Do you need a 6 to get out in Trouble?

Yes. On your own turn, only a 6 moves a peg from Home onto your Start space. In the current Hasbro edition there's one exception: when another player rolls a 1, every other player may move one peg from Home to Start. Older sets have no such exception, so a 6 is the only way out.

Do you get another turn if you roll a 6 in Trouble?

Yes. After you use a 6 to bring out a peg or move 6 spaces, you pop the bubble again. If that bonus pop is another 6, you move but don't get a third pop. Landing on an XX Double Trouble space also earns an extra turn.

What happens when you roll a 1 in Trouble?

In the current Hasbro edition, you don't move at all. Instead, each other player may move one peg from their Home onto their Start space. In older sets, a 1 just moves one of your pegs forward one space. Check which instruction sheet came with your game.

Do you need an exact roll to get into Finish in Trouble?

Not in the current Hasbro edition. Once a peg reaches your Finish zone, it goes in, even if the roll is higher than needed. Older sets require an exact count, so a roll that's too high means that peg can't move. Both versions are widely played.

Can two of your pegs be on the same space in Trouble?

No. You can't end a move on a space your own peg already occupies. If that's the only move your roll allows, you lose the move. This is why a peg left sitting on your Start space can stop you from bringing out another peg with a 6.

Are there safe spaces in Trouble?

The main track has no safe spaces, so any peg there can be bumped back to Home. Pegs are safe once they reach your own Finish zone, because only your color can move into it. Some special editions add their own protection, such as the shield in the power die version.

What are the XX spaces in Trouble?

They're Double Trouble spaces on the current Hasbro board. If your peg ends its move on one, you take another turn right away. Older Trouble boards don't have them, so they only matter if yours does.

How many pegs does each player have in Trouble?

Four. The box has 16 pegs in four colors, and two to four people can play. You win by getting all four of your pegs around the board and into your Finish zone before anyone else.

Trouble Board Game Rules: How to Play

1Object of the game

Move all four of your pegs from Home, clockwise around the board, and into your colored Finish zone before anyone else. Along the way you knock opponents back to Home by landing on them. They do the same to you.

2Setup

Each player picks a color and puts that color's four pegs in their Home area.
Unused colors stay off the board. The die stays sealed in the Pop-O-Matic bubble in the center, so there's nothing else to set out.
The youngest player goes first, and play passes to the left.

3The play

Press the Pop-O-Matic bubble once and read the die.
Roll a 6: either move a peg from Home onto your Start space, or move a peg already on the track 6 spaces. Then pop again. A second 6 on that bonus pop does not earn a third.
Roll a 2, 3, 4, or 5: move one of your pegs on the track that many spaces clockwise.
Roll a 1: you don't move. Each other player may move one peg from Home onto their Start space.
If your peg ends on an opponent's peg, that peg goes back to its owner's Home. You can't end on your own peg, and if that's your only move, you lose it.
If your peg ends on a Double Trouble space (marked XX), take another turn.

4End of a hand

There are no rounds. Turns keep passing left until one player gets their fourth peg into Finish. With no pegs on the track, a player can only wait for a 6. On the current Hasbro board, a roll of 1 by another player also brings a peg out.

5Scoring

Trouble has no points. What matters is what each number on the die lets you do. This table follows the current Hasbro edition (A5064); older sets treat the 1 differently.

For	Points
1	You don't move; every other player may move one peg from Home to Start
2, 3, 4, 5	Move one peg on the track that many spaces
6	Move a peg from Home to Start, or move a peg 6 spaces; then pop once more
End on an opponent's peg	That peg goes back to its Home
End on a Double Trouble (XX) space	Take another turn
Reach your Finish zone	Current edition: no exact count needed; older sets: exact count

Your pegs in the Finish zone are safe. Opponents can't enter your Finish zone, so they can't bump pegs there. Everywhere else on the track, any peg can be sent Home.

6Winning

The first player to get all four pegs into their Finish zone wins. In the current Hasbro rules a peg doesn't need an exact roll to go in. Once it reaches the Finish zone, it goes into a Finish space.

7A worked hand

You're Blue. Peg A is on the track, exactly 3 spaces behind a Green peg, and your other three pegs are in Home. You pop a 6 and bring peg B from Home onto your Start space. The 6 earns a bonus pop, and you roll a 3. Moving B 3 would work, but you move A 3 instead. It lands on the Green peg, which goes back to Green's Home. Your turn is over because a 3 gives no extra pop. On your next turn you pop a 1, so you don't move at all. Red, Green, and Yellow may each bring one peg from Home to Start, and Green uses it to get its bumped peg back out. On your following turn you pop a 4, and A lands on an XX Double Trouble space, so you go again. A is now 3 spaces from the entrance to your Finish zone. You pop a 5, and because the current rules don't require an exact count, A goes into your Finish zone. Under the older exact-count rule, that 5 would have to land exactly on an open Finish space.

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.

Older rules: 1 moves one space: In older Trouble sets, a roll of 1 simply moves a peg forward one space. The rule that a 1 lets every other player bring a peg out of Home comes from the newer Hasbro edition.
Exact count into Finish: Older sets require an exact roll to move a peg into a Finish space; if the roll is too high, that peg can't move. Plenty of families still play this way with the current board.
Warp spaces: Some Hasbro boards, printed roughly 2013 to 2016, also have Warp spaces alongside the XX spaces. If your board has them, follow the instruction sheet that came in the box.
Power die and shield edition: A newer Hasbro version pops two dice, a number die and a symbol die. The symbol die can grant special abilities, including a shield that protects a peg from being bumped back to Start.

9Mistakes people make

A 6 gives you one extra pop, not unlimited ones. Rolling another 6 on the bonus pop doesn't earn a third.
You can't end a move on your own peg. If that's the only move available, you lose the move.
In the current edition a 1 doesn't move your peg. It lets every other player bring a peg out of Home.
A bumped peg goes all the way back to Home, not to Start, and needs a 6 (or an opponent's 1) to come out again.

10Playing better

Get a second peg out when you can. With only one peg on the track, every roll moves that same peg, and you have no choice about where it lands.
Move a peg off your Start space soon after it comes out. You can't land on your own peg, so a peg sitting on Start blocks your next 6 from bringing another one out.
When you roll a 6, compare the options. Bringing out a new peg adds choices later, but moving 6 might bump an opponent or reach an XX space.
Count the gap behind your pegs. An opponent's peg 1 to 6 spaces behind you can bump you on its next roll, so move out of that range when you have a choice.
Rush pegs that are close to Finish. They're safe once they're in, and a peg sent Home late in the game costs you a full lap plus a 6 to get out.

Trouble: questions people ask

Do you need a 6 to get out in Trouble?: Yes. On your own turn, only a 6 moves a peg from Home onto your Start space. In the current Hasbro edition there's one exception: when another player rolls a 1, every other player may move one peg from Home to Start. Older sets have no such exception, so a 6 is the only way out.
Do you get another turn if you roll a 6 in Trouble?: Yes. After you use a 6 to bring out a peg or move 6 spaces, you pop the bubble again. If that bonus pop is another 6, you move but don't get a third pop. Landing on an XX Double Trouble space also earns an extra turn.
What happens when you roll a 1 in Trouble?: In the current Hasbro edition, you don't move at all. Instead, each other player may move one peg from their Home onto their Start space. In older sets, a 1 just moves one of your pegs forward one space. Check which instruction sheet came with your game.
Do you need an exact roll to get into Finish in Trouble?: Not in the current Hasbro edition. Once a peg reaches your Finish zone, it goes in, even if the roll is higher than needed. Older sets require an exact count, so a roll that's too high means that peg can't move. Both versions are widely played.
Can two of your pegs be on the same space in Trouble?: No. You can't end a move on a space your own peg already occupies. If that's the only move your roll allows, you lose the move. This is why a peg left sitting on your Start space can stop you from bringing out another peg with a 6.
Are there safe spaces in Trouble?: The main track has no safe spaces, so any peg there can be bumped back to Home. Pegs are safe once they reach your own Finish zone, because only your color can move into it. Some special editions add their own protection, such as the shield in the power die version.
What are the XX spaces in Trouble?: They're Double Trouble spaces on the current Hasbro board. If your peg ends its move on one, you take another turn right away. Older Trouble boards don't have them, so they only matter if yours does.
How many pegs does each player have in Trouble?: Four. The box has 16 pegs in four colors, and two to four people can play. You win by getting all four of your pegs around the board and into your Finish zone before anyone else.

TROUBLE is a trademark of Hasbro. This page describes the rules for players and has no connection with the trademark owner.

Sources

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

Trouble Game Instructions (A5064), Hasbro. Read September 29, 2026.
Trouble Board Game Rules, Official Game Rules. Read September 29, 2026.
Pop-O-Matic Trouble Board Game Rules Explained With Pictures, Geeky Hobbies. Read September 29, 2026.
Trouble (board game), Wikipedia. Read September 29, 2026.

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