Rummy

Statistics

• 2 Players
• 3 Players
• 4 Players
• 5 Players
• 6 Players

Rules of Rummy

Setup

Rummy can be played with 2 to 6 players using the standard 52-card deck. Each game is played in one or more rounds until one player exceeds 100 points (in 2-player and 3-player games) or 200 points (in 4-player to 6-player games).

At the beginning of each round, the following number of cards are dealt to each player:

• 2-player game: 10 cards per player.
• 3-player game: 7 cards per player.
• 4-player game: 7 cards per player.
• 5-player game: 6 cards per player.
• 6-player game: 6 cards per player.

The remaining cards are placed face down in one pile (the stock). One card is turned up and placed beside the stock. The turned up card is the start of the discard pile where players will place their discarded cards during the game.

Game Play

The goal of each player is to get rid of all of their cards by discarding them or by creating melds. A meld is one of the following:

• a group of three or more cards of the same rank, for example, 5♥ 5♣ 5♦; or
• a sequence of three or more consecutive cards of the same suit, for example, 9♠ 10♠ J♠ Q♠.

On each turn, the player starts by picking up a card from either the top of the stock or the top of the discard pile. Then the player does one of three things:

• Create a meld using cards in their hand.
• Add a card in their hand to a meld that has previously been created by any player. This is known as laying off a card.
• Discard one card from their hand.

The player can create a meld and lay off a card any number of times in a single turn. Their turn ends once they discard a card from their hand. The discarded card is placed face up at the top of the discard pile. If the player starts the turn by picking up a card from the discard pile, they may not discard that card in the same turn, unless it is the only card remaining in the player's hand.

The round continues until one player has gotten rid of all their cards.

If there are no more cards in the stock, cards from the discard pile, other than the top card, are shuffled and turned face down to form the new stock. This is done only a limited number of times. The number of times the stock is refilled depends on the number of players:

• 2-player game: 1 time.
• 3-player game: 1 time.
• 4-player game: 1 time.
• 5-player game: 2 times.
• 6-player game: 3 times.

If the stock is empty and the limit has been reached, the round ends in stalemate with no winner.

Scoring

If a player successfully gets rid of all their cards, they receive a score calculated by adding up the values of all the cards remaining in the other players' hands. Each card is worth its face value, with Aces worth 1 point each and Jacks, Queens, and Kings worth 10 points each.

If a player gets rid of all their cards in the same turn, without having melded or laid off any cards in previous turns, the player is said to have gone rummy, and their score for the round doubles.

If the round ends in stalemate, no one receives any point in the round.

The first player whose total score over all rounds exceeds 100 points (in 2-player or 3-player games) or 200 points (in 4-player to 6-player games) wins the game.