How to Keep Score in Dominoes
In the classic Draw and Block games, only the round's winner scores: they get the total pips (dots) left in the other players' hands. If the round blocks, the player with the lightest hand wins and scores the other hands (or, in some rules, the difference). Keep a running total for each player; the first to reach the target, usually 100 for two players or 61 for three or four, wins the match.
Step 1: count the pips
Every tile is worth the total number of pips (dots) on both halves. A blank half counts 0, so the 6-0 is worth 6 and the double blank is worth nothing. When a round ends, each player who still holds tiles turns them face up and adds them together.
Count in tens. Pick out tiles that make 10 together, like the 6-4 on its own or the 3-2 with the 4-1, then add the rest. Even a big hand adds up quickly that way.
Step 2: score the round
When someone goes out
The player who lays their last tile (calling "domino!") wins the round and scores the pips left in every other hand. With two players that's one hand. With three or four, add all the losing hands together. Partners in a four-player team game share one score.
When the round blocks
A round blocks when nobody can play and, in the Draw game, the boneyard can't help. Everyone counts their hand and the lowest total wins. What the winner scores depends on the rule set:
| Rule | The lightest hand scores… | Example: you 8, Hop 19 |
|---|---|---|
| All the other hands | the total of every other hand | You score 19 |
| The difference | the other hands minus its own pips | You score 11 |
Some rule books apply the difference rule every round, even when someone goes out. It makes no difference then, because the player who went out holds 0 pips.
Step 3: keep a running total
Write each player's name at the top of a sheet and add each round's points under the right name. Only the winner's column changes in a round. Here's a short match to 50 points, the Easy target on GameLake, using the "all the other hands" rule:
| Round | What happened | You | Hop |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | You go out; Hop holds 14 | 14 | 0 |
| 2 | Hop goes out; you hold 9 | 14 | 9 |
| 3 | Blocked: you 12, Hop 21 | 35 | 9 |
| 4 | Hop goes out; you hold 23 | 35 | 32 |
| 5 | You go out; Hop holds 17 | 52 | 32 |
What score do you play to?
- 100 points is the usual target for two players and for partnership games.
- 61 points is common for three or four players. That's once around a cribbage board, which makes a handy peg scorer.
- Shorter games: 50 points works well for children or a quick game, and it's what GameLake uses on Easy.
How long does that take? In our simulations of two decent players, a match to 100 lasted about 10 rounds in the Draw game and about 17 in the Block game, where blocked rounds and smaller scores are more common.
Rounding to fives
Some groups only score in multiples of five, which keeps the arithmetic simple and suits a cribbage board (one peg hole per five points). The usual rounding goes to the nearest five:
| Pips counted | Points scored |
|---|---|
| 0–2 | 0 |
| 3–7 | 5 |
| 8–12 | 10 |
| 13–17 | 15 |
| …and so on | nearest multiple of 5 |
So a hand of 22 scores 20 and a hand of 23 scores 25. Rounding is standard in the "fives" games below; in a plain Draw or Block game it's a house rule, so agree on it first.
All Fives scoring, briefly
All Fives (also called Muggins or Fives) adds scoring during play. Whenever your tile leaves the open ends adding up to a multiple of five, you score that total straight away: 5, 10, 15 and so on. In most rule sets a double lying crosswise on an end counts both halves.
At the end of the round, the player who goes out also scores the other hands, rounded to the nearest five. Because points come thick and fast, All Fives is usually played to 200 (some groups use 150 or 250). GameLake doesn't play All Fives: its dominoes are the classic Draw and Block games, scored by the pips left in hand.
How GameLake keeps score
GameLake's dominoes does the counting for you, using the rules above:
- Go out first and you score the pips in Hop's hand.
- In a blocked round the lighter hand wins and scores all of the other hand's pips. Equal hands score nothing.
- No rounding: every pip counts.
- The match goes to 100 on Medium and Hard, and 50 on Easy. The scoreboard shows both totals against the target.
Want those points to go your way? Our dominoes strategy guide shows how to keep your hand light and leave Hop holding the heavy tiles.
Mexican Train scores the other way round
In Mexican Train you score your own leftover pips as penalty points, the player who goes out scores 0, and the lowest total after all the rounds wins. Some rule sheets also make the double blank worth 50 there. See how to play Mexican Train dominoes for the full rules.
Frequently asked questions
How do you count points in dominoes?
Add up the pips (dots) on both halves of every tile left in a hand. The player who goes out, or the lightest hand in a blocked round, scores the other players' totals.
Who scores when a dominoes game is blocked?
The player with the fewest pips in hand wins the round. Depending on your rules they score all the other hands, or the other hands minus their own. If the lowest hands tie, usually nobody scores.
Do blanks count in dominoes?
A blank half is worth 0, so the double blank is worth nothing in the classic games. A few Mexican Train rule sheets make it worth 50 as a penalty.
What do you play to in dominoes?
Usually 100 points for two players or teams and 61 for three or four players. All Fives is often played to 200. On GameLake it's 100, or 50 on Easy.
Do you round dominoes scores?
Only if your rules say so. All Fives rounds hand totals to the nearest five (3–7 scores 5, 8–12 scores 10). Classic Draw and Block games usually count every pip.