Poker is a card game played by two or more players. It involves betting and bluffing and has many different variants. In almost all forms of poker, players put a portion of their bets into a central pot. The player with the highest hand wins the pot. The pot may also be won by making a bet that no other players call. These bets are based on expected value and other strategic considerations.

A player starts by putting an ante into the pot. Then they get cards from the dealer face down. The cards are arranged in a stack and each player can choose to discard up to three of them. After that, the remaining cards are re-arranged into a five-card hand. The players then begin the first of several rounds of betting.

The game is played from a standard pack of 52 cards. The suits are spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs. The Ace is high, but some games add jokers or other wild cards.

The goal of poker is to make a good hand using the cards you have. This can be accomplished with a high hand or a low one. A good hand will include a pair or a straight. If you have a strong poker hand, it is best to bet and force other weaker hands out of the pot. If you have a weak poker hand, it is usually better to call than to raise.