Poker Cheat Sheet: Printable Hand Rankings, Odds and Position Guide
A good poker cheat sheet does one job: it answers your question in under ten seconds so you can get back to the hand. This page is built around that idea. You get the complete poker hand rankings with real dealt odds, a drawing odds table you can use with the rule of 2 and 4, the most common preflop matchups, and a short position guide. Everything sits in clean tables so you can print it, laminate it, and keep it next to the chip tray.
If you are brand new to the game, read our beginner guide to poker hand rankings first and come back here once you know the basic flow of a hand. This sheet assumes you can play a hand of Texas Hold’em and want the reference numbers.
Poker Hand Rankings Table
Every five card poker hand falls into one of ten categories. The hand that wins is the one in the highest category, with ties broken by the ranks of the cards inside the hand. The odds column shows how often each hand occurs when you are dealt five cards from a standard 52 card deck (2,598,960 possible combinations). Rarer hands rank higher, which is the entire logic of the ranking order.
| Rank | Hand | Example | Odds of Being Dealt (5 Cards) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Royal flush | A K Q J 10, all spades | 1 in 649,740 |
| 2 | Straight flush | 9 8 7 6 5, all hearts | 1 in 72,193 |
| 3 | Four of a kind | Q Q Q Q 7 | 1 in 4,165 |
| 4 | Full house | J J J 9 9 | 1 in 694 |
| 5 | Flush | A J 8 5 3, all diamonds | 1 in 509 |
| 6 | Straight | 8 7 6 5 4, mixed suits | 1 in 255 |
| 7 | Three of a kind | 5 5 5 K 8 | 1 in 47 |
| 8 | Two pair | A A 4 4 9 | 1 in 21 |
| 9 | One pair | 10 10 K 6 2 | 1 in 2.4 |
| 10 | High card | A J 8 5 3, mixed suits | 1 in 2 |
Two things trip people up with this table. First, suits never rank against each other. A flush of spades and a flush of clubs with the same five ranks are tied and split the pot. Second, when two players hold the same category, you compare the cards in order. Two pair of aces and kings beats two pair of aces and queens, and if both players have the same two pair, the fifth card (the kicker) decides it.
What Beats What, In One Line
Royal flush beats straight flush, straight flush beats four of a kind, four of a kind beats full house, full house beats flush, flush beats straight, straight beats three of a kind, three of a kind beats two pair, two pair beats one pair, one pair beats high card.
The two comparisons beginners get wrong most often: a flush beats a straight (flushes are roughly twice as rare), and three of a kind beats two pair. Aces can be high or low in a straight, so A 2 3 4 5 is a valid straight, but it is the lowest possible one and loses to 2 3 4 5 6.
Poker Odds Table: Drawing Hands After the Flop
Most Hold’em decisions after the flop come down to outs. An out is any unseen card that improves your hand to what you believe is the winner. Count your outs, then use this table to see your chance of hitting on the next card or by the river.
| Draw | Outs | Hits on Next Card | Hits by the River (Two Cards) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flush draw | 9 | 19% | 35% |
| Open ended straight draw | 8 | 17% | 32% |
| Two overcards | 6 | 13% | 24% |
| Gutshot straight draw | 4 | 9% | 17% |
| Flush draw plus overcard | 12 | 26% | 45% |
| Flush draw plus straight draw | 15 | 33% | 54% |
For quick mental math at the table, use the rule of 2 and 4. Multiply your outs by 2 to estimate the chance of hitting on the next card, and by 4 to estimate the chance of hitting by the river when both cards are still to come. Nine outs times four gives 36%, close to the true 35%. The estimate drifts a little once you get past eight outs, but it is more than accurate enough for live decisions.
Knowing your chance to hit is only half the decision. You still need to compare it against the price the pot is offering, which is where pot odds come in. A flush draw that hits 19% of the time on the turn is a profitable call when the pot offers better than roughly 4 to 1 on your money, and a fold when it offers less. For the full math behind every hand category, see our breakdown of poker hand probabilities, and if you want to run exact numbers against specific opponent ranges, our free hand equity calculator does it in seconds.
Flopping Odds Worth Memorizing
A few preflop to flop numbers explain why hands play the way they do:
- Two unpaired hole cards pair at least one of them on the flop about 32% of the time. That is why most flops miss most hands.
- A pocket pair flops a set or better about 12% of the time, roughly 1 in 8.5. This is the math behind set mining with small pairs.
- Suited hole cards flop a flush about 0.8% of the time and a flush draw about 11% of the time.
- Two unpaired hole cards flop exactly two pair about 2% of the time.
Common Preflop Matchups
Hold’em confrontations repeat the same patterns over and over. These numbers assume both players go all in before the flop and see all five community cards.
| Situation | Example | Approximate Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Higher pair vs lower pair | AA vs KK | 81% vs 19% |
| Pair vs two overcards | QQ vs AK | 57% vs 43% |
| Pair vs one overcard | KK vs AQ | 71% vs 29% |
| Pair vs two undercards | AA vs 72 | 88% vs 12% |
| Dominated kicker | AK vs AQ | 74% vs 26% |
| Two overcards vs two undercards | AK vs 76 | 63% vs 37% |
The pair versus two overcards row is the one worth remembering, because it is the classic tournament race. Commentary calls it a coin flip, but the pair is always a real favorite, usually somewhere between 53% and 57% depending on suits and how connected the overcards are. The dominated kicker row explains most bad beats at home games: AK against AQ looks like a fair fight, yet the AQ wins barely one time in four because both hands share an ace and the queen kicker is dead.
Position Basics
Position means where you sit relative to the dealer button, and it determines when you act. Acting last is the single biggest structural advantage in Hold’em, because you see what every opponent does before you commit chips. Players in late position can profitably play hands that would be clear folds from early position, purely because of the extra information.
| Position | Also Called | General Approach |
|---|---|---|
| Under the gun (UTG) | Early position | Tightest range. You act first with up to eight players behind you. |
| Middle position | MP, hijack | Open up slightly. Add suited broadway hands and all pairs. |
| Cutoff | CO | Start stealing. Wide opens are profitable if the button and blinds are tight. |
| Button | BTN, dealer | Best seat at the table. Widest raising and calling range, you act last on every street after the flop. |
| Small blind | SB | Worst seat. You act first after the flop, so defend selectively. |
| Big blind | BB | You already have a bet in, so you get a discount to defend against raises. |
The practical rule: the earlier your position, the stronger your hand needs to be. A hand like king jack offsuit is a reasonable open from the button and an easy fold under the gun at a full table.
Starting Hands Quick Guide
You do not need to memorize a 169 cell chart to play solid preflop Hold’em. Grouping hands into tiers gets you 90% of the way there. For a deeper treatment of how starting hands interact and how many combinations of each exist, read our guide to poker hand combinations and starting hands.
| Tier | Hands | Default Play |
|---|---|---|
| Premium | AA, KK, QQ, AK | Raise from any position, reraise when raised |
| Strong | JJ, TT, AQ, KQ suited | Raise from any position, proceed carefully against heavy action |
| Playable | 99 to 77, AJ, AT suited, KJ suited, QJ suited, JT suited | Open from middle position onward |
| Speculative | Small pairs, suited connectors down to 65 | Play cheap pots from late position, fold to big raises |
| Everything else | Offsuit junk like K4, J7, 93 | Fold |
Two adjustments matter more than the chart itself. Tighten every tier one notch when you are in early position, and loosen one notch when everyone has folded to you in the cutoff or on the button. And never limp into an unopened pot from early position hoping to see a cheap flop with a speculative hand; the players behind you will raise and take the pot away far too often.
How to Print and Use This Cheat Sheet
The page is laid out so the tables survive a trip through a browser’s print dialog. A few tips from experience:
- Use your browser’s print to PDF option and set the scale so the hand rankings table fits on one page. On most setups, 80 to 90% scale does it.
- Print two sided: hand rankings and the what beats what strip on the front, odds tables and position guide on the back.
- Laminate the sheet or slide it into a plastic sleeve. It will survive spilled drinks and the occasional angry fold.
- Leave the sheet next to the buy in box, not in your lap. Reference material in plain view is standard at home games and nobody reads it as an advantage play.
One honest limitation: no cheat sheet covers bet sizing, reading opponents, or adjusting to a wild table. This page gives you the fixed numbers, the rankings, the odds, and the preflop baselines. The parts of poker that change from game to game still have to come from paying attention.
Poker Cheat Sheet FAQ
Can I print this poker cheat sheet?
Yes. The tables are plain HTML with simple borders, so they print cleanly from any browser without losing formatting. Use print to PDF if you want a saved copy, and scale to around 85% if the rankings table spills onto a second page.
What is the best hand in poker?
The royal flush: ace, king, queen, jack, and ten of the same suit. It occurs once in every 649,740 five card deals, which is why most players go a lifetime without making one naturally. If you want the strategy side of playing it (and the hands that draw to it), see our article on royal flush strategy.
What beats a full house?
Three hands beat a full house: four of a kind, a straight flush, and a royal flush. Between two full houses, the higher three of a kind wins, so 7 7 7 2 2 loses to 8 8 8 2 2 regardless of the pair.
Does a flush beat a straight?
Yes. A flush occurs once in 509 five card deals while a straight occurs once in 255, and the rarer hand always ranks higher. In Hold’em terms, if the board shows three cards of one suit and you hold two of that suit, you beat any player whose best hand is a straight.
What is the rule of 2 and 4?
It is a shortcut for converting outs into percentages. Multiply your number of outs by 2 for the chance of hitting on the next card, and by 4 for the chance of hitting by the river with two cards to come. Eight outs (an open ended straight draw) is about 16% on the turn and 32% by the river. The shortcut stays within a couple of percentage points of the true figure for any draw up to about eight outs, and runs slightly hot beyond that.
Is it legal to use a cheat sheet at a poker table?
At home games, yes, and most hosts encourage it for newer players. In casinos the rules vary by room: some allow printed reference cards away from the table felt, many do not allow consulting anything during a live hand. Online, nothing stops you from keeping a rankings chart open in another window. The one universal line is electronic assistance: software that calculates odds or suggests plays in real time is banned everywhere.
