Objective
Get rid of all your cards before anyone else. You can play a card only if it matches the top card of the discard pile in suit or in rank. Eights are wild and can go on anything, so they are the cards that get you out of trouble. In a scored game, the player who goes out also collects points for the cards everyone else is still holding.
Setup
Deal seven cards to each player in a two-player game, and five cards each with three or more players. Place the rest face down as the stock and turn the top card face up beside it to start the discard pile.
If the first card turned is an eight, slide it back into the middle of the stock and turn the next one. The player to the dealer’s left goes first, and play moves to the left.
How to play
On your turn, play one card face up on the discard pile. It must match the top card by suit (any heart on a heart) or by rank (any queen on a queen).
An eight can be played at any time. When you play one, name a suit. The next player must play a card of that suit or another eight. You name a suit only, never a rank.
If you cannot play, draw from the stock until you get a card you can play, then play it. You may also choose to draw even when you hold a playable card. If the stock is empty and you still cannot play, you pass.
The hand ends as soon as a player plays their last card. If the stock is gone and nobody can play, the hand is blocked and ends there.
- 1Match the top card by suit or by rank
- 2Play an eight on anything and name the new suit
- 3Can’t play? Draw until you can
- 4Pass only when the stock is empty
- 5Play your last card to win the hand
Scoring
Many families play hand by hand with no score: the first player out wins. For a longer game, the player who goes out scores the value of the cards left in every other player’s hand.
| Card left in hand | Points |
|---|---|
| Each eight | 50 |
| King, queen, jack or 10 | 10 |
| Ace | 1 |
| 2–7 and 9 | Face value |
Agree on a target before you start, such as 100 points, and keep a running total. If a hand is blocked, most tables give it to the player holding the lowest total, who scores the difference from each other player.
Variations
Hollywood Eights: the same play, scored on three running games at once, so a match lasts longer.
Action cards: many families give powers to other ranks. Common choices are a two that makes the next player draw two, the queen of spades that makes them draw five, a jack that skips the next player and an ace that reverses direction. With these added, the game is close to Switch, Mau-Mau and the boxed game Uno.
Last card: borrow from Page One and make players announce when they are down to one card, with a penalty draw if they forget.
Big tables: with six or seven players, shuffle two decks together so the stock lasts.
Tips from the table
Save your eights. Playing one early wastes it. Keep it for the turn you have no other play, or to go out.
When you play an eight, name the suit you hold the most of, not just the one you like best.
Notice which suits make the next player draw. If they drew three times on diamonds, they are short in diamonds, and that is the suit to keep them in.
Shed high cards when you have a choice. If someone else goes out first, a king costs you 10 and an eight costs you 50.
Video Guides Are on the Way
We’re filming Game Guides that walk through full hands at the table, from the deal to the score.
Frequently asked
How many cards do you deal in Crazy Eights?
Seven each for two players, five each for three or more.
Do I have to play if I can?
No. You may draw from the stock instead, even with a playable card in your hand.
Can I go out on an eight?
Yes. In the standard game an eight can be your last card. A few house rules forbid it, so check first.
What is the difference between Crazy Eights and Hollywood Eights?
The play is the same. Hollywood Eights scores every hand across three running games at once, so the match lasts longer.
New rules every month
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