How many cards do you deal in 500 rummy?

Deal 13 cards to each player in a two-player game and 7 cards each when three or more play. The next card is turned face up to start the discard pile, and the rest become the stock. With five or more players, shuffle two decks together.

Can you pick up the whole discard pile in 500 rummy?

Yes, as long as you can use the bottom card right away. You may take any card in the discard pile, but you must also take every card above it and meld the deepest card you took on that turn. If the bottom card can go into a meld, you can take the entire pile.

Is an ace worth 1 or 15 in 500 rummy?

An ace is worth 15 points in most situations, including when it is stuck in your hand at the end. The exception is an ace melded low in a run with the 2 and 3 of the same suit, which counts only 1 point. An ace can be high or low in a run, but not both at once.

Do you have to discard to go out in 500 rummy?

Under pagat.com's standard rules you can go out by melding all your cards, with or without a final discard. Many groups play that you must keep one card and discard it to go out. Settle which rule you use before the first hand.

Can you play on other people's melds in 500 rummy?

Yes. You may lay off cards on any set or run on the table, including your opponents'. The cards stay in front of you rather than joining their meld, because melded cards score for the player who put them down.

What happens when the stock runs out in 500 rummy?

Play can go on as long as players keep drawing from the discard pile. The hand ends when the stock is empty and the player whose turn it is does not want to take from the discard pile. Then everyone scores their melds minus the cards in hand.

What happens if two players pass 500 in the same hand?

Under pagat.com's rules, the player with the higher total wins. If they are tied, keep playing hands until one player is ahead. Some groups instead say the winner must be the player who went out in the final hand.

How is 500 rummy different from regular rummy?

In basic rummy you score the cards left in opponents' hands when you go out. In 500 rummy everyone scores the cards they melded minus the cards they still hold, and you can take buried cards from the discard pile. The game runs until someone reaches 500.

500 Rummy Rules: How to Play and Score

1Object of the game

Reach 500 points before anyone else. You earn points for every card you put on the table, whether in your own sets and runs or laid off on someone else's. Cards still in your hand when the hand ends count against you. Unlike basic rummy, going out is not the whole point: a big pile of high melds usually matters more.

2Setup

Use one standard 52-card deck without jokers. With five or more players, shuffle two decks together.
Deal one card at a time, clockwise. In a two-player game each player gets 13 cards. With three or more players each gets 7 cards.
Turn the next card face up to start the discard pile and place the rest of the deck face down as the stock.
Spread the discard pile as it grows, overlapping the cards so every discard stays visible. Players will be allowed to take cards from anywhere in it.
The player to the dealer's left goes first. Keep a score sheet with a column for each player.

3The play

Draw. Take the top card of the stock, the top card of the discard pile, or any card deeper in the discard pile.
If you take a card below the top of the discard pile, you must take every card above it as well, and you must meld the deepest card you took on this same turn. You can put it in a new set or run or lay it off on a meld already on the table.
Meld if you can and want to. A set is 3 or 4 cards of the same rank, and a run is 3 or more cards in sequence in one suit. Lay them face up in front of you.
Lay off cards on any meld on the table, yours or an opponent's. Keep laid-off cards in front of you, because they score for you, not for the player who started the meld.
Discard one card face up on the discard pile to end your turn. If you have no cards left after melding, you have gone out and the hand ends.

4End of a hand

The hand ends as soon as a player has no cards left in hand, either by melding everything or by melding and then discarding the last card. It also ends when the stock is empty and the player to move does not want to draw from the discard pile. Everyone then scores the hand, and the next player in turn deals.

5Scoring

At the end of each hand, total the value of the cards you have melded and laid off on the table. Then subtract the value of the cards still in your hand. The result, which can be negative, is added to your running score. The player who went out scores the same way, with nothing to subtract.

For	Points
Ace (in most melds)	15
Ace in a low run (A-2-3 of one suit)	1
King, queen, jack	10
10 through 2	Face value
Ace left in your hand	15 against you
Joker (if used)	15
Game	First to 500 wins

An ace can be low (A-2-3) or high (Q-K-A) in a run, but not both, so K-A-2 is not allowed. Pagat.com and Gamerules.com count an ace as 15 unless it sits in a low run with the 2 and 3, where it counts 1. Cards in hand count at full value against you, which is why an unplayed ace hurts. Bicycle's scoring gives the same rule in a sentence: if your melds total 87 and your hand totals 90, you lose 3 points.

6Winning

Keep playing hands until one or more players reach 500 points. The session ends at that point, and the player with the highest score wins. If two players are tied for the lead, pagat.com says to play more hands until there is a single winner.

7A worked hand

Three players, 7 cards each. You hold 9♠ 9♥ 5♦ 7♦ Q♣ J♣ 3♥. The discard pile, from bottom to top, reads 4♣, 9♦, K♣, 6♥, 2♣. You want the 9♦, which is fourth from the top. You take it along with every card above it, the K♣, 6♥ and 2♣, and immediately meld 9♠ 9♥ 9♦. That set is worth 9 + 9 + 9 = 27. The K♣ you picked up fits with your Q♣ J♣, so you also meld J♣ Q♣ K♣ for 10 + 10 + 10 = 30. You now hold 5♦ 7♦ 3♥ 6♥ 2♣ and discard the 2♣. Two turns later an opponent goes out while you are still holding 5♦ 7♦ 3♥ 6♥. Your melds total 27 + 30 = 57, and your hand counts 5 + 7 + 3 + 6 = 21, so you score 57 − 21 = 36 for the hand. If you had also held the A♥ and laid it off on an opponent's 2♥ 3♥ 4♥, it would add only 1 point to your total.

8House rules

The rules above are the version most US players use. These are the variations you are most likely to run into; settle them before the first deal.

Jokers wild: Pagat.com's version adds two jokers, which are wild and worth 15 points. A joker must stand for one specific card, so you cannot add a joker as a fifth card to a set of four.
Calling Rummy: Before the next player draws, anyone except the player who just discarded may call "Rummy!" if a card in the discard pile could be melded, and take the pile from that card up. It applies to the top card and to buried cards.
Must discard to go out: Many players require you to keep one card to discard when you go out, so you cannot meld your entire hand. Gamerules.com treats the final discard as part of going out.
Must meld the top discard: Some play that whenever you take from the discard pile, even just the top card, the deepest card you took has to be melded on that turn.
Winner must go out: Some groups say reaching 500 is not enough on its own. To win, you must also be the player who goes out in the final hand.

9Mistakes people make

A card taken from deep in the discard pile must be melded on the same turn. You also have to take every card above it, not just the one you want.
Cards you lay off on another player's meld score for you. Keep them in front of you so they are counted in your total.
An ace in an A-2-3 run counts only 1. Everywhere else, including an ace left in your hand, it counts 15.
Unmelded cards subtract from your score. A player can finish a hand with a negative score and go backward.

10Playing better

Dig into the discard pile when the payoff is big. Taking five cards to get one meld can set up several more melds, but every extra card you cannot use counts against you if the hand ends suddenly.
Meld high cards early. A set of kings is 30 points on the table, and the same kings stuck in your hand cost you 30.
Lay off on other players' melds whenever you can. Those cards score for you, and they take cards out of your hand.
Track which cards are buried in the discard pile. A 9♦ sitting fourth from the top may be your way into a set later.
Be careful what you discard. Since opponents can take any card in the pile, a card that fits their melds can come back to hurt you several turns later.
Watch the hand sizes around the table. When a player is down to one or two cards, get your points on the table before they go out.

500 Rummy: questions people ask

How many cards do you deal in 500 rummy?: Deal 13 cards to each player in a two-player game and 7 cards each when three or more play. The next card is turned face up to start the discard pile, and the rest become the stock. With five or more players, shuffle two decks together.
Can you pick up the whole discard pile in 500 rummy?: Yes, as long as you can use the bottom card right away. You may take any card in the discard pile, but you must also take every card above it and meld the deepest card you took on that turn. If the bottom card can go into a meld, you can take the entire pile.
Is an ace worth 1 or 15 in 500 rummy?: An ace is worth 15 points in most situations, including when it is stuck in your hand at the end. The exception is an ace melded low in a run with the 2 and 3 of the same suit, which counts only 1 point. An ace can be high or low in a run, but not both at once.
Do you have to discard to go out in 500 rummy?: Under pagat.com's standard rules you can go out by melding all your cards, with or without a final discard. Many groups play that you must keep one card and discard it to go out. Settle which rule you use before the first hand.
Can you play on other people's melds in 500 rummy?: Yes. You may lay off cards on any set or run on the table, including your opponents'. The cards stay in front of you rather than joining their meld, because melded cards score for the player who put them down.
What happens when the stock runs out in 500 rummy?: Play can go on as long as players keep drawing from the discard pile. The hand ends when the stock is empty and the player whose turn it is does not want to take from the discard pile. Then everyone scores their melds minus the cards in hand.
What happens if two players pass 500 in the same hand?: Under pagat.com's rules, the player with the higher total wins. If they are tied, keep playing hands until one player is ahead. Some groups instead say the winner must be the player who went out in the final hand.
How is 500 rummy different from regular rummy?: In basic rummy you score the cards left in opponents' hands when you go out. In 500 rummy everyone scores the cards they melded minus the cards they still hold, and you can take buried cards from the discard pile. The game runs until someone reaches 500.

Sources

Checked by Morgan Hale against the sources below. Last reviewed September 28, 2026.

500 Rum, pagat.com. Read September 29, 2026.
How to Play 500 Rum, Bicycle Cards. Read September 29, 2026.
Rummy 500 Card Game Rules, Gamerules.com. Read September 29, 2026.

Also on the table: Rummy, Gin Rummy, Canasta, Hand and Foot.