In Texas Holdem poker, players construct hands of playing cards according to predetermined rules, which vary according to which variant of poker is being played. These Texas Holdem hands are compared using a hand ranking system that is standard across all variants of poker. For example, the hand rankings for No-Limit Texas Holdem hands are the same as Limit Texas Holdem hands and Pot-Limit Texas Holdem hands. The player with the highest-ranking hand wins that particular deal in most poker games. If you ever play Texas Holdem poker, you need to know which hand wins over another. Therefore, you need to know the ranking of Texas Holdem hands.
Poker Hand Ranks. A Hand is a player's five-card combination. Below is their ranking order. The five highest cards in a suit- Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and Ten, all of the same suit. Offsuit hands, which contain two cards of a different suit and rank (e.g. 70.6% of all hands are offsuit hands Offsuit pairs = 78 Other offsuit hands = 936 It is typical to abbreviate suited hands in hold 'em by affixing an 's' to the hand, as well as to abbreviate non-suited hands with an 'o' (for offsuit).
The following are the winning high hands in standard Texas Holdem poker games, from highest to lowest. The player with the highest-ranking hand wins. These are standard for all poker sites. Any hand in one category in the list beats any hand in any category below it. For example, any straight flush beats any four of a kind; any flush beats any straight.
| Texas Holdem Hand Rankings | |
|---|---|
| Royal Flush | The highest hand in Texas Holdem. A royal flush consists of a straight from ten to the ace with all five cards of the same suit. |
| Straight Flush | Five cards in numerical order, all of the same suits. If tie: Highest rank at the top of the sequence wins. |
| Four of a Kind | Four cards of the same rank, and one side card. If tie: Highest four of a kind wins. In community card games where players have the same four of a kind, the highest fifth side card wins. |
| Full House | Three cards of the same rank, and two cards of a different, matching rank. If tie: Highest three matching cards wins. In community cards where players have the same three matching cards, the highest value of the two matching cards wins. |
| Flush | Five cards of the same suits. If tie: The player holding the highest ranked card wins. In necessary, the second, third, fourth, and fifth-highest cards can be used to break the tie. |
| Straight | Five cards of any suit in sequence. If tie: Highest rank at the top of the sequence wins. |
| Three of a Kind | Three cards of the same rank, and two unrelated side cards. If tie: Highest ranking three of a kind wins. In community card games where players have the same three of a kind, the highest side card, and if necessary, the second-highest side card wins. |
| Two Pairs | Two cards of a matching rank, another two cards of a different matching rank, and one side card. If tie: Highest pair wins. If players have the same highest pair, highest second pair wins. If both player have two identical pairs, highest side card wins. |
| One Pair | Two cards of a matching rank, and three unrelated side cards. If tie: Highest pair wins. If players have the same pair, the highest side card wins, and if necessary, the second-highest and third-highest side card can be used to break the tie. |
| High Card | Any hand that does not qualify under a category listed above. If tie: Highest card wins, and if necessary, the second, third, fourth and fifth-highest card can be used to break the tie. |
Texas Holdem Poker Beginner's Guide by Unibet
Basic order of the poker cards
Poker follows the same basic order of cards as most other card games. The highest card is an Ace, followed by King, Queen and Jack. From there it goes down in numbers from 10 to 2. This means that a pair of Aces is higher than a pair of Kings and a three of a kind of Jacks will beat a three of a kind of 7s.
Highest card in straight or flush decides
If you have the same hand as an opponent, for example a straight, it matters what the highest card in the straight is. So a straight that goes from 10 to an Ace beats a straight that goes from 9 to a King. The same goes for all other hands where the hands are of the same kind.
Texas Holdem Ranking Hands
Your high cards finish the hand
The following are the winning high hands in standard Texas Holdem poker games, from highest to lowest. The player with the highest-ranking hand wins. These are standard for all poker sites. Any hand in one category in the list beats any hand in any category below it. For example, any straight flush beats any four of a kind; any flush beats any straight.
| Texas Holdem Hand Rankings | |
|---|---|
| Royal Flush | The highest hand in Texas Holdem. A royal flush consists of a straight from ten to the ace with all five cards of the same suit. |
| Straight Flush | Five cards in numerical order, all of the same suits. If tie: Highest rank at the top of the sequence wins. |
| Four of a Kind | Four cards of the same rank, and one side card. If tie: Highest four of a kind wins. In community card games where players have the same four of a kind, the highest fifth side card wins. |
| Full House | Three cards of the same rank, and two cards of a different, matching rank. If tie: Highest three matching cards wins. In community cards where players have the same three matching cards, the highest value of the two matching cards wins. |
| Flush | Five cards of the same suits. If tie: The player holding the highest ranked card wins. In necessary, the second, third, fourth, and fifth-highest cards can be used to break the tie. |
| Straight | Five cards of any suit in sequence. If tie: Highest rank at the top of the sequence wins. |
| Three of a Kind | Three cards of the same rank, and two unrelated side cards. If tie: Highest ranking three of a kind wins. In community card games where players have the same three of a kind, the highest side card, and if necessary, the second-highest side card wins. |
| Two Pairs | Two cards of a matching rank, another two cards of a different matching rank, and one side card. If tie: Highest pair wins. If players have the same highest pair, highest second pair wins. If both player have two identical pairs, highest side card wins. |
| One Pair | Two cards of a matching rank, and three unrelated side cards. If tie: Highest pair wins. If players have the same pair, the highest side card wins, and if necessary, the second-highest and third-highest side card can be used to break the tie. |
| High Card | Any hand that does not qualify under a category listed above. If tie: Highest card wins, and if necessary, the second, third, fourth and fifth-highest card can be used to break the tie. |
Texas Holdem Poker Beginner's Guide by Unibet
Basic order of the poker cards
Poker follows the same basic order of cards as most other card games. The highest card is an Ace, followed by King, Queen and Jack. From there it goes down in numbers from 10 to 2. This means that a pair of Aces is higher than a pair of Kings and a three of a kind of Jacks will beat a three of a kind of 7s.
Highest card in straight or flush decides
If you have the same hand as an opponent, for example a straight, it matters what the highest card in the straight is. So a straight that goes from 10 to an Ace beats a straight that goes from 9 to a King. The same goes for all other hands where the hands are of the same kind.
Texas Holdem Ranking Hands
Your high cards finish the hand
Suit Ranking In Texas Holdem
If the poker hand isn't formed with five cards, for example with four of a kind, the last card is the highest card that is available. This can be a card you have in your hands or a card that's lying on the table. The same goes for Two Pair and One Pair.
Texas Holdem Hands cheat sheet
If you are still learning to play online poker, it might be a good idea to keep the poker cheat sheet below as a reference. You can download the image and open it when you are playing poker to keep track of which hands beats which.
