How to play Crazy Eights
Crazy Eights is a card game for 2 to 8 players. On your turn you play a card that matches the top of the discard pile by rank or suit. An 8 plays on anything and lets you name the next suit. The first player to empty their hand wins, and everyone else takes penalty points.
- Players
- 2 to 8
- Deck
- One 52-card deck (Deckhand adds a second for 6 or more players)
- Hand size
- 7 cards with two players, 5 otherwise
- Goal
- Play every card in your hand first
Setup
Deal 5 cards to each player, or 7 in a two-player game. Turn up one card to start the discard pile; the starting card is never an 8. The rest of the deck is the stock.
How to play
- On your turn, play a card from your hand onto the discard pile that matches the top card’s rank or suit.
- An 8 can be played on anything. When you play one, name a suit. The next player has to play that suit or another 8. Matching rank doesn’t count.
- If you have no card you can play, draw one card. If you can play it, do. If not, your turn ends.
- If the stock runs out, shuffle the discard pile, except the top card, to make a new stock.
Winning
The game ends as soon as someone plays their last card, and that player wins. Everyone else gets penalty points for the cards still in their hand, so fewer points is better:
- An 8 is 50 points.
- A Jack, Queen, or King is 10.
- An Ace is 1.
- Every other card is its number.
Variants
Each option below is one the host can pick before the game. The first choice listed is the standard game described above.
| Option | Choices | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| Draw rule | Draw one (default), Draw until playable | With Draw until playable, a player who can’t play keeps drawing until they pick up a card they can play, then plays it. |
| Specials | Off (default), On | Twos make the next player draw two and end their turn, unless they pass it on with a 2 of any suit, which makes the next player draw four, and so on. Until someone draws, only 2s can be played, not even an 8. Queens skip the next player. Aces reverse the direction of play. With two players, a Queen or an Ace means you go again. A special card does nothing if it was your last card. |
| Decks | Auto (default), 1 deck, 2 decks | How many decks are shuffled together. Auto uses one deck for up to 5 players and two decks for 6 or more. |
Playing it in Deckhand
Your hand stays on your phone and the discard pile sits in the middle of everyone’s screen. When you play an 8, you pick the new suit from four suit tiles. The app deals the right hand size, reshuffles the stock for you, and tallies the penalty points at the end. The host sets the draw rule, specials, and deck count in the lobby.
Deckhand is free on the App Store and Google Play. One phone starts a table and everyone else joins with the code, so nobody needs a physical deck.
FAQ
How many cards do you deal in Crazy Eights?
Deal 7 cards each in a two-player game and 5 cards each with three or more players.
What happens when you play an 8?
You name a suit. The next player has to play a card of that suit or another 8. Matching the 8’s rank doesn’t count.
What if you can’t play a card in Crazy Eights?
Draw one card. If you can play it, play it; if not, your turn ends. Some tables play draw until playable instead, where you keep drawing until you get a card you can play.
How do you score Crazy Eights?
When someone goes out, every other player counts the cards left in their hand: 50 for an 8, 10 for a Jack, Queen, or King, 1 for an Ace, and face value for everything else. Lower is better.
How many people can play Crazy Eights?
2 to 8 players. In Deckhand, a table of 6 or more gets two decks shuffled together by default.