Spades Rules
Classic four-player partnership Spades (trick-taking). These rules follow the common modern version described on Pagat. You and a computer partner play against two computer opponents. No login or download.
Spades rules at a glance
- 4 players, 2 partnerships
- 13 cards each
- Each player bids 0–13 tricks
- Team bid = both partners' bids combined
- Spades are always trump
- You must follow suit if possible
- Nil is a bid of 0 tricks
- Sandbags are overtricks
- First team to 500 wins
How a hand is played
- Deal: 13 cards to each player from a standard 52-card deck.
- Bid: Each player bids 0–13 tricks clockwise. Your team contract is the sum of both partners' bids.
- Play: Win tricks by following suit when you can. Spades trump all other suits.
- Score: Tally the hand and add points to your running team totals.
- Win: First team to 500 points wins the match.
Overview
Four-player partnership trick-taking game. Spades are always trump. Teams bid how many tricks they will win, then play 13 tricks per hand.
Players and teams
- 4 players — fixed partnerships (you + partner vs two opponents)
- 13 cards each per hand
- Standard 52-card deck
You sit across from your partner. Your team’s bid is the sum of both partners’ bids. Tricks won by either partner count toward the team total.
Bidding
Before play, each player bids how many tricks they expect to win (0–13). Your team’s contract is the sum of both partners’ bids. You need at least that many combined tricks to score positively for the hand.
Bidding is clockwise. In most games, the player to the dealer’s left bids first and the dealer bids last.
Nil bids
A bid of 0 is called Nil: you are declaring that you will take no tricks. A successful Nil is worth +100 points to your partnership; a failed Nil is −100 points. (The rest of the team’s bid still scores normally.)
Playing tricks
Spades beat all other suits. If no spade is played, the highest card of the led suit wins.
You must follow the led suit if you can. If you cannot, you may play any card, including a spade.
Diamonds were led, so players must follow diamonds if they can. You were out of diamonds and played 3♠ — spades are trump, so your spade wins the trick even though partner played K♦.
You may not lead a spade until spades have been broken — a spade was played on a trick led in another suit. If you only have spades, you may lead them.
Scoring
- Make bid: 10 points × team bid, plus 1 per overtrick (sandbag)
- Miss bid: −10 points × team bid
- Each trick over your team bid is a sandbag (+1 point). Every 10 sandbags costs your team 100 points.
- A bid of 0 is called Nil: you are declaring that you will take no tricks. A successful Nil is worth +100 points to your partnership; a failed Nil is −100 points. (The rest of the team’s bid still scores normally.)
| Outcome | Points |
|---|---|
| Make team bid | 10 × team bid |
| Each overtrick (sandbag) | +1 |
| Miss team bid | −10 × team bid |
| Every 10 sandbags | −100 |
| Successful Nil | +100 |
| Failed Nil | −100 |
| Match win | First team to 500 |
| Sudden loss (this site) | -200 or below |
First team to reach 500 points wins the match.
House rule: -200 cut-off
If either team’s score reaches -200 points or below, that team loses the match immediately. This sudden-loss line is a house rule used on Classic Deck Games — many home games only play to 500 without a −200 cut-off.
House rules used on Classic Deck Games
Our online Spades game follows the partnership rules below. Illegal plays are blocked automatically so you can focus on bidding and trick play.
| Rule | On this site |
|---|---|
| Players | 4 players in fixed partnerships — you and a computer partner vs two opponents. |
| Trump | Spades beat all other suits. If no spade is played, the highest card of the led suit wins. |
| Breaking spades | You may not lead a spade until spades have been broken — a spade was played on a trick led in another suit. If you only have spades, you may lead them. |
| Nil bids | Bid 0 tricks (Nil) is allowed; ±100 scoring applies. |
| Sandbags | Each trick over your team bid is a sandbag (+1 point). Every 10 sandbags costs your team 100 points. |
| Match win | First team to reach 500 points wins the match. |
| Sudden loss | If either team’s score reaches -200 points or below, that team loses the match immediately. This sudden-loss line is a house rule used on Classic Deck Games — many home games only play to 500 without a −200 cut-off. |
| Online play | Free in the browser vs computer opponents. Illegal plays are blocked automatically. |
Examples
Each card breaks one situation into steps — bid, tricks won, then the hand score.
Bidding
Each partner bids separately. Add both numbers to get the team contract.
- You bid
- 4 tricks
- Partner bids
- 3 tricks
Team must win≥ 7 tricksTricks from either partner count toward the team total.
Making bid
Win at least as many tricks as you bid together.
- Team bid
- 7 tricks
- Tricks won
- 7
Hand score+7010 points per bid trick (10 × 7). No sandbags when you hit the contract exactly.
Sandbag
Extra tricks above the bid still score — but only +1 each.
- Team bid
- 7 tricks
- Tricks won
- 9
- Overtricks
- 2 sandbags
Hand score+7270 for making the bid + 2 sandbags at +1 each.
Failing bid
Fall short of the team contract and lose 10 points per bid trick.
- Team bid
- 7 tricks
- Tricks won
- 5
- Short by
- 2 tricks
Hand score−70−10 × 7 bid tricks, even though you won 5 tricks.
Nil scoring
Bid zero tricks. One mistake costs the whole bonus.
Nil succeeds
- Your bid
- Nil (0)
- Tricks taken
- 0
Nil bonus+100Nil fails
- Your bid
- Nil (0)
- Tricks taken
- 1 or more
Nil penalty−100
Frequently asked questions
- How do you win at Spades?
- First team to reach 500 points wins the match.
- What happens at -200 in Spades on this site?
- If either team’s score reaches -200 points or below, that team loses the match immediately. This sudden-loss line is a house rule used on Classic Deck Games — many home games only play to 500 without a −200 cut-off.
- Can you lead spades?
- Usually no — you can’t lead spades until spades have been broken (a spade was played on a trick led in another suit). If you only have spades left, you may lead them.
- Are spades always trump?
- Yes. Any spade beats the highest card of another suit on a trick.
- What does it mean that spades are trump?
- Trump means spades beat every other suit. If any spade is played on a trick, the highest spade wins that trick.
- How does bidding work?
- Each player bids 0–13 tricks. Your team’s target is the sum of your bid and your partner’s bid.
- What is Nil in Spades?
- Nil is a bid of 0 tricks. You are declaring you will take no tricks. If you succeed, your team gains 100 points; if you take any trick, your team loses 100 points.
- Do Nil tricks count toward the team bid?
- In these rules: tricks taken by the Nil bidder do not count toward the partnership contract, but they do count as sandbags (overtricks) for the team.
- What are sandbags?
- Each trick over your team bid is a sandbag (+1 point). Every 10 sandbags costs your team 100 points.
- How many points is a bag in Spades?
- Each overtrick above your partnership bid is 1 point (a sandbag). Every 10 sandbags costs 100 points.
- Can I play Spades free online?
- Yes. Play partnership Spades vs computer opponents in your browser — no account required.
- Can I play 2-player Spades on this site?
- No. Classic Deck Games offers four-player partnership Spades only — you with a computer partner vs two computer opponents. Two-player Spades variants are not supported here.
- Does Classic Deck Games support blind Nil?
- No. Blind Nil (declaring zero tricks before looking at your hand) is not used on this site. Regular Nil — bidding 0 after you see your cards — is supported.