Gin Rummy Game: Play Gin Rummy Free Online

Home » Play Games » Gin Rummy

In this guide

• How to play
• The full rules
• Melds and deadwood
• Knocking, gin and the undercut
• The three bot levels
• 7 tips to win more hands
• Gin Rummy FAQ
• Final verdict

How to play Gin Rummy

The idea is simple: turn your ten cards into melds — sets and runs of three or more cards — and get rid of the loose cards that do not fit. The loose cards are called deadwood. When your deadwood is worth 10 points or less you can end the hand by knocking, and if you melt every single card you go gin and score a fat bonus. Each hand pays points to one player, and the first player to 100 match points wins the match.

1. Press Play. The dealer gives you and Nova 10 cards each from a standard 52-card deck, then flips one card face up to start the discard pile. The rest of the deck is the stock.
2. The player who did not deal is offered the face-up card first. Take it if it helps your hand. If you pass, the dealer gets the same offer. If both of you pass, the non-dealer draws from the stock and the hand begins.
3. On your turn, draw the top card of the stock or the top card of the discard pile by tapping it, then discard one card by tapping a card in your hand. One rule matters here: you cannot discard the card you just picked up from the discard pile on that same turn.
4. Your cards in melds glow with a gold frame, and the game always shows your current deadwood total. After you draw, if a discard would leave you at 10 deadwood or less, the Knock button lights up. If a discard would leave you at zero, the Go Gin button lights up. If all 11 cards are already in melds, the Big Gin button ends the hand at once.
5. When a hand ends, the loser of the knock gets to lay off deadwood cards onto the knocker’s melds — unless the knocker went gin, when no layoff is allowed. Points are scored, the deal passes to the other player, and hands continue until someone reaches 100 match points.

Controls for phone and PC

Action	Phone / tablet	PC / laptop
Take or pass the upcard	Tap Take the upcard or Pass	Click Take the upcard or Pass
Draw a card	Tap the stock or the discard pile	Click the stock or the discard pile
Discard a card	Tap a card in your hand	Click a card in your hand
Knock or go gin	Tap Knock, Go Gin or Big Gin, then tap your final card	Click Knock, Go Gin or Big Gin, then click your final card
Change the bot level	Tap the Bots button in the top bar	Click the Bots button in the top bar
Sound on or off	Tap the speaker button	Click the speaker button

The full rules

The deal. The dealer alternates every hand, and Nova deals the first hand of a match so you act first. Ten cards each, dealt one at a time starting with the non-dealer. The next card is turned face up as the first discard, and the remaining 31 cards form the stock.

The upcard offer. The non-dealer may take the face-up card or pass. If they pass, the dealer may take it or pass. A player who takes the upcard must then discard a different card — the card just taken can never be discarded on the same turn, at the offer or at any later draw from the pile. If both players pass, the non-dealer draws the top card of the stock and play continues in turns.

The turn. Draw one card, from the stock or from the top of the discard pile, then discard one card. There is no obligation to improve your hand — a turn is legal as long as you draw and discard — but every discard is public, and a good opponent is watching what you throw and what you pick up.

The end of a hand. A hand ends when a player knocks or goes gin after drawing, or when the stock runs out. When a draw takes the stock down to two cards or fewer, that player must knock or go gin on that turn. A plain discard ends the hand as a draw: nobody scores, and the same dealer deals the hand again.

Melds and deadwood

A meld is a set of three or four cards of the same rank, or a run of three or more cards of the same suit in sequence — 7, 8, 9 of spades, for example. Aces are low only: ace, 2, 3 is a run, but queen, king, ace is not. Everything that is not in a meld is deadwood, and deadwood is scored at these values:

Card	Deadwood value
Ace	1 point
2 to 10	Face value (a 7 is worth 7)
Jack, queen, king	10 points each

The game works out your best arrangement for you — it tries every way of grouping your cards and keeps the one with the least deadwood, which is why your gold-framed melds sometimes rearrange after a draw. The number under your hand is always that best deadwood total, so you can see at a glance how close you are to a knock.

Knocking, gin and the undercut

There are three ways to end a hand, and choosing between them is the heart of gin rummy. Knock too early and you leave points on the table. Wait too long and your opponent knocks first — or worse, undercuts you.

Finish	Requirement	Score
Knock	Deadwood of 10 or less after your discard	You score the difference between the defender’s deadwood (after layoff) and yours
Undercut	The defender’s deadwood ties or beats the knocker’s	The defender scores the difference plus a 10-point bonus
Gin	Deadwood of exactly 0 after your discard	You score a 25-point bonus plus all of the defender’s deadwood — no layoff allowed
Big Gin	All 11 cards in melds, no discard needed	You score a 50-point bonus plus all of the defender’s deadwood — no layoff allowed
Drawn hand	The stock runs out with no knock	Nobody scores; the same dealer deals again

Layoff softens a knock. When a player knocks, the defender may attach their own deadwood cards to the knocker’s melds — a 6 of spades onto a run of 7, 8, 9 of spades, or the fourth king onto a set of three kings — and only the cards that are still left count against them. The game does the laying off automatically and shows you every card that moved. Against gin or big gin there is no layoff at all: the defender’s full deadwood counts, which is why gin pays so well.

The match. Hand points add up in a running match score. The match ends at the close of a hand in which a player has reached 100 or more, and the higher total wins. If a hand leaves the totals exactly level at 100 or more, the match plays on until a hand separates the scores. There are no extra shutout or match bonuses — the points on the table are the whole game.

The three bot levels

Nova plays at three levels, and the level is honest — each one uses exactly the thinking described here, nothing hidden. Change levels with the Bots button; the new level applies from the next hand.

• Casual. Nova takes the upcard or a discard when it pairs with a card in hand or sits next to one in the same suit. She discards her most expensive deadwood card. She knocks the moment she legally can, at 10 deadwood or less, and goes gin whenever gin is available. A friendly first opponent.
• Smart. Nova takes a discard only when it cuts the deadwood she can reach, or when it is a cheap card of 4 points or less that pairs or runs with her hand. She discards to keep her deadwood at its lowest, protects cards that are one step from a meld, and avoids throwing a rank you picked up from the pile when she has a choice. She knocks at 7 deadwood or less, or at 10 or less once the stock is down to its last 15 cards.
• Master. Everything Smart does, plus a memory. Master Nova tracks every card that has been discarded and prefers discards whose partners are all already seen — cards nobody can use against her. She knocks at 10 or less straight away and goes gin whenever it is on. Beat her regularly and you are playing real gin.

7 tips to win more hands

1. Watch the pile, not just your hand. Every card Nova picks up from the discard pile tells you what she is building. Never discard a card of the same rank, or a neighbour in the same suit, as one she just took.
2. Knock early with a small hand. A knock at 4 or 5 deadwood in the first few turns often catches an opponent holding 20 or more. The difference is the score — you do not need gin to win hands.
3. Hold pairs that touch. Two cards of the same rank, or two cards one apart in a suit, are one draw away from a meld. A lonely king is worth less than a humble 4 and 5 of hearts.
4. Shed expensive deadwood first. A loose queen is 10 points of risk every turn it sits there. Unless it pairs, throw it early, before a knock makes it expensive.
5. Count what is dead. When both cards that could complete your run have already been discarded, the run is a dream. Break it up and build something real.
6. Respect the late stock. As the stock shrinks, the chance Nova is sitting on a knock grows. Below 15 cards, knock at 10 rather than fishing for gin.
7. Go gin when the match needs it. Behind late in a match, the 25-point bonus and the blocked layoff can swing the whole game in one hand. Ahead, take the safe knock and bank the points.

Gin Rummy FAQ

Is Gin Rummy free to play?

Yes. Gin Rummy is 100% free. You play it right on this page against the bot. There is no download, no sign-up and no payment.

How do you play gin rummy?

Each player is dealt 10 cards. On your turn you draw one card, from the stock or the discard pile, and discard one card. You are building melds: sets of three or four cards of one rank, and runs of three or more cards in one suit. Cards that are not in a meld are deadwood. When your deadwood is worth 10 points or less you may knock to end the hand and score the difference, and a hand with no deadwood at all is gin, worth a 25-point bonus plus the opponent’s deadwood. The first player to 100 match points wins.

What is deadwood in gin rummy?

Deadwood is every card in your hand that is not part of a meld. Aces count 1 point, number cards count their face value, and jacks, queens and kings count 10 points each. Your deadwood total decides when you may knock, and it is what your opponent scores against you when a hand ends.

What is the difference between knocking and going gin?

Knocking ends the hand with deadwood of 10 or less, and the defender may lay off cards onto your melds before their remaining deadwood is counted. Going gin ends the hand with no deadwood at all. Gin pays a 25-point bonus plus all of the defender’s deadwood, and no layoff is allowed. If all 11 cards in your hand are in melds, that is big gin, and the bonus is 50.

What is an undercut in gin rummy?

An undercut happens when the defender’s deadwood, after laying off, is equal to or lower than the knocker’s deadwood. The defender then scores the difference between the two totals plus a 10-point bonus, and the knocker scores nothing for the hand. It is the risk every knock carries.

Does Gin Rummy save my progress?

Yes, in your own browser. Your career record and your best winning match total save automatically, and your match score saves at the end of every hand, so you can leave mid-match and resume from the next hand. A hand that is half played when the page reloads is dealt again from its start. Nothing leaves your device, and there is no account to make.

Last updated: November 5, 2026. Gin Rummy v1.0 — the first release of our original gin rummy game, with the full classic two-player rules against one bot at three skill levels, knocking, gin and big gin, layoff and undercuts, a Daily Match, career stats and match resume. An original GameOLL browser game. Found a bug? Tell us in the comments and we will fix it in the next version.