1What is in a standard 52-card deck
The 52 cards split into four suits: spades ♠ and clubs ♣ are black, hearts ♥ and diamonds ♦ are red. Each suit has 13 ranks: ace, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, jack, queen and king. The ace is the card with one pip. Whether it counts high or low depends on the game you are playing.
The jack, queen and king in each suit are the face cards, also called court cards. With three in each of four suits, that is 12 face cards in a deck. Their pictures are double-headed, so you can read them either way up.
Jokers come as extras. Wikipedia notes that commercial packs include anywhere from one to six, most commonly two or three since the mid-20th century. Most games leave them out. Some use them as wild cards, and a spare joker makes a handy replacement if you lose a card.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Total cards (no jokers) | 52 |
| Suits | 4 |
| Cards per suit | 13 |
| Cards of each rank (for example, kings) | 4 |
| Red cards (hearts and diamonds) | 26 |
| Black cards (spades and clubs) | 26 |
| Face cards (J, Q, K) | 12 |
| Aces | 4 |
| Number cards 2 through 10 | 36 |
| Jokers (extra, not in the 52) | Usually 2 or 3 |
2How many of each card
Since each of the 13 ranks appears once in each suit, every rank has exactly 4 copies: 4 aces, 4 kings, 4 sevens, and so on. Each suit has exactly 13 cards, so there are 13 hearts and 13 spades. Each color has 26 cards.
These numbers come up in every card game. There are 6 red face cards and 6 black face cards. There are 2 red aces and 2 black aces. Count aces as 1 alongside the 2 through 10 cards and the deck splits into 40 number cards and 12 face cards.
3Decks with a different number of cards
Several games use a stripped deck, which is a standard deck with some ranks taken out, or a special deck printed just for that game. Euchre and piquet can be made from a regular pack. Pinochle needs two copies of each card, so you either buy a pinochle deck or strip two regular decks. The rest are sold as their own games.
Mattel's own games are the ones people most often get wrong. UNO grew from 108 to 112 cards in sets made from 2018 on. Phase 10 comes with 110 cards in the box, but 2 are reference cards, so you play with 108. Skip-Bo has 162 cards.
| Deck | Cards | What is in it |
|---|---|---|
| Standard (French-suited) | 52 | A to K in 4 suits, plus jokers |
| Pinochle | 48 | Two each of A, 10, K, Q, J, 9 in 4 suits |
| Euchre | 24 | 9, 10, J, Q, K, A in 4 suits (32 and 28-card versions exist) |
| Piquet | 32 | 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K, A in 4 suits |
| Spanish | 40 or 48 | 1 to 9 plus sota, caballo, rey in 4 suits; the 40-card pack drops the 8s and 9s; 50 with 2 jokers |
| Tarot | 78 | 4 suits of 14, plus 21 trumps and the Fool (the Excuse) |
| UNO | 112 | 76 number cards, 24 colored action cards, 12 wilds (108 before 2018) |
| Phase 10 | 108 | 96 numbered 1 to 12 in 4 colors, 8 wilds, 4 skips, plus 2 reference cards |
| Skip-Bo | 162 | 144 cards numbered 1 to 12 and 18 Skip-Bo wild cards |
| Canasta | 108 | Two standard decks plus 4 jokers |
4Tarot and Spanish decks, briefly
A tarot pack used for card games, such as French Tarot, has 78 cards. The four suits have 14 cards each: king, queen, cavalier (knight), jack, then 10 down to 1. On top of those 56 cards sit 21 trumps numbered 1 to 21 and a single card called the Excuse or the Fool.
Spanish-suited decks use coins, cups, swords and clubs. The full pack has 48 cards, numbered 1 to 12 in each suit, with the sota, caballo and rey as the three court cards (10, 11 and 12). There is no separate 10 pip card. The 40-card pack removes the 8s and 9s, and a 50-card pack adds two jokers.
5How many cards each game uses
This is the quick reference for which deck to grab and how many cards each player gets. Deal sizes are for the most common number of players; our game pages list the full rules.
| Game | Deck | Cards dealt |
|---|---|---|
| Solitaire (Klondike) | 52, no jokers | 28 in 7 piles, 24 left as the stock |
| Hearts | 52 | 13 each (4 players) |
| Spades | 52 | 13 each (4 players) |
| Gin rummy | 52 | 10 each (2 players) |
| Rummy | 52 | 10 each for 2, 7 each for 3 or 4, 6 each for 5 or 6 |
| Cribbage | 52 | 6 each (2 players) |
| Crazy Eights | 52 | 5 each, 7 each with 2 players |
| Go Fish | 52 | 7 each for 2 or 3, 5 each for 4 or more |
| War | 52 | 26 each |
| Euchre | 24 | 5 each, 4 left in the kitty |
| Pinochle | 48 | 12 each (4 players) |
| Canasta | 108 | 11 each (4 players) |
| UNO | 112 | 7 each |
| Phase 10 | 108 | 10 each |
| Skip-Bo | 162 | Stockpile of 30 each for 2 to 4, 20 each for 5 or more |
6Checking whether a deck is complete
The fastest check is to sort by suit. Deal the cards face up into four piles, one per suit, then count each pile. Every pile should have 13, and it is easy to spot the missing rank by fanning each pile in order. Pull the jokers and any advertising or rules cards out first.
For special decks, compare against the contents list on the instruction sheet. An UNO deck with 108 cards is not short; it is an older edition. A Phase 10 deck with 110 cards is correct if 2 of them are the phase reference cards.
7Worked examples
Counting face cards
J♠ Q♠ K♠, J♥ Q♥ K♥, J♦ Q♦ K♦, J♣ Q♣ K♣
- Each suit has three face cards: jack, queen and king.
- 3 face cards × 4 suits = 12.
- Half are red (hearts and diamonds) and half are black.
12 face cards, 6 red and 6 black
Building a euchre deck from a standard pack
One 52-card deck
- Keep the 9, 10, J, Q, K and A of each suit.
- 6 ranks × 4 suits = 24 cards.
- Set aside the 2 through 8 in each suit: 7 ranks × 4 suits = 28 cards.
- 24 + 28 = 52, so nothing is lost.
24-card euchre deck
Building a pinochle deck from two standard packs
Two 52-card decks with matching backs
- From each deck keep the 9, 10, J, Q, K and A of every suit: 24 cards per deck.
- Shuffle the two sets together.
- 24 × 2 = 48, with two copies of every card.
48-card pinochle deck
Where the cards go in Klondike solitaire
One 52-card deck, jokers removed
- Deal 7 piles of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 cards.
- 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 = 28 cards in the tableau.
- 52 − 28 = 24 cards left for the stock.
28 in the tableau, 24 in the stock
Questions people ask
- How many cards are in a deck?
- A standard deck has 52 cards: 4 suits of 13 cards each. Most packs add jokers, usually two or three, which are not counted in the 52 and are left out of most games.
- How many face cards are in a deck?
- There are 12 face cards: a jack, queen and king in each of the four suits. Six are red and six are black. Aces are not face cards.
- How many cards of each suit are in a deck?
- Each suit has 13 cards: ace, 2 through 10, jack, queen and king. That gives 13 hearts, 13 diamonds, 13 clubs and 13 spades.
- How many red cards are in a deck?
- 26. Hearts and diamonds are red, and each suit has 13 cards. Spades and clubs make up the other 26, which are black.
- How many cards are in an UNO deck?
- A current UNO deck has 112 cards, including a Wild Shuffle Hands and three blank Wilds. Decks made before 2018 have 108 cards.
- How many cards are in a pinochle deck?
- 48. A pinochle deck has two copies each of the ace, 10, king, queen, jack and 9 in all four suits, with no cards below 9.
UNO, Phase 10 and SKIP-BO are trademarks of Mattel, Inc.
Sources
Checked by Morgan Hale against the sources below. Last reviewed September 28, 2026.
- Standard 52-card deck, Wikipedia. Read September 29, 2026.
- French Tarot, pagat.com. Read September 29, 2026.
- How to Play Pinochle, Bicycle Cards. Read September 29, 2026.
- UNO instructions (W2087, 112 cards), Mattel. Read September 29, 2026.