The royal flush is the best poker hand. The hand consists of five cards in sequence and of the same suit. The highest card must be an ace. Actually it is an ace high straight flush. See the odds for royal flush.
The straight flush consists of five cards in sequence and of the same suit. See odds and examples straight flush.
Four of a Kind or Quads consists of four cards of the same rank. See the odds for four of a kind.
The Full House consists of three cards of the same rank and two matching cards of another rank. See the odds and examples for full houses.
The flush consists of five of the same suit. See the odds and examples for flushes.
The straight consists of five cards in sequence. The Ace can also be used for a 5 high straight . See the odds for straights.
Three of a kind consists of three cards of the same rank. See odds and examples for three of a kind.
Two Pair hands contain two cards of the same rank (the pair!) and another pair of a different rank. See odds and examples for two pair.
One pair hands have two cards of the same rank (the pair). See odds and examples for one pair.
All hands that do not fall into one of the above groups. See odds and examples for highcard.
Notes The following general rules apply to evaluating all poker hands: A poker hand always consists of five cards. This is a very important concept, that many beginners confuse. In the most popular games like Texas Hold'em, Omaha or Seven Card Stud you have First the poker hands are ranked by category, then by individual card ranks: Even the lowest hand in a certain category defeats the highest hands in the lower category. If everything is equal, then the hands tie. In games like Texas Hold'em, Seven Card Stud or Omaha, you have 7 cards to use, but the cards, that are not used to form your best five card hand will not be evaluated. Individual cards are ranked Ace, King, Queen, Jack, Ten, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. An Aces is ranked low when part of an five high(5-4-3-2-A) straight (or straight flush). In case of a same poker hand, then individual card ranks (kickers) are used to compare hands within a category. E.g.: defeats , because the kicker 4 is better than kicker 3. Suits have no value. Hand that vary only in suit, are ranked equal.