Does a flush beat high card?

Yes. A flush beats high card in poker — every time. In the ranking of 10 hand categories, flush is #5 and high card is #10. Categories are compared first: even a seven-high flush beats ace-high — the category always decides first.

#5
Flush — wins

Five cards of one suit, any order.

A♣J♣8♣6♣2♣
#10
High Card — loses

Nothing connects — the top card plays.

A♥Q♦8♠5♣2♦

How rare is each hand?

Rarity is exactly why the order is what it is. Out of 2,598,960 possible five-card hands, a flush shows up in 0.197% of them (5,108 combinations), while high card appears in 50.1% (1,302,540 combinations). The harder a hand is to make, the higher it ranks.

Does high card ever beat a flush?

No — never. The category comparison is absolute: the highest possible high card still loses to the lowest possible flush. Ranks inside a category only matter when both players hold the same category.

Prove it to yourself

Which hand wins? Tap it.

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