Spades online
Bid your tricks with your partner, take at least that many, and watch the bags. Spades are always trump. Play with a computer partner against two computer players, or pass one device around four people. First team to 500 wins.
How to play spades
Spades is a trick-taking game for four players in two teams, partners sitting across from each other, with a standard 52-card deck. Spades are always trump.
- The deal. Everyone gets 13 cards.
- Bidding. Going around the table, each player says how many tricks they expect to take, from 1 to 13, or nil (none at all). A team’s bid is both partners’ bids added together.
- Playing tricks. The player after the dealer leads. You must follow the suit led if you can. If you can’t, you can play a spade (a trump) or any other card. The highest spade wins the trick, or else the highest card of the suit led.
- Breaking spades. You can’t lead a spade until one has been played on a trick, unless you have only spades left.
- Scoring. Make your team’s bid and you score 10 points a trick bid, plus 1 for each extra trick (a bag). Fall short and you lose 10 a trick bid. Every 10 bags cost 100 points.
- Nil. A player who bids nil scores 100 for the team if they take no tricks, and loses 100 if they take any.
The full rules, with worked scoring examples, are on the spades rules page.
Spades scoring at a glance
| What happens | Points |
|---|
| Your team makes its bid | 10 a trick bid |
| Each trick over the bid (a bag) | 1 |
| Your team falls short | Minus 10 a trick bid |
| Nil made / nil broken | 100 / minus 100 |
| Every 10 bags built up | Minus 100 |
The first team to 500 points wins.
Questions
Is this spades game free?
Yes. You can play spades here free, in your browser, with nothing to download and no sign-up needed to start.
Can I play spades against the computer?
Yes. You play with a computer partner against two computer players, all at the level you pick: Beginner, Casual, Skilled or Expert.
Can I play with friends?
Four people can play on one phone or tablet, passing it around; your cards are hidden between turns. Online games with friends by link are coming soon.
What are bags?
Tricks your team takes beyond its bid. Each is worth 1 point, but they add up: every time your team reaches 10 bags, it loses 100 points. So once you’ve made your bid, it pays to stop winning tricks.
Is there blind nil?
No. Some tables let a player bid nil before looking at their cards for 200 points. We keep to ordinary nil.
Can I make the cards bigger?
Yes. Use the Text size buttons (A, A+, A++, A+++) above the table: the cards grow with the text. Display settings also has a four-colour deck, high contrast and slower animations.
More card games
Like partner games? Try euchre. Playing on your own? There’s hearts, and for two players, cribbage.