Objective
Avoid taking hearts and the queen of spades in your tricks. There are 26 penalty points in each hand: 13 hearts at one point each and the queen at thirteen. There are no trumps and no partners. The one big exception is shooting the moon: take every penalty card in a single hand and the points land on everyone else instead.
Setup
With four players, deal the whole deck one card at a time, so everyone has thirteen. With three, five or six players, first take out enough twos (never a heart) for the deck to divide evenly: one card for three players, two for five, four for six.
Before the first trick, each player chooses three cards and passes them face down. The direction rotates each hand: to the left, to the right, across the table, then a hand with no passing. With three or five players there is no seat straight across, so groups often alternate left and right, or skip the pass altogether. Look at the cards you receive only after you have passed your own.
How to play
The player holding the two of clubs leads it to start the first trick. (If the two of clubs was taken out, the lowest club in play leads.) Going clockwise, everyone must follow suit if they can. If you cannot follow suit, you may play any card, and this is your chance to dump a heart or the queen of spades.
The highest card of the suit led wins the trick, aces high. The winner leads the next trick. You may not lead a heart until hearts have been broken, meaning a heart has been discarded on an earlier trick, unless you hold nothing but hearts. The queen of spades can be led at any time.
- 1Pass three cards in this hand’s direction
- 2The two of clubs leads the first trick
- 3Follow suit if you can; if not, dump a heart or the queen
- 4Highest card of the suit led takes the trick and leads next
Scoring
When all the cards have been played, each player counts the penalty cards in the tricks they took and adds them to their running score.
| Card | Points |
|---|---|
| Each heart | 1 |
| Queen of spades | 13 |
| Shooting the moon (all 13 hearts and the queen) | 0 for you; 26 for each other player |
Play continues until someone reaches or passes 100 at the end of a hand. The player with the lowest score at that moment wins. Some tables let a player who shoots the moon subtract 26 from their own score instead of adding 26 to everyone else.
Variations
Omnibus Hearts: the jack of diamonds (at some tables, the ten) is a bonus card worth minus 10 to whoever takes it.
Black Maria: a British relative where the ace of spades (7 points) and king of spades (10 points) are also penalty cards, on top of the queen at 13.
Cancellation Hearts: for six or more players, using two decks. When two identical cards fall in the same trick, they cancel each other out and neither can win it.
Tips from the table
Pass the high spades (ace and king) if you do not have plenty of low spades to protect them. Holding them without cover is how you catch the queen.
Try to void a suit with your pass. Running out of diamonds or clubs early gives you a safe place to dump hearts later.
Watch for a moon shot. If one player is taking every trick with a heart in it, someone at the table needs to take just one heart to stop it.
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
Can I lead hearts if they have not been broken?
Only if your hand holds nothing but hearts. Otherwise you have to wait until someone discards a heart on an earlier trick.
Does the queen of spades break hearts?
At most tables, no. Hearts are broken only by a heart. Some groups count the queen as well, so settle it before you start.
What happens if I shoot the moon?
You score nothing for that hand and every other player takes 26 points. Some tables let you subtract 26 from your own score instead.
Who wins Hearts?
The player with the lowest score when someone reaches 100. Hitting 100 ends the game; it does not win it.
New rules every month
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