Canasta card game rules

Canasta is a card game that was invented in 1939 in South America and from there conquered the entire world. It is a tactical card game and a member of the family of Rummy card games. On this page you will learn how to play canasta.

Canasta card game rules

General rules canasta

  • Canasta is a card game that can be played with 2 to 4 players. Canasta can also be played with 6 players if additional cards are added.
  • Canasta is normally played with 2 decks of cards including jokers. Therefore, a total of 108 cards are played with. If you play canasta with 6 players then you have to add another deck.
  • The goal of the game is to score as many points as possible. You can get points by placing melds on the table. You can also earn points by expanding melds. The first player or team to reach 5000 points is the winner.
  • Games are played clockwise.

Dealing in canasta

The number of cards a player receives at the beginning of the game depends on the number of players participating.

  • 2 players. 15 cards per player.
  • 3 players. 13 cards per player.
  • 4 players. 11 cards per player.
  • 6 players. 11 cards per player.

The cards that are not dealt are placed face down in a pile. This pile is called the stock. The top card of the stock is then placed face up. This card forms the beginning of the discard pile. If the first open card is a 2, a red (hearts or diamonds) 3 or a joker, then this card is rotated 90 degrees and another card from the stock is placed on top of it.

Canasta blocking discard pile

Earning Points in canasta

You can earn points by placing melds of cards on the table with the same value, for example tens or jacks. When a player has a meld of at least 7 cards on the table, it is called a pure canasta. If a player has a meld of at least 4 cards of the same value supplemented to at least 7 cards with jokers and/or deuces, we speak of an impure canasta. If a player has a canasta, then they make a pile of this set of cards. In a pure canasta, a red card is on top and in an impure canasta, a black card is on top.

How to play canasta

  • The player to the left of the dealer takes the first turn. Then play proceeds clockwise.
  • When it is your turn, you have the choice to
    • Take the top closed card from the stock.
    • Take all cards from the discard pile. This is only allowed if you have at least 2 cards of the same value in your hand as the top card of the discard pile. Therefore, if there is a jack on top of the discard pile, you may only take the discard pile if you have at least 2 Jacks in your hand.
  • If you have taken a card, then you may meld. This means you may place a meld on the table. A meld consists of at least 3 cards of the same value. Jokers and twos may be used as wildcards. These may take the place of a card of the same value. A meld must consist of at least 2 cards of the same denomination, natural cards, and a maximum of 2 wildcards. When you meld for the first time in a round, you must meld with a minimum number of points (more about this later). This number depends on your score at the time.
    • Negative: 15 points or more
    • 0 – 1495: 50 points or more
    • 1500 – 2995: 90 points or more
    • 3000 – 4995: 120 points or more
  • When you meld for the first time in a round, wildcards and red threes do not count toward the minimum number of points you need to meld.
  • If you have taken the discard pile, then during that turn you may only use the top card of the discard pile to meld. You may use the other cards in later turns.
  • Once you have melded in a round, the minimum number of points to meld does not apply in later turns. Therefore once you have melded, you may always meld during later turns.
  • You may also add cards to your own or other players’ melds during your turn. Once you have melded, you may also use the top card of the discard pile to add to existing melds.
  • After your turn, you place a card on the discard pile.

Special cards

In canasta, there are a few special cards.

  • Jokers and deuces may be used as wildcards in melds. There is an exception for the red 3 and black 3. A joker or 2 cannot be used instead of a red 3 or black 3.
  • The red 3. A red (hearts or diamonds) 3 cannot be used in melds. If you receive a red 3 (during dealing or if you take a red 3 from the stock), you place it face-up during your turn. Then you may take another card from the stock. Red threes are worth points if you have melded during a round. If you did not meld, red threes are penalty points. A player who fails to report (lay down) a red 3 receives 500 penalty points.
  • The black 3. If you throw a black (clubs or spades) 3 on the discard pile, you block the discard pile for the next player. This means that the next player may not take the discard pile and has to take a card from the stock.

Blocking the discard pile

As you just read, you can temporarily block the discard pile with a black 3. With a wildcard you can also block the discard pile. The next player(s) may only take the discard pile if they have two cards in common with the discard pile below the wilcard. You may not use a wildcard to accomplish this.

Going Out

A round is ended when a player goes out. This means that a player plays his or her last card. A player can do this by placing a card on the discard pile, but this is not necessary. The player who goes out first receives 100 points. A player may only go out if he or she already has a canasta or makes a canasta with his or her last card.

If a player does not have a canasta, then a player must always have at least one card in hand. A player may then not have to discard.

Has the last card of the stock been taken and no player has gone out yet? Then the round continues as long as the player on turn can take the discard pile. A player is obliged to take the discard pile if he or she is able to. If the player on turn cannot, then the round ends.

If the last card in the discard pile is a red 3 then the round ends. The player who takes the red 3 may still meld or extend existing melds, but not discard a card and receives no bonus for going out.

Points cards & scoring canasta

If a player has gone out, then the score is added up. Here, cards and canastas have the following points.

  • Ace: 20 points
  • King, queen, jack, 10, 9, 8: 10 points
  • 7, 6, 5, 4: 5 points
  • Black 3: 5 points
  • Red 3: 100 points. If a player has not melded, 100 penalty points.
  • 2: 20 points
  • Joker: 50 points
  • All 4 red threes: 800 points. If a player has not melded, this is 800 penalty points.
  • Pure canasta (red card on top): 500 points
  • Impure canasta (black card above): 300 points

Cards in hand are penalty points and are deducted. A red 3 is worth points if a player has melded in the round. If a player has not melded, a red 3 is deducted as penalty points.

The player or team that reaches 5000 points first has won. If several players or teams have more than 5000 points after a round, the player or team with the highest number of points wins.

Canasta in teams

If you play canasta with 4 players then you can play in teams.

  • The players sitting opposite each other form a team.
  • If a player on a team has melded, then his partner has also melded.
  • The cards on a team’s table belong to both partners, including the red threes. So you may add cards to your partner’s melds.

If you play canasta with 6 players, you must play in teams of 2.

  • 3 decks are played (162 cards).
  • The players sitting opposite each other form a team.
  • If a player of a team has melded, then his partner has also melded.
  • The cards on a team’s table belong to both partners, including red threes. Thus, you may add cards to your partner’s melds.

Learn more about other card games

Do you want to learn more about other card games? Please visit our overview with articles about all kinds of card games.

Read articles about other card games