Short, exact answers to the questions people really ask about Hearts. Each one has its own link, so you can send a friend straight to the answer. For the full story in order, read the step-by-step guide.
A pip is one of the small suit symbols printed on a card. A heart pip is a red heart symbol. A number card carries as many pips as its number: the 7 of hearts has seven heart pips, and the ace has one.
Seven heart pips and one heart pip.
No special deck is needed. Hearts is played with an ordinary 52-card deck. “Hearts” is also the name of one of its four suits, which is why people search for both.
The ace is the highest card in Hearts, above the king. The 2 is the lowest.
The standard game is for four players, each playing alone with no partners. Three and five players can also play with small changes.
With four players, all 52 cards are dealt: 13 each.
Take out the 2 of diamonds, leaving 51 cards, and deal 17 each. (Another way is to deal 17 each and put the leftover card face down on the side.)
Take out the 2 of diamonds and the 2 of clubs, leaving 50 cards, and deal 10 each. Because the 2 of clubs is gone, the player holding the 3 of clubs leads the first trick.
Before play, every player picks three cards and passes them face down. Choose your cards before you pick up the ones passed to you.
It changes every hand: the first hand to the left, the second to the right, the third across the table. The fourth hand has no passing, then the cycle starts again.
The player who holds the 2 of clubs must lead it to the first trick.
The opening lead.
Yes. If you have a card of the suit that was led, you must play one. If you have none, you may play any card.
You may not lead a heart until a heart has been played on an earlier trick. That moment, usually when someone discards a heart on another suit, is called breaking hearts. If your hand is only hearts, you may lead one anyway.
No. There is no trump: the highest card of the suit that was led wins the trick, and the winner leads the next one.
In the standard rules, yes. Some groups ban it unless you hold only penalty cards, so agree before you start.
Every heart is 1 point and the queen of spades is 13. All other cards are worth nothing. A full deal holds 26 points in total (13 hearts plus 13).
The queen of spades: 13 points.
A low score. The points are penalties for the tricks you take, so the player with the fewest points wins.
It means taking every heart and the queen of spades in one hand, all 26 points. It is risky, but when it works you choose: either your own score goes down by 26, or every other player’s score goes up by 26.
A popular variation (sometimes called Omnibus Hearts) makes the jack of diamonds worth minus 10 for whoever takes it. It is not in the standard rules.
An optional bonus card.
When one player has reached or passed 100 points at the end of a hand. The player with the lowest score then wins.
Yes, a free printable score sheet is linked from the Hearts guide.
Yes, free, with no sign-up. It can coach you and explain why a move is good.
Every answer on this page was checked against the sources below, and against our own step-by-step guide.
