Does a flush beat a straight?

Yes. A flush beats a straight because five cards of the same suit are rarer than five sequential cards.

Does a full house beat a flush?

Yes. A full house occurs in about 2.6% of hands versus about 3% for a flush, so it ranks higher.

What is the best hand in poker?

The royal flush — ten, jack, queen, king and ace of the same suit. It cannot be beaten, only very rarely tied.

Do quads beat a full house?

Yes. Four of a kind beats every full house, including the highest one possible.

Does the higher flush always win?

Yes. When two players hold a flush, the highest card in that suit wins, which is why an ace-high flush is called the nut flush.

What Beats What in Poker — The Complete Comparison Chart

The most common question in poker is simply what beats what. Hold'em hand rankings follow rarity: the harder a hand is to make, the stronger it is. This page covers every comparison people actually search for, including flush versus straight and full house versus flush, with a short explanation for each.

A flush beats a straight
A full house beats a flush
Quads beat a full house
A royal flush beats everything

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Subject to Terms of Use and Responsible Gaming Policy · 21+

The "what beats what" chart

Stronger hand	Beats	Why
Flush	Straight	A flush beats a straight because five suited cards are rarer than five sequential cards.
Full House	Flush	A full house beats a flush — trips plus a pair is rarer than five cards of one suit.
Four of a Kind	Full House	Quads beat any full house, including the highest one possible.
Straight	Three of a Kind	A straight beats trips: five running cards are harder to make than three of a kind.
Three of a Kind	Two Pair	Trips beat two pair regardless of how high the two pairs are.
Two Pair	One Pair	Two pair always beats a single pair, no matter the ranks involved.
Straight Flush	Four of a Kind	A straight flush — five suited cards in sequence — beats quads.
Royal Flush	Straight Flush	The royal flush is an ace-high straight flush: the best hand in poker, unbeatable.
Pair	High Card	Any pair, even deuces, beats the highest unpaired card.

The rule behind the whole ranking

Poker hand rankings are not arbitrary — they come straight from probability. A royal flush appears roughly once in 650,000 hands, quads about 0.17% of the time, a full house about 2.6%, a flush about 3% and a straight about 4.6%. Once you remember the order by rarity you never need to memorise a chart again.

What happens when two players hold the same hand?

Ties are broken by the kicker — the highest card outside the combination. If kickers match too, the pot is split. Flush versus flush is decided by the highest suited card, full house versus full house by the higher trips, and two pair by the top pair first, then the second pair, then the kicker.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What Beats What in Poker — The Complete Comparison Chart

A flush beats a straight

A full house beats a flush

Quads beat a full house

A royal flush beats everything

Subject to Terms of Use and Responsible Gaming Policy · 21+

The "what beats what" chart

Stronger hand	Beats	Why
Flush	Straight	A flush beats a straight because five suited cards are rarer than five sequential cards.
Full House	Flush	A full house beats a flush — trips plus a pair is rarer than five cards of one suit.
Four of a Kind	Full House	Quads beat any full house, including the highest one possible.
Straight	Three of a Kind	A straight beats trips: five running cards are harder to make than three of a kind.
Three of a Kind	Two Pair	Trips beat two pair regardless of how high the two pairs are.
Two Pair	One Pair	Two pair always beats a single pair, no matter the ranks involved.
Straight Flush	Four of a Kind	A straight flush — five suited cards in sequence — beats quads.
Royal Flush	Straight Flush	The royal flush is an ace-high straight flush: the best hand in poker, unbeatable.
Pair	High Card	Any pair, even deuces, beats the highest unpaired card.

The rule behind the whole ranking