Spades

Objective

Be the first partnership to reach the agreed target score (commonly 500 points). Win tricks equal to your bid and avoid collecting too many overtricks (bags).

The Basics

Spades is a 4-player partnership trick-taking game played in two fixed teams (partners sit across from each other). The spade suit is always trump — no bidding determines trump. Each round, players bid the exact number of tricks they expect to win, and scoring rewards meeting your bid while penalizing falling short or accumulating too many overtricks.

Setup and Deal

The entire 52-card deck is dealt one card at a time until each player has 13 cards. Partners are fixed for the game. Choose a target score before play (500 is standard; 200 for a shorter game).

Bidding

Starting with the player left of the dealer and going clockwise, each player bids the number of tricks they expect to personally win (0–13). Passing is not allowed — every player must bid at least 1 unless bidding "Nil."

Partnership bids are combined: if one partner bids 3 and the other bids 4, the team's contract is 7 tricks.

Nil

A bid of Nil (zero) means the player is betting they will win exactly 0 tricks this hand. Nil bids earn or lose points separately from the partnership contract. A Blind Nil (bidding Nil without looking at your cards) is a variant available when a team is down by 100+ points; it earns/loses double.

Playing Tricks

The player left of the dealer leads the first trick. Spades may not be led until they have been "broken" — meaning at least one Spade has been played as a discard on a previous trick — or unless the leader holds only Spades.

• Players must follow suit if possible.
• If unable to follow suit, a player may play any card, including a Spade.
• The trick is won by the highest Spade played; if no Spade was played, the highest card of the led suit wins.
• The winner of each trick leads the next.

Scoring

At the end of each hand:

Making your bid: The partnership scores 10 × their combined bid, plus 1 point for each overtrick (trick won beyond the bid). Overtricks are called bags.

Missing your bid: The partnership loses 10 × their combined bid.

Nil scoring: A successful Nil earns +100 points (for that player's partnership); a failed Nil costs −100 points. The Nil bidder's tricks still count toward the partner's bid.

Bag penalty: When a partnership accumulates 10 bags, they lose 100 points and their bag count resets to 0.

Example: Bid 5, won 7 tricks → 50 + 2 bags (52 points this hand). Bid 5, won 4 tricks → −50 points.

Key Rules

• Spades cannot be led until broken (a Spade played as a discard), unless the player holds only Spades.
• Bids are not hidden — all bids are announced openly.
• Overtricks are tracked cumulatively; 10 bags = −100 and reset.
• A Nil bidder who wins a trick fails their Nil — the partner cannot receive/pass tricks to save them.

At the Table

Bid honestly — overbidding to be "safe" leads to bags. Count your certain winners: high Spades, Aces, and any suit where you expect to be void. Coordinate loosely with your partner — if your partner bids 4 and you have a solid 4, bid 4 and play to make it, not to grab extra tricks. Nil bids are powerful but risky; attempt them only with very low hands.