Spades is the trick-taking card game that has kept kitchen tables loud for generations. Partners bid how many tricks they will win, spades always beat every other suit, and you score big for making your bid exactly. The rules fit on one page; the strategy keeps you hooked for years. This guide covers the standard four-player partnership game step by step, then shows how to play Spades with 2 or 3 people.
Spades at a glance
| What | Details |
|---|---|
| Players | 4 in two partnerships (variants for 2 and 3 below) |
| Ages | About 10 and up |
| You need | One standard 52-card deck, pen and paper for scoring |
| Time | 30 to 60 minutes to 500 points |
| Goal | Be the first team to reach the target score, usually 500 |
Key terms
- Trick: one round where each player plays one card. The highest card wins it.
- Trump: spades. Any spade beats any card of another suit.
- Bid: the number of tricks you promise to win.
- Contract: the total of the two partners’ bids.
- Bags (overtricks): tricks won beyond your contract.
- Nil: a bid of zero tricks, with a bonus if you pull it off.
- Breaking spades: the first time a spade is played in a hand, which allows spades to be led.
How to set up Spades
- Sit partners across from each other, so the turn order alternates between teams.
- Shuffle and deal all 52 cards, one at a time, so each player has 13 cards. The deal passes to the left after each hand.
- Card ranks run from high to low: ace, king, queen, jack, 10 down to 2. Spades rank above every other suit.
How to bid in Spades
Starting with the player to the dealer’s left and going clockwise, each player says how many tricks they expect to win, from 0 to 13. There is only one round of bidding.
- Count your sure tricks. High spades (ace, king) are almost always tricks. Aces and kings in other suits often are, too.
- Count long spades. Four or more spades usually earn an extra trick or two, because you can trump in once other suits run out.
- Add your bid to your partner’s. The total is your team’s contract for the hand.
- Bid nil only with a weak hand. If you bid nil, you are promising to win zero tricks; your partner’s bid stands on its own.
A typical team contract lands between 5 and 9 tricks. All four bids together rarely add up to exactly 13, so someone always ends up with bags or falls short.
How to play a hand
- The player to the dealer’s left leads the first trick. (Some house rules have the 2 of clubs lead instead; agree before you start.)
- Follow suit if you can. If a heart is led, you must play a heart if you have one.
- If you cannot follow suit, play anything, including a spade to trump the trick, or throw away a low card from another suit.
- The highest card of the suit led wins the trick, unless someone played a spade, in which case the highest spade wins.
- The winner of each trick leads the next one.
- Spades cannot be led until they are broken, meaning a spade has been played on an earlier trick because someone could not follow suit. The exception: a player holding only spades may lead one.
- Keep tricks won in neat piles in front of one partner, so they are easy to count at the end.
How to score Spades
After all 13 tricks, each team counts its tricks and compares them with its contract.
| Result | Score |
|---|---|
| Make your contract | 10 points per trick bid, plus 1 point per bag (overtrick) |
| Fall short (get “set”) | Minus 10 points per trick bid |
| Collect 10 bags over the game | Minus 100 points, then start counting bags again |
| Successful nil | Plus 100 points for the team |
| Failed nil | Minus 100 points for the team |
Example: your team bids 6 (you 4, your partner 2) and wins 8 tricks. You score 60 points for the contract plus 2 bags, for 62. Those 2 bags also go on your bag count; reach 10 and you lose 100 points.
Winning: the first team to reach 500 points wins. If both teams cross 500 on the same hand, the higher score wins. Many families also say a team that falls to minus 200 loses.
How to play Spades with 2 people
Two-player Spades uses a drawing phase instead of a deal.
- Shuffle and place the deck face down between you.
- The first player looks at the top card. They either keep it and discard the next card face down without looking, or discard it face down and keep the next card instead.
- The second player does the same, and you alternate until the deck is gone. Each player ends with 13 cards.
- Bid, play and score exactly as in the four-player game, but each player scores for themselves.
Because you chose your own cards, bids in two-player Spades tend to run higher. For more two-player ideas, see our list of card games for 2 people.
How to play Spades with 3 people
- Remove the 2 of clubs so 51 cards remain.
- Deal 17 cards to each player.
- Everyone plays for themselves (“cutthroat”). Bid, play and score as usual, with each player keeping their own score.
Three-player Spades is more aggressive, because nobody has a partner to cover for a weak hand.
Popular Spades variations
- Blind nil: a player bids nil before looking at their cards. Common scoring is plus or minus 200. Many families only allow it when a team is behind by 100 or more.
- Jokers in: some players add the two jokers as the highest trumps and remove two low cards to keep 52. The exact cards removed and the rank order vary, so agree first.
- Shorter games: play to 250 or 300 points if you have less time.
- No bags: for a friendlier game with kids, skip the bag penalty entirely.
Spades strategy tips for beginners
- Bid carefully, not bravely. Getting set costs you the whole bid. A safe bid with a couple of bags is usually better.
- Count spades. There are 13. Keep a rough count of how many have been played, so you know when your low spades become winners.
- Protect your partner’s nil. If your partner bid nil, win tricks for them: play high, and try to take any trick where they are stuck with a high card.
- Get rid of short suits early. If you only have one diamond, play it early so you can trump diamonds later.
- Watch the bag count. Late in the game, when you are near 10 bags, it can be worth losing a trick on purpose.
Teaching Spades to kids
Start with open hands: everyone plays the first hand face up so you can talk through each choice. Skip nil and the bag penalty until the basics click. Pairing a child with an experienced partner makes it fun from the first game.
Spades FAQ
How many cards do you deal in Spades?
Thirteen each with four players. With three players, remove the 2 of clubs and deal 17 each. With two players, there is no deal; players draw cards until each has 13.
Can you lead spades at any time?
No. Spades cannot be led until they have been broken (played on a trick of another suit), unless a player has nothing but spades.
What happens if you win more tricks than you bid?
Each extra trick is a bag worth 1 point, but every 10 bags you collect costs 100 points.
What does bidding nil mean?
It means you promise to win zero tricks. Succeed and your team scores 100 points; win even one trick and your team loses 100.
What score do you play Spades to?
Usually 500 points. Shorter games to 250 or 300 are common at home.
Who goes first in Spades?
The player to the dealer’s left bids first and leads the first trick, although some families have the holder of the 2 of clubs lead instead.
Looking for something lighter for a bigger group? Try Spoons.
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