What is Three-of-a-Kind in Poker? Definition & Examples

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Last updated: Aug 04, 2026 Published: Jun 03, 2026 11 min read

Three-of-a-kind is a hand that contains three cards of the same rank, with two other disconnected cards - E.g. 10♠10♦10♣6♥A♠.

It can also be known as trips and sometimes (but not always) as a set, and is a favorite holding of many poker players. While it isn't near the top of the poker hand rankings, it can be a very strong hand if players hold pocket pairs because it's often well disguised. 

Skip to the relevant section on this page:

• What is Three-of-a-Kind?
• How Three-of-a-Kind Ranks
• Three-of-a-Kind vs Other Hands
• How to Play and Get Value with Three-of-a-Kind
• Three-of-a-Kind FAQs

What is Three-of-a-Kind in Poker? 

Three-of-a-kind is a poker hand consisting of three cards of the same rank (three aces, three sevens, etc.). It's ranked higher than two pair and just below straights. It is an especially strong hand in Texas Hold'em as opposed to Omaha.

Three-of-a-Kind is also known as trips, and common ways to announce it are saying something like "I have trips" or "I flopped trips." It is an especially strong and dynamic holding because it can often be well-disguised and has outs to improve to a full house, beating out hands like straights and flushes. 

What is Trips?

Trips in poker is three-of-a-kind, but where two of the three cards are on the board, with the third in the player's hand. Trips isn't as strong as sets, because a paired board gives more opportunities for opponents to also make strong hands, including full houses. 

What is a Set?

A set is a certain kind of three-of-a-kind, one that involves pocket pairs. If you make three-of-a-kind with a pocket pair, you have made a set. One example of this is holding A♠A♣ on a flop of A♦5♦9♣. 

Do Kickers Play with Three-of-a-Kind?

Kickers play with three-of-a-kind holdings, meaning that, if two players have trips, the player with the highest kicker wins. For example, if two players respectively have A♥K♠ and A♣J♣ on a board of A♦A♠5♠4♦3♥, the player with ace-king wins the hand. Both have three-of-a-kind, but the K♠ kicker is higher than the other player's J♣ kicker. Some new players will mistakenly believe that the two players split the pot, which is not the case. 

How Three-of-a-Kind Ranks in Poker Hands

Due to its hidden nature, three-of-a-kind is a strong hand. And while it ranks below straights and flushes, it can improve to full houses and four-of-a-kind, meaning a player with three-of-a-kind against a straight or a flush will usually have outs. 

Three-of-a-kind ranks above two pair, something that sometimes confuses new players. Don't let anyone in your home game tell you that their two pair beats your set!

From strongest to weakest, the top of the poker hand hierarchy looks like this:

1. Royal Flush: A-K-Q-J-10, all the same suit
2. Straight Flush: Five consecutive cards of the same suit (not A-K-Q-J-10)
3. Four of a Kind: Four cards of the same rank
4. Full House: Three of a kind plus a pair
5. Flush: Five cards of the same suit (not in sequence)
6. Straight: Five consecutive cards, mixed suits
7. Three-of-a-Kind: Three cards of the same rank
8. Two Pair: Two sets of two cards the same rank 
9. Pair: Two cards the same rank
10. High Card: Five cards where none of the hands above can be made 

Three-of-a-Kind vs Other Poker Hands

At the end of the day, poker comes down to the relative strength of hands. Three-of-a-kind is a strong holding, but there are still some poker hands that outrank it. Let's see how three-of-a-kind compares to other similar poker hands.

Three-of-a-Kind vs Flushes

Three-of-a-kind loses to flushes in No-Limit Hold'em and most other variants, including 6+ Hold'em. Flushes are two rankings higher than three-of-a-kind. The only saving grace for three-of-a-kind when up against flushes is that there's potential to improve to a full house or four-of-a-kind in future streets, which both beat flushes. 

Three-of-a-Kind vs Straights 

Three-of-a-kind loses to straights in most variants, however, the two hands are close in rankings. Straights are ranked directly above three-of-a-kind.

Three-of-a-Kind vs Two Pair 

Three-of-a-kind beats two pair. It's ranked directly above two pair in the hand rankings.

Three-of-a-Kind vs Three-of-a-Kind

If hands are tied and both players hold three-of-a-kind of equal value, kickers come into play. The player with the highest kicker will win the hand. If both kickers are equal, it goes to the fifth card. If that's also equal, the pot is split.

If two players hold different-valued three-of-a-kinds, for instance three aces vs three jacks, the player with the highest-valued three-of-a-kind wins.

How Common is Three-of-a-Kind?

Playing with a 52-card deck, there are over 50,000 combinations of unique three-of-a-kind hands in Texas Hold'em and other formats. The probability of making three-of-a-kind is around 4.83% when seeing all seven cards. 

To put that in perspective, you would make three-of-a-kind around 44 times for every 1,000 hands you played, assuming you saw every street. In online poker, players are often multi-tabling and will therefore see three-of-a-kind much more frequently than live players - simply because they play more hands.

It is worth noting that three-of-a-kind is significantly more common and less valuable in Omaha games like Pot-Limit Omaha and Big O. The reason for this is that each player receives four hole cards, meaning there are significantly more ways to make three-of-a-kind holdings.

Playing and Maximizing Value With Three-of-a-Kind

So we know where three-of-a-kind sits in the poker hand rankings, but how you play it and get maximum value is the trickier part. Here are some quick tips on how best to play three-of-a-kind, so you can start playing it optimally at the tables.

1. Drawing to Three-of-a-Kind
2. When You Hit Three-of-a-Kind
3. Board Texture

Drawing to Three-of-a-Kind

Drawing to three-of-a-kind is called set-mining, meaning that you call with a weak pair preflop with the hopes of improving to a set and cracking a big hand. However, if you do not hit a set on the flop with your small pair you should not pay to see another card, as the odds are low with only two remaining outs in the deck that can improve your hand. If you suspect your opponent has you beat, it may be best to get out of the way. 

When You Hit Three-of-a-Kind

So you've flopped a set. Now what? It is important to extract value with your strong hands, so let's talk a bit about the best strategy. If you are out of position, consider check-raising to build a pot early. If you are in position, bet for the same reason. If you flop an especially strong hand, like top set on a dry board, consider occasionally checking back as a trap against aggressive opponents to let them catch up. 

Board Texture

Three-of-a-kind is a strong hand, especially in the form of a set, but there are some scary boards for sets. If there are four to a flush or straight on the board, for instance, consider laying down your trips or set. One example might be if you hold pocket 6♣6♠ on a board of 6♥7♥8♥9♥. It may be time to let go of that precious hand. The same might be true if you have A♣2♣ on a board of A♦A♠K♦Q♦J♦, as there are a lot of hands that beat you. 

Poker Hands Quiz

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Three-of-a-Kind in Poker FAQs