How to play Hearts

What you need

Hearts uses one standard pack of 52 cards. It is best with exactly four players, each playing for themselves. Aces are high, so the order in each suit runs from Ace (highest) down to 2 (lowest).

Setting up

Shuffle and deal all the cards, one at a time, so each player has 13.

Passing cards

Before each hand, every player chooses three cards from their hand and passes them face down to another player. The direction changes every hand:

1. First hand: pass to the left.
2. Second hand: pass to the right.
3. Third hand: pass across the table.
4. Fourth hand: no passing.

Then the pattern starts again. Pick up the cards passed to you only after you have passed your own.

Playing the tricks

A trick is one card from each player, played in turn.

• The player holding the 2 of clubs leads it to start the first trick.
• Going clockwise, each player plays one card. You must follow suit, which means playing a card of the same suit as the first card, if you can.
• If you have no cards of that suit, you may play any card. This is your chance to get rid of hearts or the Queen of Spades.
• The highest card of the suit that was led wins the trick. Other suits cannot win it.
• The winner takes the four cards, places them face down in front of them, and leads the next trick.

Special rules

• First trick: you may not play a heart or the Queen of Spades on the first trick, unless you have no choice.
• Breaking hearts: you may not lead a heart until a heart has been played on an earlier trick. The exception is if you have nothing but hearts left.

Scoring

When all 13 tricks have been played, each player looks at the cards they won:

• each heart scores 1 point,
• the Queen of Spades scores 13 points,
• all other cards score nothing.

That makes 26 points in every hand.

Shooting the moon: if one player takes all 13 hearts and the Queen of Spades, they score 0 and every other player scores 26.

Winning

Keep playing hands until someone reaches 100 points. The player with the lowest score at that moment wins.

Common variants

Some groups count the Jack of Diamonds as minus 10 points. Some let a player who shoots the moon choose to take 26 points off their own score instead. Others play to 50 points for a quicker game. Hearts can also be played with three, five or six players by removing a few low cards.

Tips for beginners

• Pass the danger. High spades (Ace and King) are risky if you do not hold the Queen. High hearts are also good to pass.
• Get rid of a suit. Passing all your cards of one short suit lets you discard point cards when that suit is led.
• Keep low cards. Low cards let you duck under tricks you do not want to win.
• Watch for the moon. If one player is taking every heart, make sure you win at least one heart to stop them.
• Count the spades. Knowing whether the Queen has been played helps you decide when it is safe to lead spades.