Pokeriad / Learn / Four of a kind
What is four of a kind in poker?
Updated November 2026
Four of a kind is all four cards of one rank plus any fifth card, such as four queens and a seven. Players call it quads. It's the third-best hand in poker, behind a straight flush and a royal flush.
You can go months without seeing one, so it's worth knowing how to get paid when you do.
| Cards | Four of one rank, one other |
|---|---|
| Also called | Quads |
| Beats | Full house and below |
| Dealt five cards | 1 in 4,165 |
| By the river | 1 in 595 |
Example
What if two players have four of a kind?
The higher four wins, so four jacks lose to four queens. In Hold'em that takes a board with two pairs and two players holding the matching pocket pairs, so you won't see it often.
What if the four are on the board?
Then everyone has them, and the fifth card decides. Whoever holds the highest side card wins. If the board's own fifth card is higher than anything held, everyone still in splits the pot.
How rare is it?
Of all five-card hands, 624 are quads. By the river in Hold'em, it's 1 time in 595, and you'd need to see every river for that.
Holding a pocket pair, you flop four of a kind 1 time in 408. The other two cards of your rank have to land together with one more card from the deck.
One every
Which hands sit around it?
- Straight flushBeats four of a kind.
- Four of a kindBeats a full house.
- Full houseBeats a flush.
How do you get paid with it?
By giving other players a chance to make something. With quads there's almost nothing to fear, so a small bet that keeps worse hands around usually earns more than a big one that sends them away. If the board has a flush or a straight possible, someone may well have it and be happy to raise you.
Can you tell which hand wins?
Twelve spots in three rounds.
Questions players ask
Why is it called quads?
It's short for quadruple, four of the same card.
Does four of a kind beat a full house?
Yes, every time.
Does the fifth card ever count?
Only when two players share the same four, which in Hold'em means the four are on the board.
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. "By the river" assumes you stay in until all five community cards are out, and in a real game you fold most hands long before that.
Know someone who has never seen quads?
Send them this page.