with quads or better your odds are 1:624,609 (assuming a 10 player table where nobody ever folds).

What is a bad beat in poker?

If you lose with a very strong hand against an even stronger hand this is called a “bad beat”. It is also a bad beat if you lose an all-in while being far ahead and you opponent wins by catching some miracle cards.

How many 5 stud poker hands are there?

5 Card Stud is one of the oldest poker variants where each player is dealt 5 cards. There are exactly 2,598,960 different 5 stud poker hands possible.

How many poker hands are there?

There are only 10 distinct poker hand ranks, but if you randomly deal 5 cards from a deck of 52 cards there are exactly 2,598,960 possible card combinations. If you’re playing Texas Hold’em, you have 7 cards to chose your hand from. There are 133,784,560 to deal 7 random cards.

What happens if two hands tie in poker?

It’s possible (and not too uncommon) for two players to have the same hand in poker. In this case the pot is split and both players receive half the pot.

What happens if two people have a royal flush?

When playing Texas Hold’em it’s almost impossible for two players to have a Royal Flush. For that to happen the 5 community cards need to form a Royal Flush. In that case all players in the hand win and split the pot.

What happens if two poker hands are the same?

Texas Holdem Poker Hands Wikipedia

If two players have the same hand, the pot is split and both players win half of it. This can happen for example if both players have the same cards (e.g. Ace-King) and nobody makes a Flush.

How do you hit a royal flush on video poker?

In Video Poker you can win the jackpot when you hit a Royal Flush. To maximize your chances you should always keep all suited cards 10 or above (if you have at least 2) and discard the rest. You will see a Royal Flush roughly once every 40,000 spins.

What are the odds of hitting a royal flush on a video poker machine?

The odds of hitting a royal flush directly are only 1 in 649,739. But since you can draw one time your odds increase. If you play perfectly your odds of hitting a royal flush are roughly 1 in 40,000.