1Object of the game
Be the first player to play every card from your hand onto the layout. If you're keeping score across several deals, you also want to be stuck with as few penalty points as possible when someone else goes out, especially kings, which cost 10 points each.
2Setup
- Shuffle a standard 52-card deck. Deal 7 cards face down to each player.
- Put the rest of the deck face down in the center of the table as the stock.
- Turn four cards from the stock face up and place one on each side of it (north, east, south, and west) to make a cross. These are the foundation piles.
- Leave the four diagonal corners of the cross empty. Only kings can start a pile in a corner.
- Aces are low. Card order from high to low is K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, A.
3The play
- The player to the dealer's left goes first. Start your turn by drawing one card from the stock.
- Play a card onto any pile if it is one rank lower and the opposite color of that pile's top card, such as a red 9 on a black 10.
- Put any king into an empty corner space to start a new corner pile, then build down on it the same way.
- Move a whole pile onto another pile if the bottom card of the pile you're moving is one rank lower and the opposite color of the other pile's top card. This frees up a foundation space.
- Fill any empty foundation space (on the sides of the cross) with any card from your hand. Keep playing as long as you have legal moves, then play passes left.
4End of a hand
A deal ends as soon as a player plays the last card from their hand. That player wins the deal. If the stock runs out and nobody can play, the deal ends in a stalemate. When you're keeping score, every other player adds penalty points for the cards left in their hand, then the deal passes to the left and a new deal starts.
5Scoring
Bicycle's rules simply declare the first player out the winner. For a longer game, pagat.com gives penalty scoring: when a player goes out, everyone else adds up the cards still in their hands.
| For | Points |
|---|---|
| King left in your hand | 10 penalty points |
| Any other card left in your hand | 1 penalty point |
| Player who goes out | 0 |
Play until someone reaches the target, usually 25 or 50 points. The player with the lowest score at that point wins. Kings carry the heavy penalty because they can only be played into an empty corner.
6Winning
In a single deal, the first player to empty their hand wins. With penalty scoring, keep playing deals until a player reaches the agreed target, typically 25 or 50 points, and then the player with the lowest total wins. If two players tie for lowest, most groups play one more deal to break the tie.
7A worked hand
It's late in the deal and the cross shows 9♥ on the north side, 4♣ on the east, 10♠ on the south, and 7♦ on the west. All four corners are empty. You draw at the start of your turn, and your hand is now 8♠, K♦, Q♣, 6♣, and 3♥. First, the 8♠ goes on the 9♥ (black on red, one lower). The K♦ goes into a corner, and the Q♣ builds on it. The 3♥ goes on the 4♣, and the 6♣ goes on the 7♦. Now look at the west pile: its bottom card is the 7♦, and the north pile's top card is the 8♠. A red 7 fits on a black 8, so you move the whole west pile (7♦ and 6♣) onto the north pile. The west space is now empty. You've played all five cards, so you win the deal. If you're keeping penalty score, an opponent left holding K♠, 5♥, and 2♣ takes 10 + 1 + 1 = 12 points.
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.
- Draw at the end of the turn
- Pagat.com has you make your plays first and draw one card at the end of your turn. Bicycle has you draw at the start. Both are common; pick one.
- Chip or pip scoring
- Some families pay chips into a pot for each card held, or count card pip values. Pagat.com also mentions tiered systems such as 50/10/5 or 10/5/1.
- Must play a king if you hold one
- Some groups require you to put down a king whenever a corner is open, instead of saving it.
- Jokers as wilds
- Some versions add jokers as wild cards that can stand in for any card in a pile.
- Same-suit corner piles
- A stricter variant requires corner piles to build down in the king's suit rather than alternating colors.
9Mistakes people make
- Only a king can start a corner pile. Any card can fill an empty space on the sides of the cross.
- When you move a whole pile, the bottom card of the moving pile must fit on the top card of the pile it lands on.
- Cards build down in alternating colors: red on black or black on red, one rank lower. Suits don't matter, only color.
- Aces are low, so nothing plays on an ace.
10Playing better
- Get kings out early. They can only go in corners, so if the corners fill up you may be stuck with them, and they cost 10 points each.
- Look for pile moves before you play from your hand. Moving a pile opens a space you can fill with any card, which is how you get rid of awkward cards.
- Save a low card like an ace or 2 to fill an empty space late, when nothing else fits.
- Watch what the next player needs. If you can avoid opening a space right before a player with only one card left, do it.
- Count the corners: once three kings are placed, holding the fourth king is a real risk.
Kings in the Corner: questions people ask
- How many cards do you deal in Kings in the Corner?
- Deal 7 cards to each player, whether you have 2, 3, or 4 players. Then turn four cards face up in a cross around the stock pile for the foundations. The rest of the deck stays face down as the stock, and each player draws from it once per turn.
- Do you draw a card at the beginning or end of your turn in Kings Corner?
- Both are common. Bicycle's rules have you draw one card from the stock at the start of your turn before playing. Pagat.com describes drawing one card at the end of your turn, after you've made your plays. Pick one and stick with it for the whole game.
- Can you put any card in the corner in Kings Corner?
- No. Only a king can start a corner pile. Once a king is in a corner, you build down on it in alternating colors like any other pile: queen of the opposite color, then jack, and so on. The side spaces of the cross can be filled with any card when empty.
- Can you move piles in Kings in the Corner?
- Yes. You can move an entire pile onto another pile if the bottom card of the pile you're moving is one rank lower and the opposite color of the top card you're moving it onto. This clears a foundation space, which you can then fill with any card from your hand.
- How do you win Kings in the Corner?
- The first player to play all the cards in their hand wins the deal. If you're keeping score over several deals, the other players take penalty points for leftover cards: 10 per king and 1 for any other card, per pagat.com. Play to 25 or 50; the lowest score wins.
- How many people can play Kings Corner?
- Kings Corner is played by 2 to 4 players with one standard 52-card deck. It works well with two because there are more turns, and it's quick enough for a family table with four. Pagat.com says two or more can play, though with more than four the 7-card hands use up much of the deck.
- What happens if the stock runs out in Kings Corner?
- If the stock is empty and no player can make a legal move, the deal ends in a stalemate. Pagat.com says play stops when someone runs out of cards or when there's an impasse. With penalty scoring, everyone counts the cards they still hold.
Sources
Checked by Morgan Hale against the sources below. Last reviewed September 28, 2026.
- How to Play Kings Corner, Bicycle Cards. Read September 28, 2026.
- Kings Corners, pagat.com. Read September 28, 2026.
Also on the table: Solitaire (Klondike), Crazy Eights, Go Fish, Speed.