How to play Cribbage
Congrats on buying your cribbage board! This page is a primer on how to play in case you get lost or want to teach someone how to play. Let us know if you have any questions and most importantly have fun!
Cribbage is a two-player card game that involves creating combinations of cards to score points. To play cribbage, you will need a standard 52-card deck and a cribbage board.
Objective: The goal of cribbage is to be the first player to reach 121 points on the cribbage board. Points are scored by forming various card combinations during the play and pegging those points on the board.
Setup: Each player is dealt six cards. Players must select two cards to discard into the "crib," a separate hand that will score points for the dealer at the end of the round.
Playing the Game:
The non-dealer starts the game by laying a card face-up on the table.
Players alternate playing cards, keeping a running total of the card values. The total must not exceed 31.
Players score points for reaching 15, pairs, runs, and reaching exactly 31 during the play.
After all cards are played, players score their hands, the crib, and the last card played.
Scoring:
Each combination has a specific point value. For example, a pair is worth 2 points, a run is worth 3 points per card, and reaching exactly 31 is worth 2 points.
Players move their pegs on the cribbage board to keep track of their score.
Winning:
The game continues until one player reaches 121 points or more. The first player to reach the end of the cribbage board wins the game.
Now that you know the basic rules of cribbage, grab a deck of cards and a cribbage board to start playing!