Gin Rummy Rules

Gin Rummy is a two-player rummy game. Players draw and discard to form melds, and the hand ends when one player knocks or goes gin.

🃏 Play it now: open Gin Rummy against the computer.

Cards and deal

• One 52-card pack. Aces are low (A-2-3 is a run) and there is no wrap-around.
• Each player receives 10 cards. The next card is turned face up to start the discard pile, and the rest form the stock.
• Card values for counting: Ace = 1, 2 to 10 = face value, Jack, Queen and King = 10.

Melds

• A set is three or four cards of the same rank, such as 7♠ 7♥ 7♦.
• A run is three or more cards of the same suit in sequence, such as 4♣ 5♣ 6♣ 7♣.
• A card can belong to only one meld. Cards that are not in any meld are deadwood.

Turns

On your turn you first take either the top card of the stock or the top card of the discard pile. Then you discard one card face up. You may not take a card from the discard pile and discard that same card straight away. If the stock goes down to two cards and the player discards without knocking, the hand is a draw and nobody scores.

Knocking and going gin

After drawing, you may end the hand by discarding and knocking if your remaining 10 cards have 10 points or less of deadwood. If you have no deadwood at all you go gin.

Laying off and scoring

• When you knock, your opponent may lay off: add any of their unmatched cards that fit your melds (a fourth card for a set, or a card extending a run). This is not allowed when you go gin.
• If your deadwood is lower than your opponent's remaining deadwood, you score the difference.
• If you go gin you score 25 plus your opponent's deadwood.
• If your opponent's deadwood after laying off is equal to or less than yours, they have undercut you and score 25 plus the difference.

Example: You knock with 6 deadwood. Your opponent lays off two cards and is left with 4. That is an undercut: they score 25 + (6 − 4) = 27 points. Had they been left with 13, you would score 13 − 6 = 7.

Play hand after hand until a player reaches the target total. Cheettukali is simplified: it has no game bonus or per-hand line bonuses that some tables add.

Strategy tips

• Early on, keep cards that can become melds in two ways (for example 6♥ 7♥ with a 7♠ in hand).
• Get rid of high deadwood such as Kings and Queens early. They hurt the most if your opponent knocks first.
• Notice what your opponent picks from the discard pile. They are building around those ranks and suits, so avoid feeding them.
• Do not knock automatically at 10. If your opponent is close, a lower knock reduces the danger of an undercut.

Variations

• Oklahoma Gin uses the first upcard to set the knocking limit. Straight Gin only allows gin, with no knocking.
• Hollywood Gin keeps three scores at once, for three games played at the same time.
• Gin Rummy is related to Rummy 500, Indian Rummy and Canasta, which are all about melding sets and runs.

FAQ