Domino rules
Domino rules and questions
Quick answers to what people ask at the table: how to score, how many tiles to draw, what a capicú is, and the rules for Mexican Train, All Fives and partner games.
How to score dominoes
How domino scoring works: count the pips left in the other hands, who scores a blocked game, partner scoring, bonuses like capicú, and what score to play to.
Read the rulesMexican Train dominoes rules
How to play Mexican Train: the double-twelve set, how many tiles to draw, the engine, trains and markers, covering doubles, and scoring 13 rounds.
Read the rulesAll Fives (Muggins) rules
How to play All Fives, also called Muggins or Fives: scoring when the ends add up to a multiple of five, the spinner, going out, and what score to play to.
Read the rulesHow many dominoes does each player get?
How many dominoes to draw for two, three, four or more players, in the block game, the draw game, All Fives and Mexican Train. One table for every game.
Read the rulesHow many dominoes are in a set?
A double-six set has 28 dominoes, a double-nine has 55 and a double-twelve has 91. Here's how many pips each set has and which games use which set.
Read the rulesBlocked domino game: who wins a tranque?
What happens when a domino game is blocked and nobody can play: how to tell it's really locked, who wins a tranque, how to score it, and what to do on a tie.
Read the rulesPartner dominoes rules
How to play partner dominoes: four players in two teams, seating, the lead, passing, team scoring to 500, blocked games, and the unwritten rules of table talk.
Read the rulesPuerto Rican dominoes: 500 con premios
How Puerto Rican partner dominoes is scored: games to 500, premios for the first four hands, capicú, the chuchazo, the pase redondo, and the chiva.
Read the rulesWhat is a capicú in dominoes?
A capicú is going out with a tile that could have been played on either end of the line. Here's how to spot one, what it's worth, and where the word comes from.
Read the rulesDraw dominoes vs. block dominoes
Draw vs. block dominoes: what happens when you can't play, how the boneyard works, and which game to play with 2, 3 or 4 players.
Read the rulesFree printable domino score sheet
A free printable domino score sheet for Draw, Block and partner games, plus one for Mexican Train. Print it, or let Pipside add up the scores for you.
Read the rulesCuban dominoes rules
How to play Cuban dominoes: a double-nine set, four players in two teams, 10 tiles each, scoring the opponents' pips, blocked games, and playing to 100.
Read the rulesDominican dominoes rules
How Dominican partner dominoes is played and scored: games to 200, counting the tiles, the tranque, and bonuses for capicúa, pase de salida and pase redondo.
Read the rulesHow to win at dominoes
Domino strategy that works: lead from strength, drop heavy tiles early, keep a mix of numbers, read the passes, count the tiles and play for your partner.
Read the rulesChicken Foot dominoes rules
How to play Chicken Foot dominoes: the starting double, building a chicken foot after every double, drawing from the chicken yard, and scoring.
Read the rulesHow to teach kids dominoes
A simple way to teach kids dominoes: start with matching, play with open hands, keep games short, and let them add up the pips. Good math practice, too.
Read the rules
How to Play · Learn · Glossary