Gin Rummy Rules and Scoring Explained

Rummy and shedding games · 6 Nov 2026 · 2 min read · By Saj, Qrenzy Digital Solutions

Gin Rummy is a two-player game. It is faster than Indian Rummy because you can end the hand yourself, as soon as your leftover cards are few enough.

Setup

Use one standard 52-card pack. Each player gets 10 cards. The next card is turned face up to start the discard pile and the rest is the stock. Ace is low (it counts 1 and sits below 2) and cannot be used in K-A-2.

Melds and deadwood

A set is 3 or 4 cards of the same rank. A run is 3 or more cards of the same suit in a row. Any card that is not in a meld is deadwood. Deadwood counts at card value: Ace 1, 2 to 10 face value, J, Q and K 10 each.

A turn

1. Draw the top of the stock or the top of the discard pile.
2. Discard one card (you cannot discard the same card you just took from the discard pile).
3. If your deadwood is 10 or less, you may knock.

Knock, gin, undercut

• Knock: you end the hand with deadwood of 10 or less. The opponent can lay off their deadwood cards onto your melds, then both hands are counted. If your deadwood is lower, you score the difference.
• Gin: all 10 cards are in melds. No lay-offs for the opponent, and you score 25 plus their deadwood.
• Undercut: if you knock and the opponent's deadwood (after lay-offs) is equal or lower, they score 25 plus the difference, and you score nothing.

Winning the game

Play hands until someone reaches the target. Many tables use 100; the online table here also lets you choose 50 or 150. Scoring extras such as the box bonus and game bonus differ between groups, so agree on them first.

Simple strategy

• Take from the discard pile only when it makes or extends a meld.
• Discard high deadwood (Kings, Queens, Jacks) early.
• Knocking early with 8 to 10 deadwood is often better than waiting for gin, because the opponent has fewer turns to improve.
• Watch what the opponent picks up. It tells you which suits and ranks to hold back.

The free Gin Rummy table groups your melds automatically and shows your deadwood count live, which makes the scoring easy to learn.

🃏 Try it now: play Gin Rummy free in your browser, no download, no money.

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