How do you play Rummy?
Rummy is a card game where each turn you draw one card and discard one, turning your hand into sets of a kind and runs in a suit that you lay on the table. The first player to empty their hand collects the points still held by everyone else. It uses one 52 card deck without jokers, for 2 to 4 players.
With three or four players everyone receives 7 cards; with two players, 10. The rest is turned face down as the stock, and its top card is flipped to start the discard pile. On your turn you first take one card from the stock or the top of the discard pile, then lay down as many melds as you like, and finally put one card on the discard pile to end your turn. Here you play against one to three computer opponents at Easy, Normal or Hard level.
What are sets and runs?
A set is 3 or 4 cards of the same rank (for example 7♠ 7♥ 7♣). A run is 3 or more cards of the same suit in sequence (for example 4♦ 5♦ 6♦). Together they are called melds, and a meld stays on the table until the round ends.
| Kind | Rule | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Set | 3 or 4 cards of one rank, all different suits | Q♠ Q♥ Q♦ |
| Run | 3 or more cards of one suit in a row | 8♣ 9♣ 10♣ J♣ |
| Ace | Low only, as in A 2 3. Q K A is not a run | A♥ 2♥ 3♥ |
| Laying off | Add a fitting card to any meld on the table, including an opponent's | 7♦ or 3♦ onto 4♦ 5♦ 6♦ |
Cards in your hand that could form a meld, or that fit a meld on the table, glow softly so you do not miss them. Select three or more cards and press Meld, or drag a card up onto the table, to lay them down. Select one card and tap a table meld, or drag it there, to lay it off.
How is the score counted?
When someone empties their hand the round ends, and the winner receives the total value of all cards still held by the other players: an ace is 1, number cards count their face value, and J, Q and K are 10 each. Cards already on the table do not count.
| Card | Points |
|---|---|
| A | 1 |
| 2 to 10 | Face value |
| J · Q · K | 10 |
| Rummy | Going out in a single turn without having melded earlier in the round doubles the points |
| End | The game ends when someone reaches 100 points and the highest total wins |
A score sheet appears after every round showing what each player had left and what the winner collected. Holding face cards for a long time makes the loss bigger, so unmatched 10 point cards are usually the first to go.
Can I discard the card I took from the discard pile?
No. A card taken from the discard pile cannot be discarded in the same turn. Take it only when you intend to use it. The one exception is when it is the last card in your hand and you must discard it to go out.
Only the top card of the discard pile may be taken. When the stock runs out, the top discard stays and the rest is shuffled into a new stock. Everyone can see which cards a player took from the discard pile, and the Hard computer remembers them so it avoids throwing cards that would help the next player.
How is this different from Gin Rummy?
This is basic straight Rummy. In Gin Rummy you keep your melds in hand and end the round by knocking, and laying off on the opponent's melds is only allowed after a knock. The two games share a name but play very differently.
| Item | Rummy (this game) | Gin Rummy |
|---|---|---|
| Players | 2 to 4 | 2 |
| Starting hand | 7 cards (10 with two players) | 10 cards |
| Showing melds | Laid on the table every turn | Kept in hand until the knock |
| Laying off | Any time on your turn | Only after the opponent knocks |
| Round end | A hand must be completely empty | Knock with 10 or fewer points of deadwood |
| Scoring | Winner takes the other hands' points | Difference in deadwood plus gin and undercut bonuses |
| Big bonus | Rummy, going out in one turn, doubles | Gin, zero deadwood, 25 point bonus |
What do the three computer levels do?
Easy sometimes forgets to meld and throws big cards carelessly. Normal melds and lays off everything it can and discards the card least likely to pair up. Hard holds its melds to go for the double rummy bonus, lays everything down at once, and remembers which cards you took from the discard pile when choosing what to throw.
- Easy: misses useful discards now and then and often keeps melds in hand. A good partner for learning the rules.
- Normal: takes the discard when it completes a meld, lays down every meld and lay off available, and weighs both points and pairing chances when discarding.
- Hard: lays down right away when any opponent is down to three cards or the stock is low, but otherwise keeps its melds hidden to aim for rummy. It will not discard a card that matches what the next player picked up.
Any tips for winning at Rummy?
- Deal with face cards first. J, Q and K cost 10 each at the end of a round. Unmatched face cards should leave your hand early.
- The discard pile is a gift to the next player. Never throw a card of the same rank, or adjacent in suit, to what they just picked up.
- Lay off whenever you can. Adding a card to a table meld lowers your deadwood for free. Glowing cards come first.
- Aim for rummy, but do not gamble. Holding melds for the double bonus means losing all of them if someone goes out first. Lay down as soon as an opponent drops below four cards.
- Drag your hand into order. Group same ranks and same suits together so pairs stand out. The Sort button pulls ready melds to the front.
Controls
- Phone and mouse: on your turn tap the stock or the discard pile to draw. Tap cards to select them; select three or more and press Meld, or drag a card up onto the table, to lay down a meld. Select one card and press Discard, or drag it onto the discard pile, to discard. Drag cards left and right to reorder your hand.
- Keyboard: D draws from the stock, F takes the discard, arrows move the cursor, Space selects, Enter melds the selection (or lays off or discards a single card), X discards, L lays off, S sorts, M mutes.
- Screen: in landscape the piles sit on the right; in portrait they sit just above your hand. Each name plate shows that player's remaining cards and score at all times.
Your win count and your last choice of opponents and level are saved only in this browser and never sent to a server. Points are for scoring only and there is no betting of any kind.