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Hand Ranking

Poker is usually played with a standard 4-suit 52-card deck, but a joker or other wild cards may be added. The ace normally plays high, but can sometimes play low, as explained below. Recall that the "rank" of a card is defined as the numerical value of a card (as opposed to its suit).

At the showdown, those players still remaining compare their hands according to the following rankings (from highest to lowest):

0) Five of a kind
Five cards of the same rank. Normally this hand is impossible. When jokers are in play, it's only possible with aces. (See the description of jokers at the bottom.) During home games which involve true wild cards, this hand is possible with any rank card, five aces being the highest.

1) Royal flush
Ace, King, Queen, Jack, Ten, all of the same suit. This is really just the highest possible straight flush.

2) Straight flush
Five cards of the same suit in sequence, such as 76543 of hearts. Ranked by the top card, so that AKQJT is the best straight flush, also called a royal flush. The ace can play low to make 5432A, the lowest straight flush.

3) Four of a kind
Four cards of the same rank accompanied by a "kicker", like 44442. Ranked by the quads, so that 44442 beats 3333K.

4) Full house
Three cards of one rank accompanied by two of another, such as 777JJ. Ranked by the trips, so that 44422 beats 333AA.

5) Flush
Five cards of the same suit, such as AJ942 of hearts. Ranked by the top card, and then by the next card, so that AJ942 beats AJ876. Suits are not used to break ties.

6) Straight
Five cards in sequence, such as 76543. The ace plays either high or low, making AKQJT and 5432A. "Around the corner" straights like 32AKQ are not allowed.

7) Three of a kind
Three cards of the same rank and two kickers of different ranks, such as KKK84. Ranked by the trips, so that KKK84 beats QQQAK, but QQQAK beats QQQA7.

8) Two pair
Two cards of one rank, two cards of another rank and a kicker of a third rank, such as KK449. Ranked by the top pair, then the bottom pair and finally the kicker, so that KK449 beats any of QQJJA, KK22Q, and KK445.

9) One pair
Two cards of one rank accompanied by three kickers of different ranks, such as AAK53. Ranked by the pair, followed by each kicker in turn, so that AAK53 beats AAK52.

10) High card
Any hand that does not qualify as one of the better hands above, such as KJ542 of mixed suits. Ranked by the top card, then the second card and so on, as for flushes. Suits are not used to break ties.


Suits are not used to break ties, nor are cards beyond the fifth; only the best five cards in each hand are used in the comparison. In the case of a tie, the pot is split equally among the winning hands.

Several variations are possible when playing for low (that is, when the "lowest hand" wins part or all of the pot). A) Some games permit the ace to play low and ignore straights and flushes, making 5432A the best possible low, even if it makes a straight flush. B) Other games just reverse the order used for high hands, making 75432 of mixed suits the best possible low. C) Still others let the ace play low but count straights and flushes against you but making 6432A best. By default, we will utilize C, since it has seemed the most intuitive. Note that in most games in which the ace plays low, a pair of aces is lower than a pair of deuces, just as an ace is lower than a deuce.

When a joker is in play, it can only be used as an ace or to complete a straight or flush. It cannot be used as a true wild card, for example, as a queen to make QQ43X play as three queens. When playing for low, the joker becomes the lowest rank not already held, which is intuitive. So 864AX is played as 8642A, with the joker used as a deuce.

Although true wild cards are rarely seen in a casino, they are a popular way to add excitement to a home game. They are treated as whatever card the player chooses them to be, even if that card is already held by the player. Wild cards allow more Five of a Kind hands than the joker. They can also cause confusion when two players hold the same hand composed of different wild card combinations. The standard rules of poker do not distinguish between such hands, but some players prefer to rank hands using fewer wild cards above less "natural" versions of the same hand. We will do that also. After the hands are fully evaluated and determined to be equal (and recall there is no ranking based on suits), then they will be compared again with each portion of the hand being compared in order having slightly less value for each wild card used there. Its not simply a comparison of the number of wild cards in each hand, but how they are used. Actually, maybe its the same thing.

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