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Card Games

How to play Uno

Match the top card by color, number or symbol, use action cards to slow your neighbors, and be first to empty your hand. The classic match is a race to 500 points scored from what your opponents are still holding.

2–10 players15–30 min per roundAge 7+

By K.R. · Updated October 2026 · Sources and editorial process

What you need

One classic UNO deck, paper and a pencil for scoring, and a table where everyone can reach the middle. That is it. The deck has 108 cards, and knowing what is in it helps you judge risk later in a round:

76 number cards. Each of the four colors (red, yellow, green, blue) has one 0 and two each of 1 through 9, for 19 cards per color.
24 colored action cards. Two Draw Two, two Reverse and two Skip in each color.
8 black cards. Four Wild and four Wild Draw Four.

If your box says 112 cards, you probably have an edition with blank customizable cards or a special card added. Pull those out for a classic game, or read the extra rule sheet before you use them.

Set up the game

Pick the dealer. Everyone draws one card. The highest number deals. Any action or Wild card counts as zero for this draw.
Shuffle and deal seven. The dealer deals seven cards face down to each player. Hold your hand so neighbors cannot see it; a fanned hand tilted toward you is enough.
Make the draw pile. Put the rest of the deck face down in the middle.
Flip the first discard. Turn the top card of the draw pile face up next to it. That card starts the discard pile.
Handle an action card on the flip. If the first card is a Draw Two, the player to the dealer's left draws two and loses the turn. A Skip means that player is skipped. A Reverse means the dealer plays first and play moves to the right. A Wild means the player to the dealer's left picks the starting color. A Wild Draw Four goes back into the deck, and you flip again.
Start play. Unless the first card changed it, the player to the dealer's left goes first and play moves to the left (clockwise).

Playing UNO, turn by turn

Match the top card. Play one card that matches the discard by color, by number, or by symbol. On a red 7 you may play any red card or any 7. A Draw Two can go on a card of its own color or on another Draw Two; Skip and Reverse work the same way.
Wilds can go on anything. A regular Wild can be played even when you hold a card that matches. You name the next color, and you may name the color that was already in play.
Wild Draw Four has a condition. You may play it only if you have no card matching the current color. Matching numbers or symbols in other colors do not count against you. Name the color; the next player draws four and loses the turn.
Can't play, or don't want to? Draw one. Take one card from the draw pile. If that card is playable, you may play it right away. You may not play a different card from your hand after drawing. If the drawn card is not playable, your turn is over.
Apply action cards. Skip: the next player loses a turn. Reverse: direction flips. Draw Two: the next player draws two and loses the turn.
Say "UNO" with your next-to-last card. If you go down to one card without saying it and someone catches you before the next player begins their turn, draw two.
Go out. The round ends the moment someone plays their last card. If that card was a Draw Two or Wild Draw Four, the next player still draws those cards, and they count against that player in scoring.

If the draw pile runs out before anyone goes out, keep the top discard in place, shuffle the rest of the discard pile and turn it face down as a new draw pile.

A sample round with four players

Ana deals to Ben, Cal and Dee. The flip is a green 4. Ben sits to Ana's left, so he starts, and play goes Ben, Cal, Dee, Ana.

Ben holds a green Skip, so he plays it. Cal is skipped. The discard is now a green Skip.
Dee has no green card, but she has a yellow Skip. Symbols match, so she plays it, and the color becomes yellow. Ana is skipped.
Ben plays a yellow 9.
Cal has no yellow and no 9. He draws one card: a blue 9. It matches the number, so he plays it straight away. Color is now blue.
Dee plays a blue Reverse. Direction flips, so the turn goes back to Cal.
Cal plays a Wild and names red, because he holds three red cards.
Ben is next in the new direction. He holds a red 2, so a Wild Draw Four would be illegal. He plays the red 2, leaving one card, and forgets to say "UNO".
Ana is next, and before she plays she points at Ben: "You didn't say UNO." She caught him before her own turn began, so Ben draws two penalty cards. Then Ana plays a red 5.
Play continues. A few turns later Dee plays her last card, a yellow 3, and the round ends.

Two habits stand out in that round. Cal used the free play after drawing instead of passing, and Ana spoke up at the right moment. Once Ana had started her turn, Ben would have been safe.

Every card in a classic 108-card deck and what it is worth to the player who goes out. Black cards are the most expensive cards to get stuck holding.

Scoring, with a worked example

The player who goes out scores the cards left in everyone else's hand. Number cards are worth their face value, colored action cards are worth 20, and both kinds of Wild are worth 50. The first player to reach 500 points across several rounds wins.

Back to the sample round. Dee went out. Here is what the others were holding:

Ana: blue 8, green 5, Wild. That is 8 + 5 + 50 = 63.
Ben: red 6 plus his two penalty cards, a yellow Skip and a green 0. That is 6 + 20 + 0 = 26.
Cal: Wild Draw Four, red 7, red 1. That is 50 + 7 + 1 = 58.

Dee scores 63 + 26 + 58 = 147 points for the round. Write it down, reshuffle all 108 cards, and the deal passes. A 500-point match usually takes four to eight rounds with four players.

W2085 also prints an alternative: keep a running total of the points each player is caught holding at the end of each round. When anyone reaches 500, the player with the lowest total wins. This version keeps everyone in the scoring every round, which suits mixed-age tables.

Strategy that wins rounds

Dump high-value cards when a round is going long. A Wild in your hand is a 50-point liability if someone else goes out. Once any player is down to two or three cards, play your Wilds and action cards rather than holding them for a perfect moment.
Keep more than one color. A hand that is all blue is strong while blue is in play and dead the moment someone changes it. Two or three colors means you can usually match without drawing.
Name the color you hold most, not the color you like. When you play a Wild, count. If you have three reds and one green, red is the answer, even if green feels sneakier.
Save a Draw Two or Skip for the UNO caller. The best time to use a penalty card is right before the player with one card gets to play. Playing it early on a player with nine cards barely hurts them.
Watch what people draw on. If Cal draws when yellow is up, he probably has no yellow. Switching to yellow later can lock him out. It is a clue, not proof, because he may have chosen to draw.
Hold the Wild Draw Four for a legal moment. You cannot play it while you have the current color. Keep it until the color has moved away from your hand, and it becomes both legal and nasty.
Think about who is next. A Reverse can protect you by pointing the next turn away from a player who is about to go out.

Arguments UNO tables have, settled

"Can I stack a Draw Two on a Draw Two to pass the penalty on?": Not in the classic rules. When a Draw Two is played on you, you draw two and lose your turn. You can play a Draw Two on a Draw Two only as a normal match on your own turn. Stacking is a popular house rule; agree on it before dealing.
"If I can't play, do I keep drawing until I can?": No. Draw one card. Play it if it is legal; otherwise your turn ends. "Draw until you can play" is a house rule that makes rounds much longer.
"Can I play a Wild Draw Four whenever I want?": Only when you have no card of the current color. If someone suspects you broke that rule, they may challenge. You show your hand to the challenger. If you were guilty, you draw the four instead. If you were innocent, the challenger draws six.
"Can I end the game on an action card?": Yes. If your last card is a Draw Two or Wild Draw Four, the next player draws, and those cards count in your score.
"When is it too late to catch someone who forgot to say UNO?": Once the next player begins their turn. Before that, catching them costs them two cards.
"Can I draw a card even when I have a playable one?": Yes. You may choose not to play and draw instead. You may still play the drawn card if it matches, but nothing else from your hand.

Popular variants and house rules

Everything in this section is optional. Announce it before the first deal so nobody feels ambushed.

Two-player UNO (from older Mattel rule sheets). Mattel's 30th Anniversary sheet says a Reverse works like a Skip, the player of a Reverse or Skip plays again immediately, and after a Draw Two or Wild Draw Four the turn comes back to you. W2085 has no two-player section, so agree on this before you start.
Partners (from older Mattel rule sheets). Four players, partners sitting across. When either partner goes out, the team scores the cards in both opponents' hands.
Challenge UNO (from older Mattel rule sheets). Keep a running total of what each player is caught holding. Anyone who reaches 500 is eliminated, and the last two play head to head.
Stacking (house rule). A player hit with a Draw Two may add their own Draw Two so the next player draws four. Many tables also allow Wild Draw Four on top. It makes rounds swingy and loud.
Jump-in (house rule). If you hold the exact card on top of the discard (same color and same number), you may play it out of turn, and play continues from you.
Seven-O (house rule). Playing a 7 lets you swap hands with any player; playing a 0 makes everyone pass hands in the direction of play.
Single-round game (house rule). First player out wins. Good when you have 15 minutes, not an hour.

Teaching UNO in five minutes

Deal while you talk. People learn faster with cards in hand.

"You have seven cards. First person with none wins the round."
"On your turn, play one card that matches the top card by color, by number, or by the picture."
"Can't match? Draw one. If it fits, you can play it. If not, your turn's over."
"Skip makes the next person miss a turn. Reverse flips direction. Draw Two makes the next person draw two and miss their turn."
"Black Wilds go on anything and you pick the color. The Draw Four version is only legal if you don't have the color that's showing. Get caught cheating with it and you draw four yourself."
"When you're down to one card, say UNO. If we catch you before the next person goes, you draw two."
"We're playing one practice round open-handed for the first three turns, then cards up and for real."

Leave scoring until the first round ends. Count one hand out loud as the example, and everyone gets it.

Ages and group size

The box says 7 and up, which matches what most hosts see: a child who can match colors and numbers and tolerate a Draw Two without tears can play. Younger kids can join on a team with an adult holding the cards together. The deck handles 2 to 10 players. Four to six is the sweet spot, because action cards hit often enough to matter but the turn comes back quickly. With eight or more, play single rounds or the low-score variant so the game ends before attention does, and consider using two decks shuffled together if the draw pile empties too often. With two players, use the two-player rules above; otherwise a Reverse does nothing useful.

Check yourself

The discard is a red 4. You hold a red 9 and a Wild Draw Four. Can you play the Draw Four?

No. You hold a red card, so the Wild Draw Four is illegal right now. Play the red 9, or a regular Wild if you have one.

You draw a card because you can't play. It's a playable Skip. Can you play it?

Yes. A card drawn on your turn can be played immediately if it matches.

The first card flipped at the start is a Reverse. Who plays first?

The dealer, and play moves to the right.

UNO questions people ask most

How many cards do you start with in UNO?

Seven each. The rest of the deck becomes the draw pile.

Can you play a Wild card on top of a Wild card?

Yes. A regular Wild can be played on anything, including another Wild. The color that matters is the one the previous player named.

Can you stack Draw Two cards in UNO?

Not under the classic W2085 rules. A player hit with a Draw Two draws and loses the turn. Stacking is a common house rule.

What happens if you challenge a Wild Draw Four and lose?

You draw six cards: the four from the card plus two as a penalty.

Does a Reverse act like a Skip with two players?

Older Mattel rule sheets say yes. The current W2085 sheet does not include two-player rules, so agree before you start. Most tables use the Skip reading.

Can you win UNO on a Wild card?

Yes. Any legal card can be your last card, including a Wild or Wild Draw Four.

How long does a game to 500 take?

Usually 45 to 90 minutes with four players. A single round runs about 10 to 20 minutes.

Sources and edition notes

Classic 108-card UNO, Mattel W2085. New decks with customizable or Shuffle Hands cards add rules not covered here. Stacking and jump-ins are house rules. The two-player, partners and Challenge UNO notes come from Mattel's older 30th Anniversary rule sheet (42885), which also uses a four-card penalty for a missed UNO call; this guide follows W2085's two-card penalty.

Sources rechecked October 22, 2026. This records a document check, not a claim of hands-on testing.

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