What is two pair in poker?
Updated November 2026
Two pair is exactly what it sounds like: two cards of one rank, two of another and one side card, such as jacks and fives with an ace. It beats one pair and loses to three of a kind.
In Hold'em it comes up all the time, about 23.5 times in 100 by the river, which is why you'll need to know how it gets beaten.
| Cards | Two pairs, one side card |
|---|---|
| Beats | One pair and high card |
| Loses to | Three of a kind and above |
| Dealt five cards | 1 in 21 |
| By the river | 1 in 4.3 |
Which wins
How do you compare two pair?
Top pair first, then the second pair, then the side card. Jacks and fives beats tens and nines, because the jacks are higher than the tens and nothing else gets looked at.
When does the side card count?
When both pairs match. That only happens when they're shared on the board, or both players hold the same ranks. Then the fifth card decides.
How often do you flop it?
Holding two different ranks, you flop two pair using both cards 2.02 times in 100. Those are the strong ones. Pairing one card when the board has its own pair gets you the same name and is much weaker.
Chance of each hand by the river
Every 7-card deal counted
What does "counterfeited" mean?
It's when the board makes your second pair worthless. You hold 7-6 on a board of K-7-6, and the turn and river are both nines. Your sixes no longer count, your best five is nines and sevens with a king, and anyone holding a king now has you beaten.
A pair shows up somewhere in the five community cards 49 times in 100, so it happens often.
Your sixes stop counting
Can you tell which hand wins?
Twelve spots in three rounds.
Questions players ask
Does two pair beat a set?
No. A set is three of a kind and it ranks higher.
What does "aces up" mean?
Two pair with aces as the higher pair.
Can you have three pairs?
In Hold'em yes, with seven cards to pick from, but only your best five count, so you play the two highest pairs and the best side card.
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 always pays off two pair?
Send them this page.