Spades
Partnership Spades as it is played across America: say how many tricks you will win, then win exactly that many with your partner. Spades are always trumps. Bid nil for a 100-point gamble, keep an eye on the bags, and be the first side to 500.
Four players in two partnerships. A game takes 15 to 25 minutes. More card games: Hearts, Gin Rummy, Cribbage and Euchre are in Yuzool's Card Games too.
How to play Spades
- Partners: you and the player opposite are a side. Thirteen cards each.
- Bidding: starting on the dealer's left, each player says once how many tricks they expect to win, from nil (none) to 13. Your side's target is your two bids added together.
- The play: the player on the dealer's left leads. Follow suit if you can. If you can't, you may play a spade, which beats any card of the other suits, or throw a card away.
- Spades are trumps: the highest spade in a trick wins it; with no spade, the highest card of the suit led. Spades can't be led until one has been played, unless spades are all you hold.
Tap a card to play it, or drag it to the table. Cards you can play are raised; tap a dimmed card to see why it can't be played. Undo takes back your last play until the next player has played. The full rules, with worked examples, are in How to play Spades.
Scoring
| Result | Score |
|---|---|
| Side makes its bid | 10 for each trick bid, plus 1 for each extra trick (a bag) |
| Side falls short | Minus 10 for each trick bid |
| Nil bid made (that player takes no trick) | Plus 100 |
| Nil bid fails | Minus 100, and the tricks count as bags |
| Ten bags | Minus 100 |
The first side to reach 500 at the end of a hand wins. If both pass 500 on the same hand, the higher score wins. A side that falls to minus 200 loses.
Tips
- Count sure tricks: aces, kings with company, and each spade beyond your third.
- Bid what you can make. Being set costs ten times your bid; a bag costs only one point, until the tenth.
- Cover your partner's nil: play your highest cards so they never have to win a trick.
- Once your bid is made, duck. Throw away high cards under the other side's winners to avoid bags.
Questions
Is Spades free to play here?
Yes. Spades with a house partner against Easy and Medium opponents is free, with no ads and no sign-up. Card Games Pro, a one-time $1.99 upgrade for all five games, adds the Hard players, full statistics, rule options and extra card backs and tables.
Who is my partner?
A house player at the level you chose, sitting opposite you. Your partner sees only their own cards, as a real partner would.
Which rules are these?
The usual American partnership rules: one round of bidding, nil allowed, bags with a 100-point penalty at ten, spades must be broken, to 500. Blind nil is not played. Pro adds a game to 300 and lets you turn off nil or the bag penalty.
Can I play Spades online with friends?
Not yet. This version is you and three house players; play with friends is planned.