Odds, Probability & Bankroll
Probability of flush in 5-card poker
In 5-card poker, a flush is five cards of the same suit. The probability measures how often a random hand will meet that condition, ignoring straight flushes and royal flushes.
Key points
- A flush requires all five cards in the same suit, but a straight flush or royal flush does not count as a flush here.1
- The probability is fixed for any standard 52-card deck and does not vary by game variant or payout table.3
- Some sources round this to 0.20%.2
Where this term is used
Not the same as
- 5 card poker payouts — describes what a flush wins in a specific game, not how often it occurs
Related terms
Odds & probability
Straight flush probability
Covers the probability of a straight flush, a rarer hand than a plain flush.
Odds & probability
Probability vs possibility
Explains the difference between a numerical chance and a binary yes/no.
Odds & probability
Odds vs probability
Distinguishes between ratio-based odds and fractional probability.
Odds & probability
Likelihood vs probability
Clarifies how likelihood differs from probability in gambling contexts.
Odds & probability
Implied probability
Shows how betting odds convert to an implied chance of an event.
Odds & probability
Royal flush odds
Gives the odds of the rarest standard poker hand.
Sources
- Poker probability en.wikipedia.org Provides the count of flush hands (5,108) and total hands (2,598,960).
- Five-card draw en.wikipedia.org Supports the rounded probability of 0.20%.
- Poker Probabilities wizardofodds.com Gives the exact probability 0.0019654 and the 1 in 508.8 figure.
Sources are drawn from regulators, universities and published research, and each one is labelled with what it actually is — a preprint is not called a paper. Bookmaker and affiliate pages are never cited here, because a page that sells betting is not a neutral authority on it.