What you need
- A standard UNO deck. The current deck has 112 cards: four colors with 0 to 9, plus Skip, Reverse, Draw Two, Wild and Wild Draw Four cards, one Wild Shuffle Hands card and three Wild Customizable cards. Some boxes add one collectible foil card from a different game (UNO Ultimate). The older deck has 108 cards and no Shuffle Hands or Customizable cards.
- The free score keeper, to add up points across rounds
Players and time
2-10 players. About 10 minutes a round.
The goal
Be the first to get rid of every card in your hand. If you play for points, the winner of each round collects the value of the cards still in the other hands, and the first player to reach 500 points wins the game.
One deal, from the shuffle until a player goes out, is a round. Mattel's current sheet calls this a "hand". This page and the score keeper say "round".
Setup
- Choose a dealer and have them shuffle the deck.
- Deal seven cards to each player.
- Put the rest of the deck face down in the middle. This is the draw pile.
- Turn the top card of the draw pile face up next to it to start the discard pile. Mattel's current sheet says that if this card is an action card, you ignore it and turn up another one. Older Mattel sheets, including the 2017 standard sheet, let the first card take effect (for example, a Skip skips the first player). Pick one approach before the game.
- The player to the dealer's left goes first, and play moves clockwise.
A turn
- Play one card from your hand onto the discard pile. It must match the top card in color, number or symbol. A Wild card can be played on anything.
- If you have no card that fits, draw one card from the draw pile. If that card can be played, you may play it right away. If not, your turn ends.
- You may also choose to draw a card even when you hold a playable one. In that case you may only play the card you just drew, and only if it fits.
- When you are down to your last card, say "UNO" (see Calling UNO below).
- Play passes to the next player. If the draw pile runs out, shuffle the discard pile to make a new draw pile.
Special cards and combinations
- Skip
- The next player in turn order loses their turn.
- Reverse
- The direction of play flips. Clockwise becomes counterclockwise and the other way around. With two players, see the question about Reverse below.
- Draw Two
- The next player draws two cards from the draw pile and loses their turn.
- Wild
- Matches any card, and you can play it even if you hold other playable cards. When you play it, you choose the color that continues.
- Wild Draw Four
- You choose the next color, and the next player draws four cards and loses their turn. The catch is that you may only play it when you hold no card of the color currently showing on the discard pile. Having a card with the matching number or a matching action card does not stop you. Wild cards in your hand count as a match for color purposes.
- Challenging a Wild Draw Four
- The player who would draw four can instead challenge. The player who played it shows their whole hand. If they held a card of the required color, they draw the four cards themselves and the challenger draws nothing. If they did not, the challenger draws six cards in total (four plus two extra) and loses their turn.
- Wild Shuffle Hands
- One in the current deck. It matches anything, so you can play it on any card. When you play it, collect every card from every player's hand and shuffle them together. Starting with the player to your left, deal them back out one at a time to all players until none are left. Players may end up with more or fewer cards than they had. Play then continues in the current direction. You also choose the color that continues.
- Wild Customizable
- Three in the current deck. Before the game, write a rule on each one in pencil (the cards can be erased), or leave them out of the deck. Older Mattel sheets say the group decides how many to use, one or all three. A Wild Customizable card is also a wild match that you can play on any card. When you play it, everyone follows the rule written on it, and you choose the color that continues.
- Calling UNO
- When you are down to one card, you must call "UNO" so the table knows you are about to win. If another player calls it for you before the next player takes a turn, you must draw two cards.
- Going out on a Draw Two or Wild Draw Four
- Several Mattel sheets say that if your last card is a Draw Two or Wild Draw Four, the next player still draws the two or four cards, and those cards are counted when the points for the round are totaled.
Scoring
Scoring is optional. When a player goes out, they score the value of all cards left in the other players' hands. Keep a running total from round to round. The first player to reach 500 points wins.
Mattel also lists an alternative method: each player adds up the value of the cards left in their own hand at the end of every round, and when someone reaches 500 points, the player with the lowest total wins. The free score keeper uses the standard method, where the winner of each round collects points.
The values for Wild Shuffle Hands and Wild Customizable are 50 on the current Mattel sheet. Some 2017 sheets list them at 40.
| Card | Points |
|---|---|
| Number cards 0 to 9 | Face value |
| Skip | 20 |
| Reverse | 20 |
| Draw Two | 20 |
| Wild | 50 |
| Wild Draw Four | 50 |
| Wild Shuffle Hands | 50 |
| Wild Customizable | 50 |
Worked example
Ana plays her last card. Ben still holds a red 7, a Skip and a Wild: 7 + 20 + 50 = 77. Cy holds a green 3, a Draw Two, a yellow 9 and a blue 0: 3 + 20 + 9 + 0 = 32. Dee holds a Reverse and a Wild Draw Four: 20 + 50 = 70.
Ana scores 77 + 32 + 70 = 179 points for the round. She already had 340 points, so her new total is 519 and she wins the game.
Keep score with the UNO score keeper
How to win
The game ends when a player reaches 500 points after a round. That player wins. If nobody has reached 500, shuffle all the cards and start a new round. If you play without keeping score, the first player to go out wins the round and the game.
Common house rules
These are house rules. They are not part of the official rules, so agree on them before you start.
- Stacking Draw Two and Wild Draw Four House rule
- The official rule is that the player after a Draw Two or Wild Draw Four draws the cards and loses their turn. Many groups let that player add their own Draw Two (or Wild Draw Four) onto the pile instead, passing the larger penalty on to the next player. This is a house rule. Agree on it before you start.
- Jumping in House rule
- Some groups let any player play an identical card (same color and number) out of turn. Play then continues from that player. This is a house rule.
- Draw until you can play House rule
- Some groups make a player who cannot play keep drawing until they get a card that fits, instead of drawing one card. This is a house rule.
- Losers lose their hand points House rule
- In this house rule, each player who did not go out also loses the points left in their own hand, so scores can fall below zero. It is an option in the score keeper and is off by default.
- Shorter or longer games House rule
- Groups often change the 500-point target. The score keeper lets you set any target.
Frequently asked questions
Can you stack +2 cards in UNO?
Not under the official rules. A Draw Two makes the next player draw two cards and lose their turn, and that is the end of it. Stacking a second Draw Two on top is a popular house rule, so check with your group before the game.
Can you play a Wild Draw Four whenever you want?
No. You can only play it when you hold no card of the color on top of the discard pile. A card with the same number or a matching action card does not count as a color match, so you are still allowed to play it. If another player suspects you held a matching color, they can challenge.
What happens if you forget to say UNO?
If another player calls UNO on you before the next player takes their turn, you draw two cards.
Do you have to play a card if you can?
No. You may choose to draw a card even when you hold a playable one. After you draw, you can only play the card you just drew.
What if the first card turned over is an action card?
Mattel's current sheet says to ignore it and turn up another card. Older Mattel sheets let the action take effect, for example the first player is skipped for a Skip card. Pick one approach before the game.
How does Reverse work with two players?
Mattel's current sheet does not cover it. An older Mattel sheet (2001) says that in a two-player game a Reverse acts like a Skip, so the player who played it takes another turn. Most groups play it that way. Agree on it before you start.
How many cards are in a UNO deck?
The current standard deck has 112 cards: 76 number cards (19 in each of four colors), 8 each of Skip, Reverse and Draw Two, 4 Wild, 4 Wild Draw Four, 1 Wild Shuffle Hands and 3 Wild Customizable. Older decks have 108 cards, without the Shuffle Hands and Customizable cards. For a classic game, Mattel says to take those extra cards out.
What do the Wild Shuffle Hands and Wild Customizable cards do?
Wild Shuffle Hands collects every card in every hand, shuffles them and deals them back out, starting to the left of the player who played it. Wild Customizable carries a rule your group writes on it in pencil. Both are wild cards, so the player chooses the next color. Both are worth 50 points in the round score.
Sources
- Mattel instruction sheet, UNO card game (HJH90, 2022, 113 cards with a collectible foil card) (Current standard sheet: Wild Shuffle Hands and Wild Customizable cards, Wild Draw Four challenge, calling UNO, ignoring an action card turned up at the start, and the 50-point values.)
- Mattel instruction sheet, UNO card game (10020-SN70_G1, 2017, 112 cards) (The 112-card contents list, Shuffle Hands wording, going out, scoring, alternative scoring and the older start-card rule.)
- Mattel instruction sheet, UNO card game (ColorADD edition, FWP10) (Going out on a Draw Two or Wild Draw Four, scoring and alternative scoring.)
- Mattel instruction sheet, UNO card game (53874, 2001, 108 cards) (The older 108-card deck and the two-player rules (Reverse acts like a Skip).)
- Mattel instruction sheet, UNO Star Wars Mandalorian edition (HJR23) (Checked against the other sheets for the same core rules, start-card wording and scoring.)
UNO is a trademark of Mattel, Inc. Rules and Scores is not affiliated with or endorsed by Mattel.