Dominoes is the tile game of matching numbers: lay a tile against an open end of the line so the pips match, and try to empty your hand before anyone else. This free dominoes game uses a standard double-six set of 28 tiles and the classic Draw game, with the Block game one tap away. Play 2 player dominoes with a friend on one phone, set up a table of three or four, or play dominoes against the computer at three levels. Nothing to install and no sign-up.
How to play Dominoes
- Deal. With 2 players everyone gets 7 tiles; with 3 or 4 players, 5 each. The rest stays face down as the boneyard.
- Lead. The player holding the highest double sets it down to start (the double six if anyone has it). Play then goes around the table.
- Match an end. On your turn, place one tile so that one of its numbers matches an open end of the line. The line always has two ends. Doubles are placed crosswise.
- Can’t play? In the Draw game you draw from the boneyard until a tile fits, then play it. When the boneyard is empty, or in the Block game, you pass.
- Domino! Play your last tile and the hand is yours: you score every pip left in the other hands.
- Blocked. If nobody can play, the lowest pip count wins the hand and scores the other hands’ pips minus their own.
- Match. Keep dealing hands until someone reaches the target score.
Leading rules, scoring examples and the common house rules are all in the complete Dominoes rules.
Play Dominoes on one device
Dominoes is a game of hidden hands, so the site handles the secrecy for you. Against the computer your tiles are simply always on screen. With two or more people, a pass screen covers the table before each person’s turn, names who should take the device and says what just happened, such as “Leo played the 6-3 on the left end.” Only then do the tiles appear, and only that person’s.
Your tiles sit in a row under the table. Tiles that fit an open end are raised, so you can see your options at a glance. Tap one: if it fits only one end it is played at once, and if it fits both ends, two outlined spots appear on the line and you tap the end you want. The tile played last is ringed, the boneyard count is always shown, and each player’s badge shows their score and how many tiles they hold. Everything works with a keyboard too: arrow keys move along your hand, Enter picks a tile, and the arrows choose an end.
When a hand ends, every hand is turned face up with its pip count, so everyone can check the score before someone taps Next hand. The match is saved after every move, and after your first visit the game works offline, which makes it a good game for a train, a plane or a power cut.
Play against the computer
Any seat can be a computer player. Choose a level when you set up the game:
- Easy mostly plays whatever tile fits, now and then the heaviest one. A fair match for children and new players.
- Medium plays heavy tiles and doubles early, keeps a spread of numbers for later turns, and leaves ends that the next player has shown they cannot follow.
- Hard thinks about the tiles it cannot see. It deals the unseen tiles into the other hands many different ways, consistent with everything shown so far, plays out each choice and picks the one that does best on average.
The computer never looks at your tiles or at the order of the boneyard. It knows exactly what you would know in its seat, so a sharp human player can still beat it.
Quick tips
- Get rid of heavy tiles early. If someone else goes out, every pip in your hand scores for them. A 6-5 caught in your hand at the end costs 11 points.
- Play doubles while you can. A double only fits one number, so it gets harder to place as that number runs out.
- Watch the passes. A player who draws or passes on a 4 has no 4s. Leave a 4 open and they are stuck again.
The Dominoes strategy tutorial shows how to count pips, control a number and read what the other players hold. Looking for more games for the whole table? Try Ludo, Yacht Dice or Mancala, or browse the family games and 4 player games.