Rummy Rules
Rummy is a family of matching card games built around one satisfying idea: take a shuffled hand and organize it into order. Almost every variant deals each player a hand of cards, gives you a face-down stock to draw from and a face-up discard pile to throw to, and asks you to build melds - sets of matching rank and runs of consecutive cards in one suit. What changes between games is everything else: how many cards you hold, whether you knock or meld out, how jokers and wild cards behave, and how the points are counted.
This page collects the rules for every game on Rummy.now. Each section covers the goal, the draw and discard, and the details that trip up new players - with a link to jump straight into a game. If you are brand new, start with Gin Rummy or classic Rummy, then try quick-hitting Tonk when you want a fast round.
💡 New to rummy? Every game below shares the same core idea - draw a card, build sets and runs, discard one. Learn one and the rest come quickly.
Gin Family: Gin Rummy · Oklahoma · Straight Gin
Classic Rummy: Rummy · Rummy 500 · Kalooki
13-Card: Indian Rummy · Dummy Rummy
Quick: Tonk
Melding: Canasta · Contract Rummy
Every rummy game at a glance
Skim the whole family first, then jump to the full rules for any game below.
| Game | Goal | Players | Decks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gin Rummy | Group your ten cards into sets and runs, then knock with 10 or fewer deadwood points, or go Gin with none. | 2 players | 1 |
| Oklahoma | Play standard Gin, but the value of the first upcard fixes the maximum deadwood you may knock with. | 2 players | 1 |
| Straight Gin | Meld all ten cards with no deadwood; knocking is not allowed, so only a full Gin wins the hand. | 2 players | 1 |
| Rummy | Meld all of your cards into sets and runs and discard your last card to go out before your opponent. | 2 players | 1 |
| Rummy 500 | Score points for every card you meld or lay off across many hands; the first player to 500 wins. | 2 players | 1 |
| Kalooki | Use jokers as wild cards to build melds, open with the required points, and meld out. | 2 players | 2 |
| Indian Rummy | Arrange all 13 cards into valid sequences and sets, including at least one pure sequence, then declare. | 2 players | 2 |
| Dummy Rummy | With 2s and jokers wild, complete the round's melds, lay off freely, and be first to go out. | 2 players | 2 |
| Tonk | Spot a low count and drop, or meld everything and go out, in this quick-hitting rummy. | 2 players | 1 |
| Canasta | Meld matching cards with wild-card help, complete canastas of seven, and score big before going out. | 2 players | 2 |
| Contract Rummy | Each deal demands a specific contract of sets and runs; meet it to lay down, then meld out. | 2 players | 2 |
Gin Family Games
Gin Rummy
2 players · 10 cards each · 1 deck · Easy to learn
Gin Rummy is the definitive two-player card game, a fast, tense duel that has entertained families, card clubs and Hollywood sets for more than a century. Each player is dealt ten cards and races to organize them into melds - sets of three or four cards of the same rank and runs of three or more consecutive cards in one suit. The cards you cannot meld are your deadwood, and the moment your deadwood falls to ten points or fewer you can knock and lay your hand down. Better still, meld all ten cards and you go Gin for a fat bonus. What makes Gin so gripping is the constant reading of your opponent: every card they take from the discard pile and every card they throw away leaks information, so each turn becomes a small gamble between speed, safety and the perfect knock.
Goal
Arrange your ten cards into melds - sets of equal rank or runs of consecutive cards in one suit - and end the hand by knocking with ten or fewer deadwood points, or by going Gin with none at all.
Deal
Using one 52-card deck, each player receives ten cards. The next card is turned face up to start the discard pile and the rest become the face-down stock. The non-dealer chooses first whether to take that upcard.
Draw and discard
On your turn, draw one card - either the top of the face-down stock or the top of the discard pile - then throw one card onto the discard pile, always keeping exactly ten cards in hand.
Melds
A set is three or four cards of the same rank, such as three Nines. A run is three or more cards in sequence in the same suit, such as the 5-6-7 of clubs. Aces are low and runs do not wrap from King to Ace, and every card can belong to only one meld.
Winning
When your unmatched deadwood totals ten or fewer, discard and knock to reveal your hand. Your opponent lays off any of their deadwood onto your melds, and the player with less deadwood scores the difference. Go Gin - zero deadwood - for a 25-point bonus.
Oklahoma Gin
2 players · 10 cards each · 1 deck · Sharper Gin
Oklahoma Gin takes everything you love about classic Gin Rummy and adds one clever wrinkle that changes every hand: the first card turned up from the deck decides how low your deadwood must be before you are allowed to knock. Flip a seven and you can knock at seven or fewer; flip a low card and you are squeezed toward a much tighter finish; flip an ace and you must go Gin outright. That single rule turns a comfortable ten-point cushion into a moving target, so you never quite know how aggressively to build your hand until the upcard is revealed. The result is a sharper, more disciplined game that rewards players who can shift gears on the fly, tightening up when the knock limit is stingy and pressing their luck when it is generous. It is a favorite among Gin regulars looking for a little extra bite in their duel.
Goal
Play standard Gin Rummy, but respect the knock limit set by the first upcard - build your ten cards into sets and runs and go out only when your deadwood is at or below that number.
Deal
With one 52-card deck, deal ten cards to each player and turn the next card face up. The value of that upcard becomes the maximum deadwood allowed for knocking this hand, and an ace means you must go Gin.
Draw and discard
Turns work exactly as in Gin: draw either the top stock card or the top discard, then discard one card, always holding ten. The upcard's knock limit applies to both players for the whole hand.
Melds
Form sets of three or four cards of one rank or runs of three or more consecutive cards in one suit. Aces are low. Any card left outside a meld is deadwood, scored at pip value with face cards worth ten and aces worth one.
Winning
Knock only when your deadwood is at or below the upcard's value. Your opponent lays off onto your melds, lower deadwood wins the difference, and going Gin still earns its bonus. By tradition a spade upcard doubles the hand's score.
Straight Gin
2 players · 10 cards each · 1 deck · Pure skill
Straight Gin strips Gin Rummy back to its purest, most demanding form by removing the safety valve of knocking altogether. In the standard game you can bail out early by knocking with ten or fewer deadwood points, but here that door is locked - the only way to win a hand is to meld all ten of your cards and go Gin. Every card must find a home in a set or a run, with not a single point of deadwood left over. That one restriction transforms the feel of the game completely: there is no settling for a small, safe finish, so both players must build patiently, read the discard pile carefully and hold their nerve as the stock shrinks. Straight Gin is prized by serious players precisely because luck matters less and pure card sense matters more - it is Gin distilled to its hardest, cleanest challenge.
Goal
Meld every one of your ten cards into sets and runs and go Gin - knocking is not allowed, so a hand can only be won with a complete, deadwood-free arrangement.
Deal
Use a single 52-card deck and deal ten cards to each of the two players. Turn the next card face up to start the discard pile, and the rest of the deck forms the face-down stock.
Draw and discard
On your turn draw one card from the stock or the top of the discard pile, then discard one card, keeping ten cards in hand. Play continues back and forth until someone goes Gin.
Melds
Build sets of three or four cards of the same rank and runs of three or more consecutive cards in one suit. Aces are low and runs do not wrap. To win you must arrange all ten cards into valid melds with no card left over.
Winning
The hand ends only when a player goes Gin by melding all ten cards. The winner scores the opponent's full deadwood count plus the standard Gin bonus. If the stock runs out before anyone goes Gin, the hand is usually a draw and is redealt.
Classic Rummy Games
Rummy
2 players · 10 cards each · 1 deck · Easy to learn
Rummy is the original draw-and-discard card game, the simple, elegant ancestor that every other game in the family grew from. Using a single 52-card deck, two players each take ten cards and race to organize their hand into melds - sets of three or four cards of the same rank, and runs of three or more consecutive cards in one suit. On your turn you draw a single card from the stock or the top of the discard pile, try to build or extend melds, then throw one card away. The first player to meld every card and discard their last one goes out and wins the deal. What makes Rummy so enduring is its balance of luck and skill: the deal is random, but reading discards, holding useful cards, and timing your exit reward a sharp, patient mind at every table.
Goal
Be the first to arrange your whole hand into valid melds - sets and runs - and discard your final card to go out. Sets are three or four cards of the same rank; runs are three or more consecutive cards in a single suit, such as 5-6-7 of hearts.
Deal
Shuffle one standard 52-card deck. Each of the two players receives ten cards. The rest form the stock, placed face down, and the top card is turned up beside it to start the discard pile.
Draw and discard
Begin every turn by drawing exactly one card, either the unknown top card of the stock or the visible top card of the discard pile. End the turn by placing one unwanted card face up on the discard pile, keeping your hand at ten cards.
Melds
Between drawing and discarding you may lay down any valid sets or runs face up on the table, and lay off extra cards onto melds already showing - yours or, in the common house rule, your opponent's - to shed cards faster.
Winning
The moment you have melded all your cards and discarded your last one, you go out and win the deal. Your opponent counts the pip value of the unmelded cards still in hand as penalty points against them.
Rummy 500
2 players · 7 cards each · 1 deck · Moderate
Rummy 500, also called 500 Rum, turns the classic draw-and-discard game into a running points race that stretches across many hands. Two players start with seven cards each, but the twist that defines the game lives in the discard pile: instead of taking only the top card, you may scoop up a whole stack of discards down to any card you want - as long as you immediately meld that buried card. Every card you meld or lay off scores its face value in your favor, while cards trapped in your hand at the end of a deal are subtracted from your total. Hands add up, deal after deal, until one player crosses 500 points and wins. Choose Ace Low, where the ace ranks below the two and scores a single point, or Ace High, where the ace tops runs and is worth a hefty fifteen - a choice that reshapes how you value every ace.
Goal
Score more points than your opponent by melding and laying off cards across many deals, being the first to reach a cumulative total of 500 points. Melded cards earn their value; cards left in hand are subtracted from your score.
Deal
Shuffle one standard 52-card deck and deal seven cards to each of the two players. Place the remaining cards face down as the stock and turn the top card face up to begin the discard pile, which is spread out so every discard stays visible.
Draw and discard
Start your turn by drawing the top stock card, or by taking one or more cards from the discard pile down to any card you choose - provided you immediately meld or lay off that lowest card you took. Finish the turn by discarding one card face up.
Melds
Lay sets of three or four matching ranks and runs of three or more cards in one suit. In Ace Low mode the ace ranks below the two and anchors runs like A-2-3; in Ace High mode it ranks above the king and tops runs like Q-K-A. Lay off onto any meld on the table, including your opponent's, since a card scores for whoever plays it.
Winning
A deal ends when a player melds out or the stock is exhausted. Face cards and tens score 10, number cards score their pip value, and the ace scores 1 in Ace Low or 15 in Ace High; add your melds and subtract your hand. First to 500 across deals wins.
Kalooki
2 players · 13 cards each · 2 decks · Tactical
Kalooki, also spelled Kaluki, is the bold, joker-fueled member of the Rummy family, beloved in Jamaica and Britain alike. Played with two full decks shuffled together plus jokers, each player holds a generous thirteen cards and hunts for sets and runs, with jokers standing in as wild cards for anything missing. The signature rule is the opening requirement: before you can lay a single meld on the table, your first batch of melds must be worth a minimum number of points - forty in Kalooki 40 or fifty-one in Kalooki 51 - which forces patience and rewards a strong opening hand. Once you are down, you lay off freely, swap jokers out of melds to reuse them, and race to shed every card. With wild cards flying and a high bar to open, Kalooki blends careful point-counting with aggressive, fast-melding endplay.
Goal
Be the first to meld your entire hand into sets and runs and go out. Before you may lay anything down, though, your opening melds must total at least the required points - 40 in Kalooki 40 or 51 in Kalooki 51.
Deal
Shuffle two standard 52-card decks together with jokers. Each of the two players receives thirteen cards. The rest form the face-down stock, and the top card is turned up to start the discard pile.
Draw and discard
On your turn draw one card from the stock or take the top card of the discard pile, work on your melds, then discard one card face up. You may only take the discard if you can use that card, and you must always finish by discarding.
Melds
Sets are three or four cards of the same rank and runs are three or more consecutive cards in one suit; jokers are wild and substitute for any missing card. Once you have opened, you lay off onto melds already on the table and may swap a joker out of a meld by replacing it with the real card it represents, freeing that joker for your own use.
Winning
You go out and win the deal when you have melded every card and made your final discard. Your opponent scores penalty points for the cards left in hand, with jokers carrying the heaviest penalty, and play continues to an agreed target over several deals.
13-Card Games
Indian Rummy
2 players · 13 cards each · 2 decks · Popular worldwide
Indian Rummy, also called 13-card rummy or Paplu, is the melding game that dominates card tables across the subcontinent. Each player is dealt thirteen cards from two shuffled decks salted with printed jokers and a randomly cut wild-card joker, and the race is on to arrange every card into valid sequences and sets. The rule that gives the game its bite is the pure sequence: before any joker-assisted group counts, you must build at least one run with no wild card in it, and usually a second sequence besides. When your hand is fully grouped you declare by slipping a final card into the finish slot, and every opponent left holding unmatched cards pays their pip value. It is quick to learn, endlessly re-playable, and a fixture of festivals, family gatherings, and late-night online tables alike.
Goal
Arrange all thirteen of your cards into valid sequences and sets - Including at least one pure sequence and a second sequence - Then declare before your opponent does.
Deal
Two decks are combined with jokers and one card is cut to fix the wild-card joker for the round. Each player receives thirteen cards; the rest form the closed stock, with one card turned up to start the open discard pile.
Draw and discard
On your turn, draw one card from either the closed stock or the top of the open discard pile, then discard one card face up. You always hold thirteen cards between turns.
Melds
Build sequences (three or more consecutive cards of one suit) and sets (three or four cards of the same rank in different suits). The cut joker and printed jokers can stand in for any missing card, but a pure sequence must contain no joker at all.
Winning
Once your thirteen cards form valid groups with the required pure sequence, place your final card in the finish slot and declare. A correct declaration wins; a wrong one costs an 80-point penalty, and everyone else scores the pips of their unmatched cards.
Dummy Rummy
2 players · 13 cards each · 2 decks · Wild and swingy
Dummy Rummy is a swingy, wild-card-drenched member of the American rummy family, played across a series of deals with two full decks and their jokers. What sets it apart is generosity with wilds: every 2 and every joker is wild, so a single hand can hold a small army of substitutes that turn broken cards into finished melds. Each deal carries its own required combination of sets and runs that you must lay down before you can start laying off, and the round ends the moment someone sheds their last card. Because wild cards can carry a huge scoring penalty when caught in your hand, fortunes swing hard from deal to deal - A hand that looks unbeatable can collapse if an opponent goes out first. It rewards bold melding, careful timing, and a nerve for holding wilds just long enough.
Goal
Complete the specific melds required for the current deal, get rid of all your cards to go out, and finish the full set of deals with the lowest total penalty score.
Deal
Two decks plus the jokers are shuffled together and each player is dealt thirteen cards. The remainder forms the stock, with one card turned up to begin the discard pile. Play runs over seven or more deals, each demanding a different required meld.
Draw and discard
On your turn, draw either the top card of the stock or the top of the discard pile, then end your turn by discarding one card face up. You may lay down melds and lay off during your turn once you have met the deal's requirement.
Melds
Sets are three or more cards of the same rank and runs are sequences of the same suit. Every 2 and every joker is wild and can stand in for any card - But a single meld can never contain more wild cards than natural ones.
Winning
Once you have laid down the deal's required melds, you may lay off cards onto any melds on the table and race to empty your hand. Going out ends the deal; everyone else scores the cards left in hand, and the lowest cumulative score after the final deal wins.
Quick Games
Tonk
2 players · 5 cards each · 1 deck · Fast and simple
Tonk, also spelled Tunk, is a fast, punchy money rummy that has been dealt on stoops, in break rooms, and backstage between sets for the better part of a century. Each player gets just five cards - Sometimes seven - And the action is immediate: if you are dealt exactly forty-nine or fifty points you can call an instant tonk and win on the spot. On your turn you face a sharp choice - Drop your hand if you believe you are holding the lowest count, draw and build spreads, or hit cards onto existing melds and discard. Win by going out entirely or by having the lowest unmatched count when someone drops. With tiny hands, quick rounds, and real stakes, Tonk trades the long build of thirteen-card rummy for nerve, arithmetic, and the gambler's read on whether your opponent is sitting low.
Goal
Either shed all your cards to go out, or hold the lowest total of unmatched card points and drop at the right moment to win the stake.
Deal
Using a single standard deck, each player is dealt five cards - Some games deal seven for two or three players. The rest form the stock, with the top card turned up to start the discard pile. A player dealt exactly forty-nine or fifty points may declare an immediate tonk and win at once.
Draw and discard
On your turn you draw one card from the stock or the top of the discard pile, then finish by discarding one card - Unless you are going out or you choose to drop instead of playing.
Melds
Melds, called spreads, are sets of three or four cards of the same rank or runs of three or more cards in the same suit. You may lay down spreads and hit - Add matching cards onto spreads already on the table - To reduce the count in your hand.
Winning
You win outright by going out - Melding or laying off every card in your hand. Otherwise you may drop on your turn: if your unmatched count is lowest you collect, but if an opponent ties or beats it you are caught and pay a penalty.
Melding Games
Canasta
2 players · 15 cards each · 2 decks · Deep
Canasta is a melding game for two players played with two full decks plus four jokers, where the aim is not just to meld matching cards but to build a canasta - a single meld of seven or more cards of the same rank. On your turn you draw from the stock or scoop up the entire discard pile, then lay down groups of a rank, leaning on wild cards - the jokers and the twos - to fill out your melds. A natural or pure canasta with no wilds is worth a huge 500-point bonus, while a mixed canasta scores 300, so the tug between speed and purity gives every hand real tension. Red threes are set aside as 100-point bonus cards, the discard pile can be frozen to lock it away, and you cannot go out until you have completed a canasta. It rewards patience, memory, and a sharp eye for the right moment to strike.
Goal
Meld cards of matching rank, complete at least one canasta of seven or more cards, and finish with more points than your opponent before someone goes out.
Deal
Shuffle two 52-card decks together with four jokers. Each player is dealt fifteen cards, the remaining cards form the stock, and the top card is turned face up to start the discard pile.
Draw and discard
On your turn draw the top card of the stock, or take the whole discard pile if you can immediately meld its top card. After making any melds you must discard one card to end your turn.
Melds
A meld is three or more cards of the same rank, and may use wild cards - jokers worth 50 and twos worth 20 - as long as natural cards outnumber the wilds. Seven or more cards of a rank form a canasta.
Winning
You may only go out once you hold a completed canasta. Add meld card values, canasta bonuses and red threes, then subtract the value of cards left in hand; the higher total wins the deal.
Contract Rummy
2 players · 10-12 cards each · 2 decks · Long-form
Contract Rummy - also known as Liverpool Rummy, Progressive Rummy and Joker Rummy - stretches across seven deals, each with its own binding contract of sets and runs you must lay down before you can do anything else. The opening deal might demand two sets, the next a set and a run, building through two runs, three sets and mixed requirements all the way up to three runs in the final hand. A set is three or more cards of a rank, a run is four or more consecutive cards of one suit, and jokers stand in as wild cards to plug the gaps. Until you meet the exact contract for the current deal you cannot lay off a single card, so timing your first spread is everything. Played with two decks and jokers, it rewards planning several deals ahead and reshaping your hand to satisfy whatever the running contract demands.
Goal
Meet the required contract of sets and runs for each of the seven deals, then meld out your remaining cards, finishing the match with the fewest penalty points overall.
Deal
Shuffle two decks together with the jokers. Deal ten cards each for the early hands and up to twelve for the later ones, turn one card face up to start the discard pile, and leave the rest as stock.
Draw and discard
Take the top card of the stock or the top discard, add it to your hand, then finish your turn by discarding one card. On the seventh deal players usually go out without a final discard.
Melds
A set is three or more cards of the same rank and a run is four or more consecutive cards of one suit. Jokers are wild and can stand in for any card needed to complete a meld.
Winning
You may not lay down until you can meet that deal's exact contract, and you may not lay off cards until you have. Empty your hand to end the deal; the lowest total after all seven deals wins.
A few terms that apply everywhere
Melds
A meld is any valid group of cards you lay down - a set or a run. Building your hand into melds is the whole point of every rummy game, and a card can only ever belong to one meld at a time.
Sets & runs
A set is three or four cards of the same rank in different suits, like three Kings. A run - or sequence - is three or more consecutive cards in one suit, like the 6-7-8 of hearts. These are the two building blocks of every meld.
Stock & discard
The stock is the face-down pile you draw an unknown card from; the discard pile is the face-up pile you throw an unwanted card onto. Most turns you may draw from either, and the discard pile leaks a steady stream of information about your opponent.
Deadwood & going out
Deadwood is any card left unmelded when the hand ends, scored at its pip value against you. You end a hand by going out - melding everything and making a final discard - or, in Gin games, by knocking once your deadwood drops to ten or fewer.
Ready to put the rules to work? Try today's Daily Challenge, race a friend in Multiplayer, or check the FAQ for common questions about rummy in general.
Rummy rules FAQ
How do you play rummy?
In every rummy game you draw a card, try to arrange your hand into melds, then discard one card to end your turn. A meld is either a set - three or four cards of the same rank - or a run, three or more consecutive cards in one suit. In Gin Rummy you knock once your unmatched deadwood falls to ten points or fewer, while in basic Rummy you win by melding your whole hand and discarding your last card to go out.
What is the goal of rummy?
In most rummy games the goal is to organize your hand into valid sets and runs faster than your opponent, then go out by melding everything or knocking with a low deadwood count. Games like Rummy 500 and Canasta instead run over many deals, where you score points for the cards you meld and lose points for cards caught in your hand.
Which rummy game is easiest to learn?
Gin Rummy and basic Rummy are the friendliest starting points - a small hand, simple sets and runs, and a clear goal. Tonk is even quicker, using just five cards each, which makes it a great way to learn the draw, meld and discard rhythm in a few minutes.
Which rummy game is the hardest?
Canasta and Contract Rummy are the deepest, most demanding games in the family, with big hands, wild cards and multi-deal scoring that reward long-range planning. Straight Gin is also tough because it bans knocking entirely - you can only win by melding all ten cards for a full Gin.
What is the difference between a set and a run?
A set is three or four cards of the same rank in different suits, such as three Nines. A run - also called a sequence - is three or more cards in consecutive order within a single suit, such as the 5-6-7 of clubs. Both are melds, and every card can belong to only one meld at a time.
Want more answers? See the full rummy FAQ or look up any term in the glossary.