Play Cribbage Online

What is Cribbage?

Cribbage is the two-player card game with the wooden board and the pegs. You are dealt six cards, lay two away into the crib, peg points as the cards are played up to thirty-one, then count your hand. First to 121 wins.

This is the standard six-card game, free in your browser. The first hand is dealt the moment the page opens, against a computer opponent on four levels. You can also pass one phone between two players or sit at an online table.

Every point moves a peg on the board at the top of the table, and every hand is counted the traditional way: fifteen two, fifteen four, and a pair is six. New players can let the game count. Old hands can switch on manual counting and Muggins.

How to play Cribbage

1. 

   1Send two cards to the crib

   Tap two of your six cards, then press Send to crib. The crib is a second hand that scores for the dealer, so give good cards to your own crib and poor ones to your opponent's.

2. 

   2Cut for the starter

   The non-dealer cuts the deck and the top card is turned face up. This starter counts as a fifth card in both hands and in the crib. A jack here pegs two for the dealer.

3. 

   3Play cards and count to 31

   Take turns laying one card while the running count climbs. Reach 15 or 31 for two points, match the last card for a pair, or finish a run. Here the four scores both a fifteen and a pair.

4. 

   4Follow the pegs

   Each player has two pegs. The front peg is your score and the back peg shows where you stood before, so every score can be checked at a glance. The first peg to reach hole 121 wins.

5. 

   5Count the hands in the show

   After the play, the non-dealer's hand is counted first, then the dealer's hand, then the crib. The game reads each one aloud the way players do: fifteen two, fifteen four, and a pair is six.

6. 

   6Practise with the coach

   Press Coach to make it a practice game. Pick any two cards and the coach shows what that keep is worth on average, crib included, and how far it is from the best keep.

The rules in full

1. The first hand is already dealt. Tap two of your six cards, then press Send to crib. The crib is a spare hand that belongs to the dealer, and the label under the crib pile shows whose it is.
2. The player who did not deal cuts the pack and the top card is turned up as the starter. If it is a jack, the dealer pegs two points at once: two for his heels.
3. Now play the hand. Starting with the non-dealer, take turns to tap a card. The running count shows in the middle and may never pass 31. Cards that would break 31 are dimmed.
4. Peg as you play: two points for making the count 15, two for 31, two for a pair, six for three of a kind, twelve for four, and one point a card for a run of three or more, in any order.
5. If you cannot play without passing 31, the game says Go for you and your opponent carries on. The last player to lay a card pegs one. Then the count starts again from zero.
6. After the play comes the show. The non-dealer's hand is counted first, then the dealer's hand, then the crib. The starter counts as a fifth card in all three.
7. Hands score two for every combination that adds up to 15, two for each pair, one a card for runs, four or five for a flush and one for his nobs: the jack in the starter's suit.
8. Press Next hand and the deal passes to the other player. The first peg to reach hole 121 wins on the spot, even in the middle of the play. Leave your opponent short of 91 for a skunk.
9. On a keyboard, press 1 to 6 to pick a card, Enter for the main button and M to mute. Your game is saved if you close the page.

Cribbage tips and strategy

• Fives are gold in your hand and poison in your opponent's crib. Sixteen cards in the pack count ten, and every one of them makes fifteen with a five.
• When the crib is yours, lay away cards that work together: a pair, two that make fifteen, or neighbours in rank. When it is not, split them wide apart, such as a king with a nine.
• Lead a four or lower. Your opponent cannot make fifteen from it, and you often get the chance to make fifteen yourself on the next card.
• Do not lead a five or leave the count at 21. A ten-card is the most likely reply, and it scores two either way.
• Keep an ace or a two for the end of the play. Small cards squeeze in under 31 when your opponent says go, and the last card is worth a point.
• A pair is a trap as well as a prize. If you pair their card for two, check whether they can make it three of a kind for six.
• Press Coach to start a practice game. The coach shows the average value of all fifteen ways to lay away, over every possible starter, with the crib included.

Cribbage rules: the standard six-card game

This is six-card cribbage for two players, the form most people mean by cribbage. It uses a full pack of 52 cards. Kings are high and aces are always low. Face cards count ten, aces count one and other cards count their number.

You cut for the first deal and the lower card deals. Each player gets six cards and lays two away to form the four-card crib. The deal changes hands after every hand, which matters, because the crib belongs to the dealer.

The game is to 121, twice round the board, and it ends the instant a peg reaches the last hole: you do not need an exact count to go out. A short game to 61, once round the board, is an option.

How pegging works: fifteens, pairs, runs, go and thirty-one

During the play each card adds to a running count. Bring it to exactly 15 or exactly 31 and you peg two. Match the rank of the card before and you peg two for a pair, six for a third and twelve for a fourth.

Runs count in the play too, and the cards need not arrive in order. If the last three cards are a four, a six and a five, that is a run of three for three points. Add a three or a seven and it becomes a run of four.

When a player cannot play without passing 31 they say go. The other player lays cards while they can, then pegs one for the go. The count returns to zero and play carries on until both hands are empty. The very last card earns one point.

Cribbage scoring chart: how to count a hand

Count a hand in a fixed order and you will not miss points. Start with fifteens: every different set of cards that adds up to 15 scores two. Then pairs: two for each pair, so three of a kind is six and four of a kind is twelve.

Next count runs at one point a card. A hand with 7, 8, 8, 9 holds two runs of three plus a pair: a double run, worth eight before any fifteens. Then add a flush, and finally one for his nobs if you hold the jack of the starter's suit.

The best hand in cribbage is 29: three fives and a jack in your hand, with the fourth five turned up in the jack's suit. No hand can score 19, 25, 26 or 27, so a hand worth nothing is jokingly called a nineteen.

Flush rules in the hand and in the crib

Flushes are the rule people get wrong most often. In your hand, four cards of one suit score four, and five if the starter matches as well.

The crib is stricter. A crib flush only counts when all four crib cards and the starter share a suit, for five points. Four matching crib cards with a different starter score nothing. Flushes never count during the play.

Skunks, the 61 game and other house rules

Win before your opponent reaches hole 91 and you have skunked them, which counts as two games in match play. Win before they reach 61 and it is a double skunk. The board marks both lines.

Choose Game to 61 for a quick game of about five minutes. In the short game the skunk line sits at 31.

Automatic counting is the default: the game finds every point and pegs it for you. Set Counting to Manual + Muggins and you name the score of each hand. Claim too little and your opponent can call Muggins and take the points you missed. The computer calls Muggins too, so count with care.

Play cribbage against the computer, a friend or online

Against the computer there are four levels. Easy plays loosely and makes a good first opponent. Medium keeps the four cards with the best average over every cut. Hard and Insane also weigh what each discard gives the crib, and they peg with care. None of them ever sees your cards or the pack.

Same screen puts two players on one device. A curtain covers the table between turns, so you can pass a phone across without showing your hand.

Online opens a two-seat table. Press Quick match to sit down or invite a friend with a link, and a computer player fills any empty seat. Online tables use the same rules and options.

The pegboard, the spoken count and the discard coach

The board is the heart of cribbage, so it sits at the top of the table. Each player has two pegs that leapfrog: the back peg jumps past the front one by the points just scored.

After each hand a panel counts both hands and the crib the way players do at the table. It is the fastest way to learn to count for yourself.

Practice games with the coach do not count towards your record. The stats page tracks your average hand, crib and pegging, and keeps your trophies, including one for the 29 hand.

Cribbage FAQ