Poker hand rankings

The way hands rank in poker is easy to learn. In standard “high” games of poker such as Texas Hold’em, Seven Card Stud, 5-Card Draw and Omaha, the hands are ranked as seen below.

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“High” Hand Rankings

The examples of most hands seen below are not dependent on a specific suit to complete the hand – any suit is fine. When two or more players hold the same value hand (e.g. when both players hold a flush), the player with the highest-ranked cards wins the pot. This same rule applies to two pair, three of a kind etc.

Royal Flush: A (Spades), K (Spades), Q (Spades), J (Spades), 10 (Spades)
Straight Flush: 7 (Spades), 6 (Spades), 5 (Spades), 4 (Spades), 3 (Spades)
Four of a kind: K (Spades), K (Hearts) K (Diamonds), K (Clubs), 2 (Hearts)
Full House: A (Spades), A (Hearts), A (Diamonds), K (Spades), K (Hearts)
Flush: A (Hearts), 9 (Hearts), 5 (Hearts), 4 (Hearts), 2 (Hearts)
Straight: J (Clubs), 10 (Diamonds), 9 (Clubs), 8 (Spades), 7 (Hearts)
Three of a kind: 8 (Diamonds), 8 (Clubs), 8 (Hearts), K (Diamonds) 10 (Diamonds)
Two Pair: Q (Spades), Q (Diamonds), K (Spades), K (Hearts), 2 (Clubs)
High Card: A (Spades), 8 (Clubs), 6 (Diamonds), 5 (Spades), 2 (Hearts)

“Low” Hand Rankings

Games which feature “low” rankings such as Stud High-Low, Omaha High-Low, Razz and various other lowball games, use different rankings.

Again each example of the hands seen below are not dependent on a specific suit to complete the hand.

Some variations of lowball poker games feature specific rules. The top five low hands seen below are used for games in which flushes and straights do not count as “high” hands and games which use the “ace-to-five” rule of lowball rankings (i.e. an ace is considered low) such as Stud High-Low, Omaha High-Low and Razz. Please note that Stud High-Low and Omaha High-Low use an “8-or-better” lowball rule, while games such as Deuce-to-Seven and Badugi feature their own specific hand ranking rules. Please refer to these specific games’ sections for relevant details.

The below rankings are simply an example so that players can see how hand rankings flow in lowball games. The concept is extremely easy, with the highest-ranked card in the hand determining the overall value of the hand and then subsequent cards used to split similar hands. This means a six-low hand will always beat a seven-low hand regardless of the value of any other cards in a player’s hand. Using this same concept on subsequent cards in a player’s hand, a six-four low (sometimes called a “sixty-four”) will always be stronger than a six-five (sixty-five) low.

Wheel: 5 (Spades), 4 (Clubs), 3 (Diamonds), 2 (Spades), A (Clubs)
Six-Four Low: 6 (Clubs), 4 (Diamonds), 3 (diamonds), 2 (Clubs), A (Hearts)
Six-Five Low: 6 (Diamonds), 5 (Clubs), 4 (Spades), 3 (Diamonds), 2 (Hearts)
Seven-Four Low: 7 (Diamonds), 4 (Hearts), 3 (Diamonds), 2 (Spades) A (Spades)
Seven-Five Low: 7 (Spades), 5 (Diamonds), 4 (Spades), 3 (Clubs)