Gin Rummy

Gin rummy for two: build sets and runs from ten cards, push your deadwood to 10 or less, and knock. Play the bot in your browser with every card's value printed on it

1 player (vs. one bot)Two-Player DuelsNo download · No sign-up

Pick a target score, then deal the first hand

Build melds from your 10 cards — once your deadwood is 10 or less you may knock

House rules on this table

Knock as soon as your deadwood after discarding is 10 or less
Deadwood 0 is gin: +25, and your opponent may not lay off
Opponent ties or beats your count after laying off — undercut, +25 to them
Two cards left in the stock and nobody knocked — the hand is a draw
First side to reach the target score wins the match

Deadwood 0

How to play

How is a hand of gin rummy dealt?: Pick a target score and deal. A standard 52-card deck with no jokers is used: ten cards to each side, the 21st card turned face up as the first discard, and the remaining 31 become the stock. The bot deals the first hand, so the opening upcard is offered to you first; after that the loser of a hand deals the next one.
Should you take the opening upcard in gin rummy?: Each hand offers the upcard exactly once. Take it and you go straight to discarding, effectively winning half a turn; pass and the offer moves to your opponent. If both sides pass, the card is dead for the rest of the hand and everybody draws from the stock. Take it when it completes a meld or replaces a ten-point card.
What happens on a turn in gin rummy?: Draw one card — either the face-down top of the stock or the face-up top of the discard pile — then throw one of your eleven cards away. The card you just took off the discard pile may not go back the same turn, so decide what you are throwing before you take it.
When are you allowed to knock in gin rummy?: You may knock whenever your deadwood after the discard is 10 or less. The counter above your hand previews exactly that number the moment you touch a card. Aces count 1, cards two through nine count face value, and tens, jacks, queens and kings count 10; cards inside a meld count nothing.
How is a knocked hand scored in gin rummy?: The defender spreads their melds and lays off any deadwood that fits onto the knocker's melds, then the counts are compared. A defender left with more deadwood pays the difference. If the defender ties or goes lower it is an undercut and they take the difference plus 25. Deadwood of zero is gin: no lay-offs are allowed and the knocker takes the whole defending count plus 25.

Rules & variants

Gin rummy basics: two players, a 52-card deck with no jokers, ten cards each. A set is three or four cards of the same rank in different suits; a run is three or more cards of one suit in consecutive rank. The ace is always low, so Q-K-A and K-A-2 are not runs. Everything outside a meld is deadwood, and its point values add up to your deadwood count. For entertainment only, no wagering.

How the lowest deadwood is found: one card can often serve either a set or a run, so this table enumerates every division of the hand into melds that share no card and keeps the one with the smallest deadwood rather than grabbing sets first. With the seven of spades, eight of spades, nine of spades plus the seven of hearts and seven of diamonds, keeping the spade run beats keeping the three sevens. The same calculation drives the badges on your cards, the counter above your hand and whether the knock button is live.

Knocking and gin on this table: the knock threshold is fixed at 10 or less after your discard, with no Oklahoma-style variable threshold taken from the upcard. Deadwood of exactly zero turns the button into gin, worth an extra 25 with no lay-offs allowed. Big gin — eleven cards melded without discarding — pays no extra bonus here and is settled as an ordinary gin.

Laying off explained: after the knocker spreads, the defender can attach deadwood to the knocker's melds. A set accepts the fourth card of that rank; a run accepts cards at either end and can chain. If the knocker spreads the seven, eight and nine of clubs, a defender holding the six and the ten of clubs lays off both and watches their count fall from 20 to 4. Lay-offs are automatic here and always solved for the lowest possible remaining count, so nothing is ever missed.

Undercuts: if the defender's count after laying off is lower than or equal to the knocker's, it is an undercut and the defender takes the difference plus 25. Ties count as undercuts on this table, which is exactly why knocking on the threshold is a gamble — knock with ten and watch the defender land on ten as well, and the 25 goes the other way. Tracking which cards your opponent has taken off the discard pile is the cheapest defence against this.

Draws and the deal: if the stock is down to two cards and nobody has knocked, the hand is a draw, neither side scores, and the same dealer deals again. Otherwise the loser of a hand deals the next one, which is why the opening upcard always goes to the non-dealer first. The first side whose match total reaches the target wins; the target is chosen before the first deal — a quick 50 or a standard 100.

House rules versus other tables: gin pays 25 here (some tables pay 20), an undercut pays 25 (others pay 10 or 20), a tie counts as an undercut (others award it to the knocker), the knock threshold is fixed at 10 (Oklahoma reads it off the upcard), two cards left in the stock is a draw (others stop at three), a card taken from the discard pile cannot go back the same turn (some tables allow it), the loser deals next (others alternate), and there is no box bonus, no game bonus and no big gin. Target scores are 50 and 100 only, and there are no rule switches to fiddle with.

Common beginner mistakes: chasing gin instead of knocking early with a small count, holding kings, queens and tens that cost ten points each, taking a card off the discard pile without a plan for what to throw, and ignoring which cards the opponent has picked up — those are exactly the cards you should never throw.

FAQ

How do you play gin rummy?

Both players hold ten cards and take turns drawing one card and throwing one away, building sets and runs until the leftover cards — the deadwood — add up to 10 or less, at which point you can knock and end the hand. On this table you play a bot: draw from the stock or the discard top, then pick a card to throw. The counter above your hand always shows how far you still are from being able to knock.

What does knocking mean in gin rummy and when should you knock?

Knocking declares the hand over and starts the count, and it is legal as soon as your deadwood after discarding is 10 or less. Knocking early with a small count is usually stronger than waiting for gin, because every extra turn gives the opponent another chance to improve and lay off. Knocking on exactly ten is the risky case: if the defender lands on ten too, the 25-point undercut goes to them.

How is gin rummy scored, and what do gin and an undercut pay?

Scoring is the difference between the two deadwood counts: a defender holding more deadwood pays the difference to the knocker. Gin adds 25 and blocks lay-offs entirely; an undercut gives the defender the difference plus 25. Card values are ace 1, two through nine at face value, and ten, jack, queen and king at 10 each. The first side to reach the target — 50 or 100 — wins the match.

What are the laying off rules in gin rummy?

Laying off lets the defender attach their own deadwood to the melds the knocker has just spread: a set takes the fourth card of that rank, and a run extends at either end and can keep chaining. This table solves lay-offs automatically for the lowest remaining count, so a defender never misses one. When the knocker has gin, the whole step is skipped and the defender keeps every point.

Is it worth taking the upcard in gin rummy?

Only two things matter: does it finish a meld right now, and does it let you throw away a ten-point card. If either is true, take it — you move straight to your discard and effectively gain half a turn. If neither is true, pass and let the opponent show their hand by taking or refusing it; if both of you pass, the card is dead for the rest of the hand.

What is the best gin rummy strategy for beginners?

Watch what your opponent takes off the discard pile — this table keeps a permanent record of it — and stop feeding those ranks and suits. Beyond that, break up ten-point cards early, prefer a small knock over a long wait for gin, and remember that a card you take off the discard pile is locked in your hand for the rest of that turn. Good habits raise your win rate, they do not guarantee a win.

Last updated: 2026-09-16 · Saved on this device only