Rummikub has been in print since the fifties and has sold in the tens of millions, which is a strange fact about a game whose central move is rearranging somebody else's work.
The tiles are numbered one to thirteen in four colours, two of each, plus jokers. You form runs of consecutive numbers in one colour, or groups of the same number in different colours, and you win by emptying your rack.
What separates it from every card game it resembles is that the table is public property. Once tiles are down, anybody can take them apart and rebuild them, as long as everything on the table is still valid when they finish their turn. That rule turns a tidy little set collection game into something closer to a puzzle that changes shape every few minutes.
How to play Rummikub
You start with a rack of tiles and cannot place anything until you can open.
- A run is three or more consecutive numbers in the same colour.
- A group is three or four of the same number, each in a different colour.
- Your first placement must total at least thirty points, using only tiles from your rack.
- After you have opened, you may rearrange anything already on the table.
- Every set on the table must be valid at the end of your turn, or you take everything back and lose the turn.
- Draw a tile if you cannot or will not play.
- The first player to empty their rack wins.
The thirty point opening
Until you meet it you cannot play at all, and you cannot use tiles already on the table to help. That is why early turns often consist of drawing while other players build.
Two groups of high numbers, or a run of four in the middle of the range, are the usual routes. A group of three tens is thirty exactly.
Jokers
A joker stands in for any tile. It is worth a great deal, and it also carries a penalty if you are caught holding one at the end, so it is not a tile to hoard indefinitely.
Tips and strategy
Open late rather than badly
The thirty point rule tempts people into dumping their three highest tiles the moment they qualify. That empties your best material for no gain, because opening does not win anything by itself.
If you can open with thirty and keep your structure intact, do it. If opening costs you a run you were two tiles from completing, wait one more turn.
The table is your rack
After opening, stop thinking of the table as finished work. A run of five can be split. A group of four can donate a tile to a run. A joker can be freed by replacing it with the tile it represents.
Most large plays in Rummikub are not new sets at all, they are three existing sets rearranged into four so that two tiles from your rack find a home.
Hold the connectors
- Fours, fives, sixes and sevens belong to more possible runs than ones or thirteens.
- A tile you hold two copies of is worth less than two tiles of different colours at the same number.
- Keep at least one tile that could extend a set already on the table. It is the cheapest way to play something on a bad turn.
Watch what other players cannot use
If a colour has stopped appearing on the table, somebody is holding it. If a player draws several turns running, they have not opened, which means the high tiles are still out there.
Endgame
When a player is down to two or three tiles, stop optimising your own rack and start denying. Do not leave a set on the table that they can extend with one tile. Break it, use it, or restructure it so the obvious slot disappears.
Reading the rack you were dealt
Before your first turn, sort your tiles twice: once by colour into potential runs, once by number into potential groups. Some tiles will appear in both piles, and those are the ones to watch.
A tile that belongs to two possible sets is worth keeping even when neither is close. A tile that belongs to one is a candidate to play the moment it fits, because it will never become more useful than it is now.
This also tells you how far from opening you are. Two near sets that both need one tile is a comfortable position. One near set and six unrelated tiles is a hand that will be drawing for a while, and knowing that early stops you making desperate plays.
Other board games here
Parcheesi and Four Colors are the other classics on the site with real opponents, and 5 Roll is the dice equivalent of this kind of thinking. More in board.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum for a first play in Rummikub?
Thirty points, made only from tiles on your own rack. You cannot use tiles already on the table until after you have opened.
What is the difference between a run and a group?
A run is three or more consecutive numbers in one colour. A group is three or four of the same number in different colours.
Can I rearrange sets other players made?
Yes, once you have opened. You can break and rebuild anything on the table, provided every set is valid again by the end of your turn.
What happens if I cannot finish a rearrangement?
You take back everything you moved and lose the turn, so ambitious restructuring is worth working out before you touch anything.
What do jokers do?
A joker substitutes for any tile. It is powerful in play and carries a penalty if you are still holding one when the round ends.
Is it free to play here?
Yes, free in the browser with no download and no account.