Play Gin Rummy online free

Gin Rummy is the two-handed classic: ten cards each, one draw and one discard a turn. The whole game lives in one number — your deadwood, the cards not yet part of anything — and the choice that never gets old is whether to knock now or hold out for gin.

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How to play

  1. You hold ten cards. Start your turn by taking the face-up card, or drawing an unseen one from the stock.
  2. Group your cards into melds: three or four of the same rank, or three or more in a row in the same suit. Aces are low, so A-2-3 is a run and Q-K-A is not.
  3. Everything not in a meld is deadwood. Each card costs its face value, picture cards cost 10 and an ace costs 1.
  4. Finish your turn by throwing one card away. Tap a card to lift it, then tap the discard pile to throw it.
  5. When your deadwood is 10 or less you may knock instead of discarding normally — that ends the hand and scores the difference between the two deadwood totals.
  6. Deadwood of zero is gin: a 25-point bonus, and your opponent cannot lay any cards off on you.

The deal

Ten cards each from a standard 52-card deck. The next card is turned face up to start the discard pile and the rest becomes the stock. The deal alternates between hands, so neither side keeps the advantage of moving first.

Sets and runs

A set is three or four cards of the same rank — three nines, say. A run is three or more consecutive cards in one suit, such as the 4, 5 and 6 of clubs. A card can only belong to one meld at a time, which is the whole difficulty: holding the 7, 8 and 9 of hearts plus two more sevens means choosing which of the two the seven of hearts serves. The arrangement shown on screen is always the one that leaves you the least deadwood.

Aces are low

The ace is worth one point and sits below the two, so A-2-3 is a legal run. It does not wrap around: Q-K-A is not a run in gin rummy, unlike some other rummy variants.

Deadwood

Deadwood is every card left over once your melds are set aside, counted at face value with the picture cards worth 10 and the ace worth 1. It is the number that decides everything — when you can knock, and what the hand pays. Throwing your highest unmatched card is the usual way to bring it down, but a nine that sits next to two other nines is often worth keeping over a much smaller card that connects to nothing.

Knocking

Once your deadwood is 10 or less you may knock: you discard as usual, both hands are laid out, and you score the difference between your deadwood and your opponent’s. Knocking early with 10 is a real strategy rather than a lesser version of gin — it ends the hand before the other side has finished building.

Laying off

After a knock, the defender may add their own unmatched cards to the knocker’s melds — a fourth nine onto three nines, or the 3 of clubs onto a 4-5-6 of clubs — which cuts their deadwood and the knocker’s score with it. This is why knocking with a hand full of tempting melds can backfire.

Gin and undercuts

Deadwood of zero is gin. It scores the opponent’s entire deadwood plus a 25-point bonus, and no lay-offs are allowed against it. The reverse also exists: if the defender’s deadwood turns out to be equal to or lower than the knocker’s, they have undercut the knock and take the difference plus 25 themselves. That risk is what keeps a marginal knock honest.

Running out of cards

If the stock runs down to its last two cards without anyone knocking, the hand is dead: nobody scores and the cards are dealt again. It is not a loss, and it happens most often when both sides are holding out for gin.

How long a game lasts

One hand runs a few minutes and is the default here. The traditional game plays repeated hands until someone reaches 100 points. Your game is saved if you close the tab, and the opponent is the computer — nothing here is compared against another player.

More card and logic games

Logic

Gin Rummy

Draw, discard and build sets and runs until your deadwood is low enough to knock.

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Why play Gin Rummy here

No ads, no account and no clock. One hand takes a few minutes, so you can finish a game in a coffee break — or play the traditional game to 100 with the score carried between hands and the deal alternating the way it should. Your game is saved if you close the tab.

The table does the arithmetic you would otherwise do in your head. Your melds are outlined as they form, the deadwood total is always on screen, and the Knock button lights up the moment the hand is legal to knock with. When a hand ends, both hands are turned face up and grouped by meld, so you can see exactly how the score was reached rather than being told a number.

Frequently asked questions

Is it free to play?

Yes. Gin Rummy here is free, with no ads, no download and no account. Nothing is locked and there is nothing to buy.

How do you play Gin Rummy?

Two players get ten cards each from a standard deck. On your turn you take one card — either the face-up card on the discard pile or an unseen one from the stock — and then throw one card away. You are trying to arrange your hand into melds: three or four cards of the same rank, or three or more consecutive cards in the same suit. Whatever is left over is your deadwood, counted at face value with picture cards worth 10 and aces worth 1. Once your deadwood is 10 points or less you can knock to end the hand and score the difference between the two players’ deadwood.

What does “gin” mean?

Gin is a hand with no deadwood at all — every one of your ten cards is part of a meld. It scores your opponent’s entire deadwood plus a 25-point bonus, and unlike a normal knock they cannot lay any of their odd cards off on your melds. It is worth more than knocking, which is exactly why holding out for it is a gamble.

Can an ace be high in a run?

No. In Gin Rummy the ace is low and worth one point, so A-2-3 of a suit is a run but Q-K-A is not. Runs do not wrap around the corner, which catches out people arriving from other rummy variants where they do.

What is an undercut?

If you knock and your opponent’s deadwood turns out to be equal to or lower than yours, they have undercut you: they score the difference plus a 25-point bonus instead of you. Before that is worked out they also get to lay their unmatched cards onto your melds, which can drag their total below yours. It is the reason a knock with exactly ten deadwood is a real decision rather than a formality.

Can I play Gin Rummy full screen?

Yes. The full-screen button takes the table over the whole screen with big, easy-to-read cards — it works on desktop and on phones held upright, and you can leave full screen with the button or the Escape key.

Do I play against people or the computer?

Against the computer. You can stop mid-hand, think as long as you like over a discard, and come back later without keeping anyone waiting. There are no leaderboards and nothing is compared against other players.

What happens if the cards run out?

If the stock is down to its last two cards and neither player has knocked, the hand is dead: nobody scores and the cards are dealt again. It is not a loss — it usually just means both sides were holding out for gin.

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