How to Play Euchre: Card Game Rules & Interactive Tutorial

Euchre is a 4 player "trick-taking" game. The game is played by two teams of two, with partners sitting across from each other.

The rules of the game are pretty straightforward. Below you'll find a complete guide on how to play Euchre. If you prefer learning by doing, you'll find an interactive tutorial above that'll guide you through how to play the game.

After you've learned the rules, you can play Euchre Online directly at World of Card Games. We recommend a game against bots first, and once you feel comfortable with that, you can switch to multiplayer against other people online or with your friends.

So prepare to dazzle your friends and confound your foes as you become a master of this classic card game!

Euchre at a glance

A fast team game with a five card hand and a trump suit that changes every deal.

Rank of cards

Cards are ranked from Ace (high) down to 9 (low) except for cards in the trump suit which are ranked:

• Jack of trump Suit
• Jack of the other suit of the same color, which counts as a trump card for the whole hand
• Ace of trump Suit
• King of trump Suit
• Queen of trump Suit
• 10 of trump Suit
• 9 of trump Suit

Objective

The objective is to be the first team to reach 10 points.

Deal

A random player is chosen to be the dealer.

Each player is dealt a hand of 5 cards from a deck of cards containing only A K Q J 10 9 of each suit.

The player to the dealer's left goes first.

Consider Up Card

A card is dealt from the deck face up for all to see.

Starting with the start player and proceeding clockwise around the table, each player has the option to "Accept" the up card as the trump suit or "Pass".

If any player accepts the up card, that card is given to the dealer, who must then discard a different card and then normal play begins.

If all 4 players choose to "Pass", then we move to the Consider Suit phase.

Consider Suit

Starting with the start player and proceeding clockwise around the table, each player has the option to choose the trump suit, or they can "Pass". The suit of the turned-down up card can't be chosen, so there are three suits to pick from.

If 3 players pass, the dealer is then forced to choose a suit to become the trump suit. This is known as "Sticking the Dealer".

"Stick the Dealer" is the default option for Euchre at the site. You may choose to uncheck this Option, in which case the dealer may pass instead of being forced to make a choice for trump suit. Passing has no penalty; new cards are redealt, and the choosing phase begins again.

Play

The start player starts the trick by playing any card from their hand. The other players then each play a card in clockwise order until all 4 players have played a card. Whichever player played the highest card with the same suit as the lead card takes the cards. This is known as "winning a trick".

The trick winner starts the next trick.

Players must play a card with the same suit as the lead card. If they do not have a card with that suit, they may play any card.

Normally the highest card with the same suit as the lead card wins the trick. However, if a card in the trump suit is played on the trick, then the highest trump suit card will win the trick instead.

Score

After each hand, scores are calculated for each team.

The player that chose the trump suit is part of the "Maker" team.

The other team is the "Defending" team.

If the "Maker" team takes 3 or 4 tricks, they will receive 1 point.

If the "Maker" team manages to take all 5 tricks, they will receive 2 points.

If the "Defending" team manages to take 3 or more tricks, then they will receive 2 points.

Going Alone

When considering the up card and suit, the players can also choose to "Go Alone".

When choosing this option, your teammate will discard their cards and will not play this hand.

Instead, you are all on your own when it comes to taking tricks.

If you manage to take 3 or 4 tricks when "Going Alone" your team will receive the standard 1 point.

If you take all 5 tricks, your team will receive 4 points!

If the "Defending" team manages to stop you by taking at least 3 tricks, they will receive the standard 2 points.

Game End

The first team to reach 10 points wins!

The rules in practice

The trump ranking trips up every new player, so here's an example. Say hearts are trump. The Jack of Hearts is the right bower and beats every other card. The Jack of Diamonds, the other red Jack, becomes the left bower, the second highest card, and it counts as a heart for the whole hand. If hearts are led and the Jack of Diamonds is your only heart, you must play it. Only after the two bowers come the Ace, King, Queen, 10 and 9 of hearts.

A trick goes to the highest card of the suit that was led unless trump lands on it. Suppose spades are trump and the Ace of Diamonds is led. A player with no diamonds may throw the 9 of Spades, and that lowly 9 beats the Ace. If another player is also out of diamonds and plays the 10 of Spades, the 10 wins instead. You must follow suit whenever you can, so being void in a suit is what frees you to trump.

Calling trump is a commitment. Say you're the dealer's partner and the up card is the King of Clubs. If you accept it, clubs become trump, your partner picks up the King and discards a card, and your team is now the makers. Take 3 or 4 of the 5 tricks and you score 1 point, and taking all 5 scores 2. If the defenders take 3 tricks instead, you've been euchred and they score 2 points. That risk is why players pass on middling hands.

Strategy basics

A few habits will win you points from your first game, and our strategy guides back each one with statistics from real hands played on this site.

• As the dealer, order up whenever the up card gives you 3 trump cards. Our dealer experiments show it turning mostly losing hands into mostly winning ones.
• If everyone passes on the up card and you're left of the dealer, consider calling the other suit of the same color as the up card. That's the next strategy, and it won 81% of the hands where our bots could apply it.
• As the dealer's partner in the second round, call the opposite color instead. That's the reverse next strategy, and the King and 9 of a suit can be enough.
• When your partner calls trump, lead trump. Our guides on clearing trump, part I and part II, show how it protects your team's off-suit Aces.
• Go alone when you can realistically take all 5 tricks, since that's worth 4 points. Our loner guide shows you don't always need the right bower.
• Call trump when you get a fair chance. Per our consider phase statistics, trump is called before the choice reaches the last two seats in round two about 86% of the time.

History

Euchre was first known to exist around 1850. Euchre was the game responsible for introducing the Joker. The version of Euchre here on World of Card Games is the USA version of the game, which does not use the Joker.

Frequently asked questions

What are the right and left bowers?

The right bower is the Jack of the trump suit, and it's the highest card in the game. The left bower is the other Jack of the same color, and it ranks second. The left bower counts as a trump card for the entire hand, not as its printed suit.

Does the dealer get the up card?

Yes, if anyone accepts it. The up card goes into the dealer's hand and the dealer discards a card, so accepting always strengthens the dealer, even when an opponent made the call.

What happens if every player passes twice?

By default the dealer is stuck and must name a trump suit, which is known as "Stick the Dealer". If a table has turned that option off, the dealer may pass too, and the cards are redealt with no penalty.

What happens when I go alone?

Your partner folds their cards and sits out the hand, so you play the tricks on your own. Taking all 5 tricks scores 4 points, taking 3 or 4 scores the normal 1 point, and the defenders still score 2 points if they euchre you.

What does the TRAM button mean?

"The Rest Are Mine." It appears when it's mathematically guaranteed you'll win every remaining trick, and clicking it ends the hand immediately by giving them all to you.

Helpful Links

Pagat.com Euchre Page