Rank

1. The ordinal number on each playing card: two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, jack, queen, king, or ace.

You Really Ought to Know...

...that despite the fact that an Ace is technically a "one," it is the highest ranking card (although it can be used as a "one" to complete a five-high straight). We at PokerTerms.com are certain you knew this already, but we figured we would just through that out there, just in case you found this specific page on this specific site before obtaining any poker knowledge whatsoever.

Situations Where Rank Matters

High Card versus High Card - K-9-7-6-4 beats Q-9-7-6-4
Pair versus Pair - pair of sixes beats a pair of threes
Two Pair versus Two Pair - 9-9-7-7-J
beats 8-8-7-7-J; Q-Q-2-2-5 beats 9-9-7-7-J
Three of a kind versus Three of a kind - 5-5-5 beats 2-2-2
Quads versus Quads - A-A-A-A beats K-K-K-K
Straight versus Straight - 7-8-9-T-J beats 2-3-4-5-6
Flush versus Flush - Ace-high flush beats a K-high flush
Full House versus Full House - Q-Q-Q-5-5 beats 9-9-9-8-8 (best three of a kind wins)
Kicker situations

Situations Where Rank Does Not Matter

If the hands do not have the same strength (i.e. they are not both pairs, flushes, sets, etc.), then the ranks of the cards do not matter. For example, if Player A has a flush and Player B has two pair, it does not matter how strong the flush is, as it beats two pair no matter what. A six-high flush is the same as a King-high flush when compared to a weaker hand.

Related Terms

Overcard, Overpair, Dog