Your move, friend!
Mancala
Board · Sow pearls round the board, win extra turns, capture.
Play Mancala free online on a carved wooden board floating on the lake. Pick up the pearls from one of your pits and sow them round the board, one per pit. Land the last one in your store to go again, or in an empty pit of yours to capture. Play Hop the frog on Easy, Medium or Hard, a friend on the same screen or online, or solve the Daily puzzle.
🏆 Leaderboard
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How to play
- The board has two rows of six pits with four stones in each, and a store at each end. Your pits are the bottom row and your store is the one on the right.
- Tap one of your pits to pick up all its stones. They are sown one at a time into the next pits, moving right along your row, into your store and on along the top row. Your opponent's store is skipped.
- If the last stone lands in your store, you get another turn.
- If the last stone lands in an empty pit on your side and the pit opposite has stones, you capture them all, plus your own stone, straight into your store.
- When one row is empty the game ends, and each player adds the stones still on their side to their store. The most stones in the store wins.
Tips to win
- Look for extra turns first. A pit wins you another turn when its number of stones matches its distance from your store: 1 stone in the pit next to the store, 2 in the one before it, and so on.
- Play the pit closest to your store early when it's ready. Moving the far pits first can add a stone to it and spoil the extra turn.
- Watch your empty pits. An empty pit with a full pit opposite is a capture waiting for you, and the same goes for your opponent.
- Don't leave a big pile across from one of your opponent's empty pits. Move it, or drop a stone into their empty pit to block the capture.
- Keep some stones on your side late in the game. When a row empties, the stones left go to their owner, so a full row at the end is worth points.
- Stuck? Press Teach me: Hop lights up the best pit and says why, whether it's an extra turn, a capture or a pit to protect. Coached games count as practice.
- Switch on the Classic look for a dark wooden board with glass stones.
Guides
Questions
How do you play Mancala?
On your turn, pick up all the stones from one of your six pits and sow them one by one into the following pits, counter-clockwise, including your own store but not your opponent's. Land the last one in your store to play again, or in an empty pit of yours to capture the stones opposite. The game ends when one side is empty, and the most stones wins.
How do you win at Mancala?
Chain extra turns by playing the pits that end exactly in your store, set up captures with your empty pits, and protect your big piles from your opponent's empty pits. Teach me shows the best move and the reason for it.
What happens when you land in an empty pit?
If it's your own pit and the pit opposite has stones, you capture those stones and your last stone into your store. If the pit opposite is empty, or the empty pit is on your opponent's side, nothing happens and your turn ends.
Which rules does this Mancala use?
The common Kalah rules: 6 pits per side, 4 stones in each, extra turns for ending in your store, captures from your own empty pits, and the remaining stones go to their owner's store at the end. Related games such as Oware and Congkak have their own rules.
What is the Daily Mancala puzzle?
Every day everyone gets the same endgame position. You move first and Hop plays perfectly, but there is always a way to win. Solve it to keep your daily streak going, and try as often as you like.
Can I play Mancala online with a friend?
Yes. Choose Online, then Play a friend, and send the link. Your friend opens it and the game starts; the table checks every move. Quick match finds you a random opponent, and if nobody turns up in 20 seconds Hop takes the seat.
How strong is Hop?
On Easy Hop often picks a pit at random, so it's a good start for children. Medium looks three moves ahead, and Hard looks about eleven moves ahead.
Is Mancala free?
Yes. Play free in your browser on phone, tablet or computer, with no download and no account.