Poker is a card game where players place bets on the value of their cards. The aim is to have the highest ranked hand of cards at the end of a betting round. If no one else calls a bet, the player with the highest ranked hand wins the pot – all bets made during that betting phase. The game may also be won by bluffing – convincing other players that you have a good hand when in fact you do not.

A poker game has many variations, but the games all share some characteristics. The cards are passed around in sets or in a community pile, and the players bet on their hands. Players can choose to call (place a bet equal to the one raised by the previous player), raise or drop their cards. The dealer changes with each hand.

The game is played with chips, and each player buys in for a specified number of chips. A white chip is worth one unit, or a minimum ante or bet; a red chip is worth two whites and two reds; and a blue chip is usually worth five whites.

A player’s skill in poker is often dependent on his or her knowledge of the other players, including reading their behavior. For example, a player who is very conservative will fold early in a hand and can be bluffed into raising by more aggressive players. On the other hand, a player who is very aggressive will raise every bet and can sometimes ruin the game for everyone else by calling too much.