How to play Traditional Cribbage
Everyone is dealt a hand and discards to the dealer’s crib to get down to four cards. A starter card is then cut — it counts in every hand at show time.
Pegging: take turns playing cards onto a running count that can’t pass 31. Score 2 for landing exactly on 15 or 31, 2 for a pair, 6 for three of a kind, and 1 per card for runs; say GO when you can’t play, and the last card scores 1.
The show: hands are counted with the starter — every combination adding to 15 scores 2, plus pairs, runs, flushes, and 1 for holding the Jack of the starter suit (nobs). The dealer counts the crib too.
First to 121 wins. Play heads-up, 3- or 4-player free-for-all, or 2v2 partners.
Traditional Cribbage strategy tips
- Fives are the most valuable cards to hold and the most dangerous to give away — sixteen cards in the deck count ten, and each one makes 15 with a five.
- When the crib is yours, feed it: a pair, a five, or two cards that add to 15. When it is your opponent’s, throw cards that are far apart and can’t make 15 together, such as a King and a 9.
- Leading a four or lower is the safe opening in the pegging — no single card can bring the count to 15 on it.
Common questions
What is the highest hand in cribbage?
29: three fives and a Jack in hand, with the fourth five cut as the starter in the Jack’s suit. The fives make eight 15s (16 points) and six pairs (12 points), and the Jack adds 1 for nobs.
Why can a cribbage hand never score 19?
No combination of five cards adds up to it. 19, 25, 26 and 27 are the totals a hand can never make, which is why players call a zero hand “a nineteen”.
What is a skunk?
Winning before the loser has reached 91 — the loser never makes it onto the last street of the board.
Play Traditional Cribbage online
You can play Traditional Cribbage at eCribbage Plus in any browser, on a computer, tablet or phone, with nothing to download. Open a table in the lounge and another player can sit down with you, or look for one already waiting; a free account is all you need.
