Pinochle rules

The deck

Pinochle uses 48 cards: two copies of the A, 10, K, Q, J, and 9 in each suit.

Cards rank from highest to lowest: A, 10, K, Q, J, 9. A trump card beats any card from another suit.

The values below use Modern scoring. Classic scoring displays bids, Meld, Points, and Score at ten times these values.

Deal

In four-hand Pinochle, partners sit opposite each other and share a score. Each player receives 12 cards. The dealer changes after each hand.

A hand follows this order: Bid, choose Trump, pass cards, show Meld, then play Tricks.

Bid

A bid is the total Meld and Points your team commits to score in the hand.

The player to the dealer's left acts first. Bidding continues clockwise.
On your turn, raise the bid or choose Pass. In Auction bidding, each raise adds one.
After you pass, you cannot bid again in that hand.
When only one player remains, that player wins the bid. If everyone before the dealer passes without raising, the dealer takes the Starting bid.

The default Starting bid is 25. The bid winner chooses Trump and leads the first trick.

Trump and passing

The bid winner chooses one suit as Trump. Trump cards keep the same rank order as other suits.

After Trump is chosen, the bid winner and their partner exchange cards. The other two players do not pass.

With the default rules, the partner passes three cards first. The bid winner looks at them, then passes three cards back. Each player finishes with 12 cards.

Meld

Meld is the value of card combinations in your hand. Each player shows Meld before the first trick. The cards stay in the player's hand for play.

Meld values in Modern scoring
Meld	Cards	One	Two
Run	A, 10, K, Q, J in Trump	15	150
Aces around	An A in each suit	10	100
Kings around	A K in each suit	8	80
Queens around	A Q in each suit	6	60
Jacks around	A J in each suit	4	40
Pinochle	Q of spades and J of diamonds	4	30
Trump marriage	K and Q in Trump	4	8*
Marriage	K and Q in the same non-trump suit	2	4
Nine of Trump	9 in Trump	1	2

"Two" means two complete copies of the combination. *With Double marriage value set to 30, both Ks and both Qs in Trump score 30.

A card can count in different kinds of Meld. For example, the Q of spades can count in both Pinochle and Queens around.

A run already includes one Trump marriage. Do not add that marriage again. An extra Trump marriage adds 4 under the default rules.

Tricks

A trick is one card played by each player. The bid winner leads the first card. Play continues clockwise.

Follow suit. If you have a card in the suit led, you must play that suit.
Beat the winning card when you can. If the suit led is still winning the trick, play a higher card in that suit if you have one. This also applies when Trump is led.
Play Trump when you cannot follow suit. If Trump is already winning, play a higher Trump if you can.
Play any card only when you have neither the suit led nor Trump. If you must follow suit or play Trump but cannot beat the winning card, play any card of the required suit.

These rules apply even when your partner is winning the trick. If someone has played Trump, you must still follow the suit led when you can.

The highest Trump wins. If no Trump is played, the highest card in the suit led wins. If two identical cards are played, the first wins.

The winner collects the cards and leads the next trick. A four-hand deal has 12 tricks.

Score

Meld: The value of combinations shown before play.
Points: Each A, 10, and K won in tricks is worth 1. The last trick adds 1. A complete hand contains 25 Points.
Tricks: The number of tricks won. This is different from Points.
Score: The total carried from one hand to the next.

Making the bid: your team's Meld plus Points must reach the Bid. Your team must also win the Required tricks, which defaults to one. Add Meld plus Points to your Score.

Being set: if your team fails either requirement, subtract the Bid from your Score. Your team scores no Meld or Points for that hand.

The other team adds its Meld and Points if it wins at least one trick. A team that takes no tricks scores nothing.

For example, with a Bid of 25, Meld of 16 and Points of 10 add 26 to your Score. Meld of 16 and Points of 8 leave you set, so subtract 25.

Winning the game

The default target is 150, shown as Game ends at. Finish the hand and check each Score. If both teams reach the target in the same hand, the bidding team wins.

Three-hand rules

Each player keeps a separate Score. Deal 15 cards to each player and three face-down cards to the Kitty. The default Starting bid is 15.

The bid winner picks up the Kitty, giving them 18 cards.
Discard 3 cards. Any three cards may be discarded. Discarded As, 10s, and Ks count toward the bid winner's Points.
The bid winner chooses Trump. Players show Meld from the cards they kept.
The bid winner leads the first of 15 tricks. The rules for playing each trick are the same.

The bid winner must make the Bid and win the Required tricks. Otherwise, subtract the Bid from their Score.

The other players normally add their own Meld and Points. If the bid winner fails to take the Required tricks, the other players score nothing for that hand.

The game ends when a player reaches the target Score. A bid winner who reaches the target wins. Otherwise, the player with the highest Score wins.

Pinochle glossary

Around: One card of the same rank in each of the four suits. Aces around, Kings around, Queens around, and Jacks around each earn Meld.
Auction: Bidding that continues around the table until all but one player have passed.
Bid: The total Meld and Points a player commits to earn. In four-hand, the bid applies to the team's combined total.
Bid winner: The player who wins the bidding, chooses Trump, and leads the first trick. Also called the bidder.
Classic scoring: The scoring scale that displays bids, Meld, Points, and Score at ten times their Modern values.
Deal: Distributing the cards to start a hand. A deal also means the set of cards distributed.
Dealer: The player assigned to deal the cards. Bidding starts with the player to the dealer's left.
Deck: The complete set of 48 cards: two copies of A, 10, K, Q, J, and 9 in each suit.
Discard: A card removed from a player's hand. In three-hand, the bid winner discards three cards after taking the Kitty.
Double marriage: Both Kings and both Queens of one suit. Double marriage value refers to the Meld earned when that suit is Trump.
Double meld: Two complete copies of a Meld combination in one player's hand. Its value can be more than twice the single combination's value.
Follow suit: Play a card of the suit led. A player with that suit must follow it.
Four-hand Pinochle: A game for four players in two partnerships. Each player receives 12 cards.
Hand: The cards a player holds. A hand also means one round of bidding, Meld, and Tricks, from the deal through scoring.
Kitty: The three face-down cards set aside during a three-hand deal. The bid winner picks them up before discarding.
Lead: The first card played in a trick. To lead is to play that card.
Making the bid: Earning at least the Bid in Meld plus Points and meeting the hand's play requirements.
Marriage: A King and Queen of the same suit. A Trump marriage is a King and Queen of the Trump suit.
Meld: Card combinations shown before the first trick, and the value those combinations earn. The Meld table lists the combinations and values.
Modern scoring: The scoring scale used on this page. For example, a single Pinochle earns 4 Meld and a single run earns 15.
Nine of Trump: A 9 in the Trump suit. Each earns 1 Meld in Modern scoring.
Partner: The player seated opposite you in four-hand Pinochle. Your Meld, Points, and Tricks count together, and you share a Score.
Pass in bidding: Leave the bidding for the current hand. Passing does not stop a player from taking part in the rest of the hand.
Passing cards: The exchange of cards between the four-hand bid winner and their partner before Meld is shown.
Pinochle: The name of the game and a Meld combination: the Queen of spades with the Jack of diamonds. Double Pinochle contains both copies of each card.
Points: The value of cards won in tricks, plus the last-trick bonus. In Modern scoring, each A, 10, and K is worth 1, and the last trick adds 1.
Raise: Increase the current bid.
Rank: A card's position from highest to lowest: Ace (A), 10, King (K), Queen (Q), Jack (J), then 9.
Required tricks: The minimum number of tricks the bidding side must win to make the bid. Discarded cards do not count as a trick.
Run: An A, 10, K, Q, and J in Trump. A run includes one Trump marriage.
Score: The running total across hands. Meld and Points add to it after a successful hand. Being set subtracts the Bid.
Set: Failing to make the bid. The bidding side loses the amount of the Bid from its Score.
Starting bid: The bid value at the start of the auction, before any player raises it.
Suit: One of the four groups of cards: clubs, diamonds, hearts, or spades. A non-trump suit is any suit other than Trump.
Target score: The total needed to win, shown as Game ends at. The game checks scores at the end of the hand.
Three-hand Pinochle: A game for three players with no partners. Each player receives 15 cards and keeps a separate Score.
Trick: One card played by each player. The highest Trump wins, or the highest card of the suit led if no Trump is played.
Trump: The suit chosen by the bid winner for that hand. A Trump card beats any card from another suit.