Poker Hands

Welcome to PokerCircle, the best app for action-packed poker games! Take part in exciting events, play with other players, and you'll find lots of opportunities to show off your skills and analytical abilities. Before you dive in, though, it's important to know the basic rules of poker and hand rankings that set professionals apart from beginners.

Poker Hands Ranking Chart

Hand rankings provide a clear hierarchy indicating which hands outperform others. Knowing them enables you to make wise choices, taking you from being a casual player to a masterful strategist. Let’s look at them in detail:

1. Royal Flush

   The highest ranking among poker hands is a royal flush. It is made up of the same suit Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and 10. A Royal Flush outperforms all other hands. A Royal Flush can only be tied with another Royal Flush. In poker, this is the best possible holding. It is quite uncommon to get a Royal Flush. However, if you make this hand, you can be aggressive to extract the most chips from your opponents. Playing it quickly might sometimes be the right move since some players could assume you're bluffing with a hand this good.

2. Straight Flush

   Five consecutive cards in the same suit, such as 5♥ 6♥ 7♥ 8♥ 9♥, make up a straight flush. Only a royal flush can defeat a straight flush in terms of poker rankings. You can be sure that, against the majority of opponents, you have the winning hand if you make a straight flush, particularly the higher ones.

3. Four of a Kind

   Four of a Kind, often known as quads, is a hand with four cards of the same rank. Only a Straight Flush and a Royal Flush can defeat this very powerful hand. When competing with another Four of a Kind hand, the higher-ranked quad wins. For example, a four-aces hand defeats four Kings. If both players have the identical Four of a Kind, the fifth kicker card decides the winner. Beginners should be aware of its great strength and act properly when handed this strong poker hand.

4. Full House

   A full house is a hand that has three cards of one rank and two cards of another rank, for example, three 8s and two 4s. In poker, it is a very powerful hand. For example, 8♥ 8♠ 8♦ 4♣ 4♠ would be seen as "eights full of fours" or a "full house of eights over fours." A full house poker defeats any lower-ranking hand, including flushes, straights, sets, two pairs, and one pair. It falls short of any higher-ranked full house (one with a better collection of three cards, such as QQQ99 defeating 88844) and straight flushes. It ties with any full house with identical card values.

5. Flush

   A flush is a poker hand that contains five cards of the same suit, regardless of their rank. The strength of a flush depends on the highest card within the flush suit. For example, a flush containing the Ace card (A♥ J♥ 9♥ 6♥ 3♥) beats a flush with a King as the highest card (K♠ Q♠ 9♠ 7♠ 4♠). When comparing two flushes, the one with the higher-ranked cards wins. If two players have a flush with the same highest card, the second-highest card is compared, and so on. A flush is a moderately strong hand, but players should be cautious about overvaluing it, as it can easily be beaten by a full house or higher-ranked hands.

6. Straight

   A straight is a hand that contains five consecutive ranked cards, but not all of the same suit. The cards in a straight run in sequential numerical poker order, but do not have to be of the same suit. As long as the cards are in a consecutive run, it qualifies as a straight. The key things to remember about straights are: the cards must be sequential in rank, but suits do not matter, the ace can be counted as either high or low in the poker sequence and straights are stronger than three-of-a-kind and two pair, but weaker than flushes and full houses.

7. Three of a Kind

   A three of a kind hand, also known as trips or a set, contains three cards of the same rank plus two unrelated side cards. Three of a kind beats two pairs and one pair. However, it ranks lower than straights, flushes, full houses, four of a kind, and straight flushes. The higher the three matching cards, the better the three of a kind hand. Between two three of a kind hands, the one with the higher set of three wins.

8. Two Pair

   Two Pair is a hand that contains two cards of the same rank, plus two cards of another same rank. For example, holding 9♥ 9♦ 7♠ 7♣ would be considered Two Pair (9s and 7s). When comparing two hands that both have Two Pairs, the hand with the higher pair wins. For example, Q♠ Q♥ 8♦ 8♣ beats J♦ J♥ 9♠ 9♣ because Queens are higher than Jacks. If the high pairs are equal, the hand with the higher second pair wins. If both pairs are the same, the hand with the higher remaining kicker card wins.

9. One Pair

   A one pair hand contains two cards of the same rank plus three other unmatched cards. When comparing one pair hands, the hand with the higher pair wins. So 10-10 beats 9-9, which beats 8-8, and so on. If the pairs are of equal rank, the winning hand is determined by the value of the remaining kicker cards. For example: 10-10-A beats 10-10-K because the Ace kicker is higher than the King kicker. 10-10-8-5 beats 10-10-7-3 because the 8 and 5 kickers together beat the 7 and 3 kickers. A pair only beats high card hands. It ranks lower than a two pairs hand or better.

10. High Card

    The high card hand is the lowest poker hand ranking. It contains no pair or any other combo, just an assortment of 5 cards that don't form any kind of match. The high card hand ranks below every other poker hand. It will only win if the opponent also has a high card hand, in which case the highest card wins. Any other poker hand, including just a pair or two pairs, will beat a high card hand. It essentially has no value except as a bluff or semi-bluff.

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