How to play cribbage
Cribbage is a card game for two players, played with a standard 52-card deck and a pegboard for keeping score. You score points for card combinations, first while playing the cards and then again when counting your hand, and the first player to 121 wins. A game takes about fifteen minutes.
A hand of cribbage in six steps
- Deal six cards each
- Discard two to the crib
- Cut the starter card
- Peg: play cards up to 31
- Count the hands and the crib
- Pass the deal and go again
What you need
A standard deck with the jokers removed, and a cribbage board with two pegs each. Aces are low and count 1. Tens, Jacks, Queens and Kings all count 10. Every other card counts its number.
The board is only a scoreboard: 121 holes for each player. You move your back peg ahead of your front peg by the points you just scored, so the gap between your pegs always shows your last score. Playing online, the pegs move for you.
1. The deal
Each player cuts the deck, and the lower card deals first. The dealer shuffles and deals six cards each, one at a time. The other player is called the pone. The deal swaps after every hand.
2. The discard and the crib
Both players choose two cards and put them face down in front of the dealer. Those four cards are the crib: an extra hand that belongs to the dealer and is counted at the end. You are left with four cards.
This is the main decision in every hand of cribbage. You want to keep the four cards that score the most together, but the two you throw away score for whoever owns the crib. When the crib is yours you can throw good cards into it. When it is your opponent’s you want to give them as little as possible. The coach’s examples further down show how that works with real hands.
3. The starter
The pone cuts the deck and the dealer turns over the top card. This is the starter. It stays on the deck during the play, and at the end it counts as a fifth card in both hands and in the crib.
If the starter is a Jack, the dealer pegs 2 points straight away. This is called his heels.
4. The play (pegging)
Starting with the pone, the players take turns laying one card face up, saying the running total of all the cards played so far. The total can never go over 31. You peg points as you go:
| In the play | What it is | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Fifteen | Your card brings the count to exactly 15 | 2 |
| Thirty-one | Your card brings the count to exactly 31 | 2 |
| Pair | You play the same rank as the card before | 2 |
| Three of a kind | A third card of that rank in a row | 6 |
| Four of a kind | The fourth | 12 |
| Run | The last three or more cards played form a sequence, in any order | 1 per card |
| Go / last card | You play the last card before the count stops | 1 |
When you can’t play without going over 31, you say “Go”. Your opponent plays any cards they still can, then pegs 1 for the last card (2 if it lands on exactly 31). The count goes back to zero and the player who said Go leads again. This carries on until all eight cards are played. Whoever plays the very last card pegs 1.
A pegging example
The pone holds 4, Ace, 6, 3. The dealer holds Jack, 6, King, 9.
| Player | Plays | Count | Pegs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pone | 4 | 4 | |
| Dealer | Jack | 14 | |
| Pone | Ace | 15 | 2 (fifteen) |
| Dealer | 6 | 21 | |
| Pone | 6 | 27 | 2 (pair) |
| Dealer | “Go”: a King or a 9 would pass 31 | 27 | |
| Pone | 3 | 30 | 1 (go) |
| Dealer | King, with the count back at zero | 10 | |
| Dealer | 9 | 19 | 1 (last card) |
The pone pegged 5 and the dealer 1. Both players pick their cards back up: they are still needed for the count.
5. The show (counting the hands)
Now the hands are counted, each with the starter as a fifth card. The order matters near the end of a game, because the first to reach 121 wins on the spot: the pone counts first, then the dealer’s hand, then the dealer’s crib.
| In the hand | What it is | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Fifteen | Any combination of cards adding to 15 | 2 |
| Pair | Two cards of the same rank | 2 |
| Three of a kind | Three pairs in one | 6 |
| Four of a kind | Six pairs in one | 12 |
| Run | Three or more cards in sequence, any suits | 1 per card |
| Flush | All four hand cards in one suit | 4 |
| Five-card flush | The starter matches the hand’s suit too | 5 |
| Nobs | A Jack in the hand of the starter’s suit | 1 |
A card can be used in as many combinations as it fits. In the crib a flush only counts if all five cards match.
A counting example
- Fifteen: 7 + 8, twice (once with each 8)4
- Fifteen: 6 + 92
- Pair of 8s2
- Run 6-7-8-9, twice (once with each 8)8
- Total16
Players say it aloud as they go: “fifteen two, fifteen four, fifteen six, a pair is eight, and a double run of four is sixteen.” To check any hand of your own, use the cribbage hand calculator.
6. Winning the game
After the crib is counted the deal passes to the other player and a new hand starts. The first player to reach 121 wins at once, whether that happens during the pegging or the count. Beating an opponent who hasn’t reached 91 is a skunk.
What to throw: ask the coach
Deciding which two cards go to the crib is where cribbage games are won. In a practice game at eCribbage Plus a coach suggests a discard on every deal and explains why. These are the same suggestions, worked out by the same code. Pick an example, switch between your crib and theirs, or deal yourself a new hand.
Three things to notice as you try hands:
- Keep cards that work together. A run, a pair, or cards that make 15 are worth more than high cards. 6-7-7-8 is 12 points before the starter is even cut.
- Fives are the best cards in the deck. Sixteen cards count ten and each one makes 15 with a five. Hold fives, put them in your own crib, and keep them out of your opponent’s.
- The same six cards can have two right answers. In the “Whose crib is it?” example, the 7 and 8 go to your own crib because they add up to 15. Give those two to an opponent and you hand them 2 points and a likely run, so the coach breaks up the hand a different way.
Try it at a real table
Reading the rules gets you started, and a few hands will make them stick. At eCribbage Plus you can open a Practice game against a computer opponent with the coach suggesting discards and pegging plays as you go, or take the guided tutorial that walks you through your first hand. When you’re ready, sit down with a real player in the lounge. It runs in the browser on a computer, tablet or phone, and a free account is all you need.
Cribbage terms
| Crib | The four discarded cards. An extra hand for the dealer. |
|---|---|
| Pone | The player who did not deal. Leads the first card and counts first. |
| Starter | The card turned up after the discard. Counts in every hand. Also called the cut. |
| Pegging | Playing the cards up to 31, and scoring on the board in general. |
| Go | Said when you can’t play without passing 31. |
| His heels | A Jack turned up as the starter: 2 for the dealer. |
| His nobs | The Jack of the starter’s suit in your hand: 1 point. |
| Skunk | Winning before the loser reaches 91. |
| Street | One stretch of 30 holes on the board. Fourth street is the run home from 91. |
Common questions
How many cards do you deal in cribbage?
Six each with two players. Each player then throws two to the crib and keeps four. With three players it is five cards each plus one dealt straight to the crib, and with four players five each; everyone throws one.
Who goes first in cribbage?
Each player cuts the deck and the lower card deals the first hand. The non-dealer, called the pone, plays the first card of the pegging and counts their hand first. The deal then alternates.
How many points do you need to win at cribbage?
121, which is twice around a standard board. The game ends the moment a player pegs the 121st point, even in the middle of the pegging or a count.
What does “Go” mean in cribbage?
You say Go when you cannot play a card without taking the count over 31. Your opponent keeps playing while they can, then pegs 1 point for the last card, or 2 if they land on exactly 31. The count then starts again from zero.
What are his heels and his nobs?
His heels is 2 points to the dealer when the starter card turned up is a Jack. His nobs is 1 point for holding the Jack of the same suit as the starter, counted with your hand.
What is a skunk in cribbage?
Winning before your opponent reaches 91. In match play a skunk counts as two games. A double skunk is winning before they reach 61.
What is muggins?
An optional rule: if a player misses points when counting their hand, the opponent can call “muggins” and take them. Playing online the points are counted for you, unless you choose a Manual Count table.
Where to go next
Drill your counting against the clock with Cribbage Counter, or test your discards against other players in the Daily Discard. Once the standard game is comfortable there are sixteen other cribbage games to try, from CrossCribb to Kings Cribbage. The short version of these rules is on the traditional cribbage page.