Overview
Canasta is a popular rummy-like card game. The game involves matching cards of similar rank to earn points. The game is versatile and fun but may seem difficult to a beginner. In its standard version, canasta is a team game played by four players split into two teams. Two-player and three-player variants can also be played. In this case, players compete individually but the gameplay remains the same. More on how to play canasta is discussed in this piece. You will learn more about the Canasta Card Game Rules in this post.
Objective
The main objective of canasta is to score the most points and defeat your opponents whether playing the game as teams or as individuals.
Canasta Card Game Rules
The following are some canasta rules but the rules may be adapted.
The first card of the discard pile must be natural, and not a wild card.
Melds must contain cards of the same rank with or without wilds.
A meld must not have more wildcards than natural cards. Maximum of 3 wildcards can be included in a meld.
The initial meld formed by a player/team must meet the required minimum.
Players are allowed to add to existing melds.
If a player’s initial hand has a red 3 in it, the player can play it on their first turn and draw a replacement card from the draw pile. A player is allowed to play a red 3 immediately they pick it from the draw pile and pick a new card as replacement. If a player gets a red 3 from the discard pile, the player is allowed to play it immediately but no replacement must be drawn.
Black 3s cannot be melded unless the player has no other cards left in their hand.
The discard pile can be frozen by discarding a red 3 or wildcards on it. This means the pile cannot be picked until it is unfrozen. To unfreeze the discard pile, a player must use the top card of the pile to form a natural wild using only cards in their hand.
Black 3s are used to block an opponent from taking the discard pile for a single turn. It prevents the next player in turn from picking the discard pile while giving your partner the chance to pick the pile.
If a player takes the discard pile but is unable to use the top card of the pile, the player must restore the pile but with a penalty of 50 points to their name.
A player with only one card in their hand is not allowed to take the discard pile.
A player can only go out if they or their team have formed at least one canasta. If the required number of canastas is not met, and a player has only one card left, the player is allowed to end their turn without discarding their last card.
Number of Players Needed
2 to 4 players
Equipment
- 2 standard card decks (Jokers included)
Setting Up
A standard game of canasta is played by four players split into two teams. Two or three players can also play the game as individuals. If a team game is to be played, split the players into two teams. Note that a team game can also be played with three players split into two teams but one player from the full team sits out each round of the game. The players in the full team will sit out rounds alternately. Players can decide to form teams randomly by drawing cards from a shuffled card deck. The players with either the highest or the lowest cards will pair up. Members of a team must sit opposite each other.
One player is selected as a dealer. The dealer will shuffle the two card decks including the Jokers (108 cards in total). The dealer shares cards clockwise to each player starting with the player to their left. For a standard 4-player game of canasta, each player is dealt 11 cards face-down. For two-player games, each player is given 15 cards. For a game involving 3 players, each player gets 13 cards initially but a player must take two cards each time they pick from the draw pile instead of 1.
The remaining cards are stacked to form the draw pile. Flip the top card of the draw pile and place it on the playing surface to start a discard pile. The first card of the discard pile must be a “natural” card and not a bonus card. If a bonus card is the top card of the draw pile, return it to the draw pile by placing it at the bottom of the pile and flip the new card at the top of the draw pile. Keep flipping the top card of the draw pile until you get a “natural” card. The bonus cards are Jokers, 2s, and red 3s.
How to Play Canasta
This section discusses how to play canasta but before delving into that, let’s discuss some key concepts in the game.
Meld: A meld is a combination of 3 or more cards of the same rank with or without wilds. A meld only counts when it is played. Melds in a player’s hand at the end of a round do not count. Players can form as many melds as they want and it is possible to add to existing melds.
Canasta: A meld of at least 7 cards, with a minimum of four natural cards, is known as a Canasta.
Initial Meld: The first meld played by a team/player and must be worth at least 50 points. Value of the initial meld increases as the game progresses. A player with 1500 points or more must make an initial meld of at least 90 points in subsequent rounds. A player with 3000 points or more must make an initial meld worth at least 120 points in subsequent rounds. A player that has negative points only has to form an initial meld of 15 points at the start of subsequent rounds. After playing the required initial meld, a player is free to play melds worth any number of points.
The objective of the game is to score points by forming melds. The game opens with the player on the left of the dealer taking their turn, and play passes to the left. On a turn, a player is allowed to pick the top card of the face-down draw pile and add to their hand. The player then checks to see if they can form a meld. If they can, they lay the meld cards face-up in front of them.
Instead of picking the top card of the draw pile, a player may pick the top card of the discard pile provided they can use the card to form a meld or add to an existing meld to score points immediately. There is a catch though, a player that picks the top card of the discard pile must take the entire discard pile along with it. This may seem daunting but picking the entire discard pile may present a player with a whole lot of scoring opportunities. Note that the discard pile is frozen against a team/player that is yet to make their initial meld and they cannot pick up the pile.
To conclude a turn, a player must discard one card from their hand on the discard pile and play passes to the left. Note that players are allowed to add to existing melds if they wish to. During play, beware of red 3s. Red 3s give bonus points at the end of each round only if they are played. To play a red 3, lay it face-up in front of you. Each red 3 that is in your hand at the end of a round will cost you 500 points each. To avoid this, lay each red 3 you get face-up on the playing surface as soon as you pick them. If your initial hand has a red 3 in it, lay the red 3 face-up on your first turn. Each red 3 you played is worth 100 points but if you/your team played all 4 red 3s, you get 800 points instead of 400.
Black 3s are special cards used to block the next player in turn from picking up the discard pile. This allows your partner to pick up the discard pile on their next turn. Also, you cannot meld black 3s unless they are the only cards left in your hand. In that case, each black 3 in the meld will be worth 5 points. Black 3s are more useful for blocking opponents than for scoring points.
Jokers and 2s are wildcards and can be used to either score points or freeze the discard pile. You can add Jokers or 2s to at least 2 other cards of the same rank to form a meld. A meld must have at least 2 natural cards while up to 3 wilds can be included in a meld. Wildcards are worth the same points as the card they replaced. You can also use these wild cards to freeze the discard pile and prevent your opponent from taking it. Discarding a wild card on the discard pile freezes the pile and nobody can take it until someone uses the top card of the pile to form a natural meld. A natural meld has no wild in it while a mixed meld has both natural cards and wilds.
Play continues until a player goes out. To go out, a player must get rid of the last card in their hand by discarding or melding it. A player that can go out by melding all the cards in their hand does not need to discard a card to end their turn. Note that a player can only go out if they or their team has completed at least one canasta. In the standard version that is played in teams, a player must seek and get the approval of their partner by asking “May I go out” before going out. If their partner says “No”, the player must keep playing. A “Yes” response means the player can go out. The player that goes out to end a round of the game gets a 100-point bonus. If the player goes out in a single turn, the player gets 200 points instead of 100.
A round of canasta can also end if the draw pile becomes depleted before a player goes out. If a player takes the last card of the draw pile and it is a red 3, the player must reveal it and play ends immediately. If the last card of the draw pile is not a red 3, play is allowed to continue as long as each player, in turn, takes the discard. Remember that a player can only take the discard pile if they can use the top card of the pile to form a meld or add to an existing meld. Play continues until one player cannot take the discard card. A player with only one card in their hand cannot take a single card discard pile. Also remember that a discard pile can be frozen and if the pile gets frozen at this point, the game ends.
After a round is concluded, the players/teams are scored as described below.
Scoring in Canasta
The point value of cards in canasta is as follows;
Jokers are worth 50 points each
Aces and Deuces are worth 20 points each
8s up to Kings are worth 10 points each
4s to 7s are worth 5 points each
Black 3s are worth 5 points each if they are used.
Red 3s are worth 100 points each normally but can be worth 200 points each if a player/team has all 4. Red 3s must be played a soon as you get them as failure to do so can be disastrous. Each red 3 that is in your hand at the end of a round will cost you 500 points.
A natural canasta is one without a wild card and is worth 500 bonus points. A dirty canasta which is a mixture of both natural cards and wilds is worth 300 points.
The player that goes out for a round earns 100 bonus points, 200 points are awarded if the player goes out in a single turn.
To calculate the scores for each player/teams, first sum up the total value of all the melds they formed in the round. Add any bonus points they earned to it. Lastly, subtract the value of the cards left in each player’s hand from the total of their melds and bonuses to arrive at the points scored by each player for the round.
The next round starts with the player to the left of the current dealer as the new dealer and proceeds as described above. The game ends when a player/team scores 5000 points or more. If two player/teams score 5000 points or more in the same round, the team with the highest points wins.
Winning the Game
The game is played in rounds and players/teams are scored at the end of each round. The first player/team to get a total of 5000 points or more wins the game. If two teams/players get to 5000 points in the same round, the team with the highest point wins.