Pokeriad / Learn / Flush vs straight
Does a flush beat a straight?
Updated November 2026
Yes. A flush beats a straight. A flush is five cards of one suit in any order, and a straight is five cards in a row in mixed suits.
It's the question most people ask first, and the reason comes down to how rare each hand is when you're dealt five cards.
Which wins
How many ways
Why does a flush beat a straight?
Because it's rarer. Dealt five cards, there are 5,108 ways to make a flush and 10,200 ways to make a straight. So a straight comes up about twice as often, and rarer hands rank higher.
The order was set for five-card poker and everyone has used it ever since, including in Texas Hold'em.
Five cards dealt
Does the same order hold in Texas Hold'em?
Yes. A flush still beats a straight, and the gap in how often they come up is smaller. By the river you'll have a straight about 4.6 times in 100 and a flush about 3 times in 100.
Chance of each hand by the river
Every 7-card deal counted
What if two players both have a flush?
Compare the highest card, then the next, and so on down. Suits never break a tie, so an ace-high flush in clubs and an ace-high flush in spades would be decided by the second card.
What if two players both have a straight?
The higher top card wins. Ten-high beats nine-high. The ace can be high in A-K-Q-J-10 or low in A-2-3-4-5, and that lowest straight is called a wheel.
What about a hand that's both?
Five in a row in one suit is a straight flush, and it beats both. Only a royal flush, the highest straight flush possible, ranks above it.
A straight flush
By the river, about 1 time in 3,591.
Which hands sit around these two?
- Full houseBeats a flush.
- FlushBeats a straight.
- StraightBeats three of a kind.
- Three of a kindBeats two pair.
How do you see them coming?
Look at the board first. A flush needs at least three cards of one suit on the board, and a straight needs three cards that fit in a five-card stretch. If you can't find either, nobody has one.
On the board
Can you tell which wins?
Twelve spots in three rounds.
Questions players ask
Does a flush beat a straight in Texas Hold'em?
Yes, in Hold'em, Omaha and nearly every other game. Short deck is a rare exception that changes some hands near the top of the list.
Does a straight ever beat a flush?
Not in standard poker.
Why does a flush beat a straight if straights feel harder?
They feel harder, and the count says the opposite: there are about twice as many ways to make a straight.
How the numbers on this page were worked out
We counted all 2,598,960 possible five-card hands and all 133,784,560 seven-card deals. The totals match the published tables on Wikipedia's poker probability page.
Got a friend who swears a straight wins?
Send them this page.