Does four of a kind beat a pair?
Yes. Four of a kind beats a pair in poker — every time. In the ranking of 10 hand categories, four of a kind is #3 and one pair is #9. Categories are compared first: even quad deuces beats a pair of aces — the category always decides first.
Four cards of the same rank ("quads").
Two cards of the same rank.
How rare is each hand?
Rarity is exactly why the order is what it is. Out of 2,598,960 possible five-card hands, four of a kind shows up in 0.024% of them (624 combinations), while a pair appears in 42.3% (1,098,240 combinations). The harder a hand is to make, the higher it ranks.
Does a pair ever beat four of a kind?
No — never. The category comparison is absolute: the highest possible one pair still loses to the lowest possible four of a kind. Ranks inside a category only matter when both players hold the same category.
Prove it to yourself
Which hand wins? Tap it.