Canasta

Meld as a team and build seven-card canastas

Offline

Play against bots, no connection needed.

Bot skill
Target score

Online play

Match with other players. Start when the table is full.

Live matches

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How to play

  • Four players in two partnerships; the player across from you is your partner. Two decks plus 4 jokers make 108 cards, and each player gets 11.
  • On your turn, draw the top card of the stock or take the whole discard pile, then meld if you want, and finally discard 1 card to end your turn.
  • A meld is 3 or more cards of the same rank, with at least 2 natural cards and at most 3 wild cards. Jokers and 2s are wild. You can only add cards to your own team's melds.
  • A meld of 7 or more cards is a canasta: a natural canasta (no wild cards) earns a 500-point bonus, and a mixed canasta earns 300.
  • A team's first meld each hand must meet a minimum: 15 points with a negative score, 50 at 0 to 1495, 90 at 1500 to 2995, and 120 at 3000 or more.
  • Red threes are laid down as soon as you get them, with a replacement draw, and are worth 100 points each. Discarding a black three stops the next player from taking the discard pile.
  • Your team needs at least one canasta to go out. Melding your whole hand (you may discard 1 last card) is going out, which earns 100 points and ends the hand.
  • Scoring each hand: bonuses plus the value of melded cards, minus the value of cards left in both partners' hands. The game ends when a team reaches 5000 points (2500 optional), and the team with the higher total wins.
  • Offline, you partner with a bot against two bots. Online, each move has a 40-second limit; on timeout, the game draws and discards for you and auto-play starts.

Playing guide

These options and rules describe the current JoyPip version. Choose a mode above before starting; rules are also available during play.

Step-by-step examples

Select a step to see what changes. These are partial examples, not full starting positions.

Practice options

Bot skill
Beginner · Normal · Expert
Target score
Play to 5000 points · Play to 2500 points (short game)

Private room options

Target score
Play to 5000 points · Play to 2500 points (short game)

Detailed rules and controls

Card values
  • Jokers 50 points; 2s and aces 20; 8 through K 10; 4 through 7 and black threes 5.
  • Jokers and 2s are wild and can stand for any rank.
Melds
  • A meld is 3 or more cards of the same rank, with at least 2 natural cards and at most 3 wild cards. 3s can't form regular melds.
  • Each team has only one meld per rank, and all cards of that rank are added to it; you can only add to your own team's melds.
  • A meld of 7 or more cards is a canasta: a natural canasta (no wild cards) earns a 500-point bonus, and a mixed canasta (with wild cards) earns 300. Adding a wild card to a natural canasta makes it mixed.
  • You can lay down several melds at once. An initial meld often takes several melds together: tap “Stage a meld” for each, then lay them all down once you have enough.
Take the pile
  • You can't take the discard pile when the top card is wild or a black three.
  • When the discard pile is frozen (it holds a wild card or red three, or your team hasn't melded yet), you must meld the top card with two natural cards of the same rank from your hand.
  • When it isn't frozen, you can also use one natural card plus a wild card, or add the top card directly to your team's meld of that rank.
  • If your team hasn't melded yet, the top card and the cards melded with it (plus any other melds from your hand) must reach the initial meld minimum; the rest of the discard pile doesn't count.
  • The top card is melded right away, and the rest of the pile goes into your hand. With only 1 card in hand, you can't take a discard pile of just 1 card.
  • Discarding a wild card freezes the discard pile; discarding a black three blocks only the next player, just once.
Red and black threes
  • A red three is placed face up in front of your team as soon as you get it, and you draw 1 replacement card from the stock; a red three taken from the discard pile gets no replacement.
  • Each red three is worth 100 points, or 800 if one team has all 4. They count for your team if it has melded, and against it if it hasn't.
  • Black threes can be melded only on the turn you go out, 3 or 4 of them, with no wild cards.
Going out and scoring
  • Your team needs at least one canasta to go out; until then, keep at least 2 cards in hand.
  • Going out earns a 100-point bonus; going out concealed (melding your whole hand in one turn without having melded before) earns 200. If you go out concealed after drawing from the stock, you don't need to meet the initial meld minimum.
  • There's no “Partner, may I go out?” question; if you can go out, you can just do it.
  • Once the stock runs out, the player whose turn it is may take the discard pile if they can (and must if the top card fits their team's meld); otherwise the hand ends with no going-out bonus. If the last stock card is a red three, the hand ends as soon as it's laid down.
  • Scoring each hand: bonuses for canastas, red threes and going out, plus the value of melded cards, minus the value of cards left in both partners' hands.
  • The game ends when a team's total reaches the target score; the team with the higher total wins, and a tie is a draw.

Frequently asked questions

When can you take the whole discard pile?

The discard pile is frozen and the top card is a 9. With two natural 9s in your hand, you can meld them with the top 9 and take the whole pile into your hand; one 9 plus a wild card isn't enough. The bigger the pile, the more it's worth fighting for, so be careful not to discard cards the next player can use.

Do I need a download or a linked email?

Play directly in your browser without a download. Linking email is an optional way to recover your account. Before clearing browser data, consider whether you need to keep your account or local records.

Do matches earn or spend coins?

Earn coins by checking in and spend them on cosmetics. Matches never cost or award coins.

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