Rules of the card game Hearts

Hearts is a classic card game for 4 players where the goal is to collect as few (penalty) points as possible. It is played with a standard 52‑card deck.

You can play Hearts online against the computer, against friends, or a combination of both.

Below you will find the full rules and some variants.

Cards and (penalty) points

• Cards have their standard ranks: 2–10, jack, queen, king, ace.
• Each heart card: 1 point.
• Queen of spades: 13 points.
• All other cards: no points.
• Goal: collect as few points as possible.

Preparation

1. Each player receives 13 cards.
2. In the 1st round, pass 3 cards to the left.
   2nd round to the right.
   3rd round across.
   4th round no passing.

Gameplay

1. The player with the 2 of clubs starts and must play it.
2. Players must follow suit if possible.
3. The highest card of the led suit wins the trick and leads the next one.
4. Hearts may not be led until hearts have been “broken” (someone played a heart), unless you have no other suit.
5. No points may be played in the first trick (queen of spades or hearts).

Scoring and winner

• After each round, points are counted.
• A player who collects all 26 points (all hearts + queen of spades) scores 0, others score 26 (“shoot the moon”).
• The game ends when a player reaches 100 points or more.
• The player with the fewest points wins.

Variants

• The maximum number of points can be adjusted (e.g. 50, 100, 150).
• The passing order can be changed or disabled.
• Special cards can be added or removed (such as the queen of spades).