Poker is a card game played by two or more players. It has many variants, but the basic rules are the same: a complete hand is dealt and then players bet in one round, raising or folding as appropriate. The player with the highest hand wins. The bets made by each player are collectively known as the pot, and winning the pot requires a combination of skill, luck and bluffing.

The first step is to learn the basics of the game. This includes the rules and a few basic terms such as ante (an amount of money that each player must place before seeing their cards), call (to match a previous bet) and raise (to increase the size of your bet). A good way to learn these words is to play poker with friends or more experienced players, but you can also find plenty of resources online.

Once you have mastered the fundamentals it is time to start thinking beyond your own hands and consider what other people might be holding. This is called reading opponents and is a huge part of successful poker. Reading an opponent’s actions will help you decide what kind of pressure to put on them and when to try and make them fold. A lot of this involves understanding subtle physical poker tells such as scratching your nose, but it can be based on a person’s betting patterns as well.

After the first betting round is over a third card is dealt face up on the table which is known as the flop. The dealer then puts a fifth card on the table that anyone can use for the final betting round, this is known as the river. This final round allows all players still in the hand to check, call, raise or fold. At the end of this last betting round the cards are shown and the player with the highest poker hand wins.

The most common poker hands are high-card, flush, straight and three of a kind. High-card poker hands consist of the highest rank of any two cards. A flush consists of five consecutive cards of the same suit. A straight consists of five cards that are in sequence but don’t have to be from the same suit. A three of a kind is simply 3 cards of the same rank. A pair consists of two cards of equal value.

In addition to knowing the different types of poker hands, you should have a grasp on the different ranking systems used by each game. This will allow you to quickly compare hands and understand which ones are most likely to win. In general, a high-card hand beats a lower-ranking hand and a flush beats a straight. It is also important to know that a pair can beat both a flush and a straight.