Poker Hand Rankings: Chart, Examples and Probability Caveats

Quick answer

Printable-style quick chart

This compact chart is written for quick scanning before you move into examples and caveats. It uses standard high-hand poker, not lowball or Short Deck exceptions.

Standard high-poker hand rankings

What beats what matrix

Use this matrix when the question is not how rare a hand is, but which category wins at showdown. The matrix assumes standard high-hand poker.

Probability context: five-card hands vs Texas Hold'em final hands

Poker probability depends on what you are measuring. A five-card dealt hand is not the same as a Texas Hold'em final hand made from seven available cards. A starting-hand statistic, such as pocket aces, is a third context.

Hand-by-hand mini cards

Kicker examples

Kickers are side cards used when players share the same hand category and main rank. They are a common source of beginner mistakes in Hold'em because the board can supply some or all of the final five cards.

Texas Hold'em board examples

In Hold'em, each player can use any combination of hole cards and board cards to make the best five-card hand. Sometimes both hole cards play. Sometimes one plays. Sometimes the board alone decides the pot.

Omaha caveats

Omaha is a frequent trap for players who learned Hold'em first. In most Omaha formats, you must use exactly two hole cards and exactly three board cards. Having one suited ace in your hand does not make a flush if you cannot combine exactly two hole cards with exactly three board cards.

Lowball, Hi-Lo and Short Deck caveats

• Razz: low hand wins; standard high-hand order is not the goal.
• 2-7 lowball: straights and flushes can count against the hand, and aces are usually high.
• A-5 lowball: straights and flushes may be ignored, depending on the exact game.
• Hi-Lo games: the pot can split between high and qualifying low hands.
• Short Deck: some rooms rank flush above full house because the deck is reduced. Always verify the table rules.

Common hand-ranking mistakes

Practice hand recognition carefully

Practice tools can help you recognize hand types, kickers and board ties. They cannot guarantee real-money results, remove variance or prove that a strategy will win.

A useful practice session should ask: what is the best five-card hand, which cards actually play, what stronger hands are possible and whether the variant changes the rule. It should not encourage confidence that a short run of results predicts future outcomes.

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Common questions