Canasta
Card Track with Paper ScoreMeld sets, build canastas, reach 5,000.
Score Canasta on paper, or track each hand in Paper Score. The printable sheet has a column for each team, the card values, the canasta bonuses and the first-meld minimum for every score band.
Prefer paper? Download the free printable score sheet (PDF)
Outside the US? A4 version
Page challenge
Climb the meld ladder
Enter your team score to see your first-meld minimum (15, 50, 90 or 120). Then build the hand: canastas, red 3s, card points, going out. Bank it and watch the ladder climb toward 5,000.
Bank a single hand worth 1,500+ for a gold star. Best: –
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Who goes first?
Settle it before the Canasta argument starts. Pick how many players, add names if you like, and spin.
Keeping score too? Doodle Score remembers your players and tallies every round.
Game Identity
- Name: Canasta
- Player Count: 4 players (standard partnership). Can be played 2–6.
- Teams: Yes — 2 teams of 2 in standard play. Partners sit across.
- Theme: Classic rummy-variant card game of Latin American origin. High point totals and complex meld bonuses.
Scoring Mechanics
- Scoring Variant: Accumulative — team scores grow toward a target.
- Target Score: 5,000 points (standard). First team to reach or exceed 5,000 wins.
- Unit of Scoring: Points per hand (melds, bonuses, penalties).
- Lower vs. Higher: Higher team score wins.
Rules & Validation
Per-Hand Logic
- Points per Hand: Variable, often in the hundreds or thousands. Components:
- Meld card values: Cards melded contribute their face value.
- Canasta bonuses: Natural canasta (7 cards, no wilds) = +500. Mixed canasta (contains wilds) = +300.
- Going out bonus: +100 (or +200 for going out concealed: melding the whole hand in one turn, including a canasta, without having melded before).
- Red Three bonuses: Each red 3 = +100. All 4 red 3s = +800 total (doubles the bonus).
- Penalties: Cards left in hand are subtracted at face value. Black 3s = −5 each. If a team has made no meld when the hand ends, its red 3s count −100 each (−800 for all four) instead of plus.
- Card Values:
- Jokers: 50 pts each
- Aces, 2s (wild): 20 pts each
- 8–K: 10 pts each
- 4–7: 5 pts each
- Black 3s: 5 pts each (can only be melded when going out)
- Minimum Meld Requirement: Teams must meet an opening meld minimum to start melding each hand:
- Score below 0: 15-point minimum
- Score 0–1,495: 50-point minimum
- Score 1,500–2,995: 90-point minimum
- Score 3,000 or more: 120-point minimum
- Validation Rules:
- Per-hand total is entered as a net score for each team (can be negative).
Special Actions / Bonuses
- Natural Canasta: 7 cards of the same rank, no wilds = +500.
- Mixed Canasta: 7+ cards of same rank including wilds = +300.
- Going Out Concealed: Melding every card in one turn, including a canasta, without having melded before = +200 (instead of +100).
- Red Threes: Laid face-up immediately; all 4 collected = bonus doubles to 800.
Win Conditions
- Condition: After a hand concludes (a player goes out or the stock is exhausted), if either team's cumulative score reaches or exceeds 5,000, the team with the higher score wins.
- Tie-Breaker: Play additional hands until a team leads at game end.
Set Up in Doodle Score
Canasta doesn't have a dedicated scorecard yet — track it for free using a general scorecard:
- Tap New Scorecard and choose Paper Score (tracks all players each round in a grid)
- Add 4 players (adjust as needed)
- Set Target Score to 5,000 points (or skip for open-ended play)
Score type: Ascending — highest score wins.
Common Canasta rules questions
The arguments that come up at the table, answered from the official rules. Where house rules differ, we say so.
How many points do you need for the first meld in Canasta?
It depends on your score: below 0 needs 15, 0 to 1,495 needs 50, 1,500 to 2,995 needs 90, and 3,000 or more needs 120.
When can you pick up a frozen discard pile?
Only with a natural pair matching the top card. A black 3 or wild card on top blocks the next player from taking the pile.
Do you need a canasta to go out?
Yes. Your team needs at least one canasta before anyone can go out.
How do red threes count in Canasta?
Each red 3 is worth 100, or 800 for all four. They count for your team if it has melded, and against it if it hasn't.
How many wild cards can a meld have?
A meld needs at least two natural cards and can have no more than three wild cards.
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