Pinochle 101 – A Beginners Tutorial on Pinochle Basics

Pinochle is one of the most fun and challenging card games in the world. Much like Poker, it requires skill in estimating probabilities, strong instincts on when to be cautious or when to take risks, and an ability to read your opponents to gauge the strength or weakness of their hands. However, Pinochle requires deeper analysis and more strategy than Poker. Perhaps one could say Pinochle is to Poker as Chess is Checkers. If you enjoy the mechanics of Poker, but think you’re ready to try something more thought-provoking, Pinochle is definitely worth checking out.

There are many different variations of Pinochle and many players have their own unique rules and preferences for how to play. In this introduction, we’ll start with covering the basics and most universal concepts. We’ll describe some of the most common styles of playing and basic strategies. In subsequent articles, we’ll go into more detailed descriptions of specific versions and elaborate of on how to employ effective strategies for each.

Pinochle Decks

Pinochle is played using a specialized deck of 48 cards consisting of Aces, Tens, Kings, Queens, Jacks, and Nines. There are two of each card for every suit. Unlike a standard 52-card deck, there are no cards between Two through Eight. When playing with physical cards, one can either purchase a special Pinochle deck or use two standard 52-card decks and remove all of the numbered cards below Nine.

In Pinochle, Aces are the highest card, followed by Tens, then Kings, Queens, Jacks, and Nines.

Some players prefer to play double-deck Pinochle, which means two decks are used instead of one. However, most players will remove Nines when playing double deck, leaving a total of 80 cards.

Number of Players

Most variations of Pinochle require either 3 or 4 players (there are 2 player versions and versions with more than 4 players but these are less common). 3-player or 3-handed Pinochle is often referred to as Cutthroat because it requires each player to play against the other two (i.e. every man or women for themselves). However, in most 4-player variations, partners are chosen and two players form a team to compete against the others.

Dealing

Normally, a random player is selected to be first dealer and then for each subsequent hand the player to the dealer’s left deals the next hand. At the start of each hand, the dealer shuffles the deck and begins dealing all cards face-down, starting with the player to their left, and then around the table clockwise, dealing to themselves last. In single-deck Pinochle, the dealer typically deals 3 cards to each player at a time, whereas in double-deck it’s usually 5 cards at a time. If there are four players, in most variations, cards are dealt evenly to each player until there are no cards left in the deck: 12 cards to each player if single deck or 20 cards to each player if double deck. However, in Cutthroat, often the last set of cards (3 cards in single-deck, or 5 cards in double deck) are placed face-down on the table into the “kitty”, which will be used later in the game.

Bidding

Most variations of Pinochle involve a bidding phase in which players wager on how many points they believe they can earn by the end of the hand. The highest bidder gets honor of choosing the Trump suit, and often gets to either pass cards with their partner or take cards from the kitty to form a better hand. However, if a player over-bids and fails to make their bid amount by the end of the hand, they will be penalized by losing the amount of points wagered and forfeiting any points earned in that hand.

After all cards are dealt, players pick up their hand and must evaluate how many points they think they might earn. There is usually a minimum starting bid and a set bidding increment that all players agree to before the game begins. The player to the left of the dealer is the first to place a bid or may choose to pass. The bidding goes around clockwise, and each player must decide to either raise the bid by the bidding increment or pass. When all but one players pass, the remaining player wins the bidding.

Taking Cards from the “Kitty”

Often in Cutthroat Pinochle, and in some variations of Partner Pinochle, the Kitty is used to give the high bidder an opportunity to strengthen their hand. The high bidder gets to pick up the cards in the kiddy and decide if they want to trade them with cards in their existing hand, discarding the cards they don’t want to use.

Choosing the Trump Suit

The winning bidder gets to decide which of the four suits will be the trump suit during the hand. The trump suit is significant both in calculating meld points and in the trick-taking phase of the game. As described more below, certain melds require cards to be of the trump suit, and others are worth more points when they are in the trump suit. When it comes to trick taking, a card in the trump suit will “trump” all non-trump cards and win the trick, therefore having a lot of trump cards gives the player a significant advantage when competing for trick points.

The high bidder must carefully evaluate their hand and choose the trump that will be most advantageous. Having a lot of cards in one particular suit often would suggest choosing that suit to be trump, but the player must take into account expected meld points, their trick-taking approach and if playing with a partner consider what additional cards might be received after passing.

Partner Card Passing

Often in Partners Pinochle, after the high bidder chooses the trump suit, they have an opportunity to improve their hand by exchanging cards with their partner. Partners are not allowed to show their cards to each other or tell their partners directly what cards they’re holding, but in some styles of play partners communicate with their bids, for example a player who makes an opening bid of 25 may be signaling they have Aces Around, or an opening bid of 30 may signal they have a run, or an opening bid of 35 may signal they have double pinochle. Typically the partner of the high bidder passes first, passing 4 cards to the high bidder. Next the high bidder evaluates their cards and chooses 4 card to pass back.

Pinochle Melds

Most variations of Pinochle include a melding phase, in which players earn points by completing special sets of cards known as melds. Each type of meld is worth a set number of points as shown below, and players receive the total points for all of the melds in their hand. When playing with a partner, each player forms their own melds based on the cards in their own hand, and then the point totals from each are added together. For example, if Player A has a run worth 15 points, and a marriage worth 2 points, their total melds is worth 17 points. If their partner, Player B has a Pinochle worth 4 points and a trump 9 worth 1 point, Player B’s meld total would be 5 points. Player A and Player B’s meld point totals are then added together for a combined meld score of 22 points.

Pinochle Trick Taking

The final phase of the Pinochle hand is the trick-taking phase. The high bidder goes first by throwing down any one of their cards face up in the center of the table, and then each of the others must throw a card after that in a clockwise rotation. Each subsequent player following the trick starter must throw down a card of the same suit as the first card thrown if they have one. If they don’t have any cards in that suit, they must throw a trump card, unless they don’t have a trump card either, and only then they can throw any card they want.

The highest card matching the suit of the first card thrown wins, unless someone throws a trump card in which case the highest trump card wins. If there’s a tie, meaning two players both throw the same highest card, then the player who threw the high card first wins the tie. The player who wins the trick takes the trick cards and gets 1 point for every Ace, Ten or King. These three cards are called pointers because they’re each worth one point. Queens, Jacks, and Nine’s have no trick value.

The winner of the trick then becomes the trick starter of the next trick, and the trick taking continues until all cards are played. At the end of the trick taking phase each player tallies their pointer cards and their trick points are then combined with their meld points. If the high bidder meets or exceeds their bid they get to keep all meld and trick points earned in the hand. In Partner Pinochle, the high bidder and their partner combine these points to reach their goal. However, if the high bidder comes up short they will not keep any of the points earned in the hand and instead must subtract the amount they bid from their score. The opponents of the high bidder get to keep their points regardless.

Ending the Game

Most variations of Pinochle end when a certain predetermined score is reached such as 150 points. The first player or pair of partners who earn this score wins. In the meantime, the players continue to deal hands and repeat the process described above, earning (or losing) points in each hand and adding them to their final score until winning threshold is reached.

At a high level, this is how Pinochle works. There are many nuances and strategies that expert players develop over time, some of which will be discussed in future articles on this site, but we hope this primer will give you the basics you’ll need to get started. These rules may seem a bit complicated at first but the easiest way to master them is to just start playing. We recommend trying a few games with our AI Pinochle to get a feel for how the game works and then once you feel confident try playing online with real players. We rank players on this site based on their experience so you’ll be paired with other players at the same level as you.

We hope this tutorial was helpful and look forward to seeing you at our tables soon.

Online Now

  • Bev

    Rating 144
  • Tazzs

    Rating 1163
  • Rahmel

    Rating 1010
  • Eagles

    Rating 4458
  • Chioma

    Rating 2047
  • King Buck

    Rating 33
  • Karen

    Rating 2709
  • cal

    Rating 2399
  • Connor

    Rating 1665
  • Kami

    Rating 7822
  • Moi

    Rating 2286
  • arfe

    Rating 1067
  • Chywy

    Rating 993
  • Chef

    Rating 242
  • Scotty

    Rating 2387
  • David

    Rating 1585
  • Frank

    Rating 1674
  • derrick

    Rating 1392
  • Big Tim

    Rating 1349
  • Treenut

    Rating 1297
  • Kingize

    Rating 911
  • Spud

    Rating 1553
  • Matthew

    Rating 1497
  • ClarkBar

    Rating 2089
  • NOWUNO

    Rating 1018
  • Ashley

    Rating 1058
  • Clyde

    Rating 1449
  • jemma

    Rating 1253
  • JodyBro

    Rating 1933
  • friar

    Rating 1225
  • Migo

    Rating 2305
  • Axel

    Rating 95
  • Fagin

    Rating 170
  • Trenton

    Rating 1862
  • qpq

    Rating 928
  • Sonny

    Rating 1451
  • Jay

    Rating 2003
  • Cindy

    Rating 1764
  • Bear

    Rating 2767
  • Ksuron

    Rating 922
  • Phil

    Rating 1739
  • marley420

    Rating 1294
  • Mark

    Rating 8895
  • JM

    Rating 7567
  • dell

    Rating 1685
  • megha

    Rating 1448
  • Kroll

    Rating 2240
  • Suz

    Rating 1524
  • Shawn

    Rating 2745
  • Joni

    Rating 1576
  • Sam

    Rating 1023
  • irma

    Rating 2180
  • Gramgo

    Rating 1811
  • Tchur

    Rating 240
  • James

    Rating 5612
  • Cuzzo

    Rating 2166
  • palmer

    Rating 2215
  • Karen

    Rating 2368
  • Dan

    Rating 1646
  • Sarah

    Rating 1152
  • Big Dill

    Rating 5026
  • dwinkler

    Rating 1535
  • felix

    Rating 1953
  • danielle

    Rating 2247
  • Jazzy

    Rating 1208
  • emme

    Rating 1365
  • matt

    Rating 2308
  • Reyes

    Rating 1761
  • Brenda

    Rating 19
  • nurse

    Rating 2452
  • dawnie

    Rating 716
  • Mona

    Rating 1959
  • Sir

    Rating 2199
  • Omar

    Rating 29
  • Chemlen

    Rating 52
  • Naomi Krizan

    Rating 169
  • twix

    Rating 1350
  • U-Dog

    Rating 1730
  • Jaymoney

    Rating 6912
  • M G M

    Rating 5635
  • RB

    Rating 1829
  • Chill

    Rating 3010
  • thedon

    Rating 2453
  • Jim

    Rating 2203
  • rebecca

    Rating 2289
  • Kkrazzykat

    Rating 16
  • jr

    Rating 2776
  • Hasan

    Rating 1236
  • snake

    Rating 2200
  • quatto

    Rating 2126
  • Gino

    Rating 3493
  • Outatowner

    Rating 311
  • Gretta

    Rating 1814
  • Virginia

    Rating 2204
  • rednuts

    Rating 1268
  • Djs

    Rating 8657
  • Bentwulfe

    Rating 98
  • Tom

    Rating 978
  • Playergingin

    Rating 78
  • Notsolucky

    Rating 4186
  • Poteeter

    Rating 28
  • sammy

    Rating 1917
  • henry

    Rating 1304
  • jackie

    Rating 1359
  • Jodie

    Rating 1508
  • ecker

    Rating 1012
  • Nick

    Rating 2040
  • Player

    Rating 645
  • crypto

    Rating 1985
  • Tc

    Rating 129
  • Ernie

    Rating 32821
  • Bananafish

    Rating 2138
  • spectr

    Rating 13
  • SpecialMom

    Rating 1665
  • Star

    Rating 1237
  • Philippe

    Rating 7208
  • Avi

    Rating 942
  • starkey

    Rating 2090
  • Darrin

    Rating 114
  • Clark

    Rating 1288
  • Antonina

    Rating 1787
  • KristenG

    Rating 2090
  • bob

    Rating 2069
  • Jared

    Rating 1806
  • BigE

    Rating 2586
  • Durham

    Rating 2320
  • ozone

    Rating 1967
  • Hot Shot

    Rating 5344
  • ramsey

    Rating 1651
  • martin

    Rating 1527
  • mich

    Rating 921
  • luka

    Rating 2208
  • Elizabeth

    Rating 1483
  • kismet

    Rating 1724
  • Poppa B

    Rating 1188
  • Pj

    Rating 1839
  • BeerNGuns

    Rating 1441
  • Ortega

    Rating 1884
  • melody

    Rating 2636
  • brock

    Rating 2564
  • nan

    Rating 2247
  • wots

    Rating 2111
  • Betty Jo

    Rating 321
  • shwam

    Rating 1972
  • Cgtwin

    Rating 157
  • Jen

    Rating 401
  • Ron

    Rating 8070
  • Deniz

    Rating 2357
  • andy

    Rating 1339
  • ATrain

    Rating 1614
  • Nate

    Rating 934
  • StillTraveler

    Rating 1960
  • craig

    Rating 2209
  • DrDeath

    Rating 2058
  • Anwar

    Rating 1142
  • Mono

    Rating 2050
  • burvan

    Rating 1004
  • Joe

    Rating 12030
  • Decibel

    Rating 1724
  • Codo

    Rating 1911
  • Mark

    Rating 2116
  • Cherry

    Rating 1139
  • Terry

    Rating 1773
  • Zoogod

    Rating 1889
  • Dee

    Rating 1793
  • arnold

    Rating 1438
  • Sadzapp

    Rating 1347
  • Nell

    Rating 1753
  • Owen

    Rating 1332
  • lynn

    Rating 1792
  • worm

    Rating 2319
  • rip

    Rating 1505
  • trolly

    Rating 1454
  • ryan

    Rating 2313
  • duck

    Rating 2299
  • harvey

    Rating 1477
  • Saris

    Rating 2358
  • jimmy

    Rating 1464
  • RR4H8

    Rating 1282
  • That Guy

    Rating 1718
  • SoldierBoy

    Rating 1557
  • deb

    Rating 2091
  • Karina

    Rating 2045
  • Daenerys

    Rating 2280
  • LittlePrettyLiz

    Rating 1862
  • Liz

    Rating 2142
  • Joe

    Rating 114
  • faith

    Rating 1556
  • Babs

    Rating 571
  • GRC

    Rating 1681
  • bryce

    Rating 2212
  • Ricky

    Rating 1272
  • Grandma

    Rating 1985
  • Harvey

    Rating 411
  • Player Griff

    Rating 3563
  • Beach Gawd

    Rating 74
  • Doonka

    Rating 930

Today's Best Hand

Nell

Double Deck Partners
Queen of SpadesQueen of SpadesQueen of HeartsQueen of HeartsQueen of ClubsQueen of ClubsQueen of DiamondsQueen of DiamondsAce of SpadesAce of SpadesTen of SpadesTen of SpadesKing of SpadesKing of SpadesJack of SpadesJack of SpadesJack of DiamondsJack of Diamonds
  • Ernie

    Rating 32821
  • Joe

    Rating 12030
  • John

    Rating 11665
  • Dave T

    Rating 11348
  • Player

    Rating 10468
  • Brady

    Rating 10150
  • Otto

    Rating 9056
  • Mark

    Rating 8895
  • Djs

    Rating 8657
  • Ron

    Rating 8070