If you have never played poker before or only played a few times then you may be unsure of what beats what in poker.
The following list gives you all the 5 card hand ranks in poker in a game with a 52 card deck using no jokers or wild cards, from best to worst.
The absolute nuts. An unbeatable hand in poker. 5 cards of the same suit, in order from Ace through to Ten
If you have this in a game of poker then you can be fairly confident that it's good enough to win the hand. 5 cards of the same suit, in order from highest to lowest eg T, 9, 8, 7, 6 of spades. Where two straight flushes exist in the same hand the person with the highest card in theirs wins the pot.
Also known as quads. 4 cards all the same, with one other card eg KKKK 7 (king king king king, seven). If two players both had the same four of a kind (for example in holdem when all four quads are on the board) then the person with the highest kicker (the other card) wins the pot
Also known as the boat. 3 of a kind with a pair eg 77 JJJ (seven seven, jack jack jack). Where two or more full houses are in the hand the player with the highest 3 of a kind in theirs wins eg 77 JJJ would beat 777 JJ
Any 5 cards of the same suit, do not have to be in order eg T J 2 8 A (ten jack two eight ace) of diamonds. Where two or more players have a flush the player with the highest card wins eg T J 2 8 A would beat T J 2 Q K (ten jack two queen king)
Also known as a run (and the lowest straight is known as the wheel) 5 cards in order of any suit. eg A 2 3 4 5 (ace two three four five - the wheel) or 6 7 8 9 T (six seven eight nine ten). You cannot go around the deck so Q K A 2 3 is not a valid hand. The person with the highest straight wins the hand in the event of two players having a straight (except in hi/lo split variations which we won't discuss here)
Also known as a set or trips. 3 cards all the same, with 2 other cards (not paired) eg TTT 6A (ten ten ten six ace)
Fairly self explanatory, like having a pair but two of them eg AA 88 K (ace ace eight eight king)
Any two cards that are the same eg 33 (three three) or 99 (nine nine). The highest pair wins.
In the event that no one has made one of the hands above the person holding the highest card will win. The highest card is the A (ace) all aces have equal rank.
These hand rankings are used in Texas holdem, stud, draw, omaha and other variations of poker. So now you know what beats what in poker you can read some of our other tips on helping you to improve your game.