All Fives Rule Variations

All Fives has been played around kitchen tables, porches and lodge halls for well over a century, and nearly every family has a rule or two of its own. If you learned it a little differently, that's normal. Here are the variations we hear about most, with a note on what our online game does.

Playing to 150, 250 or 61

We play to 150 by default, which takes about twenty to thirty minutes against one opponent. Many households play to 250 for a longer game, and some go to 300. Players who keep score on a cribbage board often play to 61 or 121 and peg one hole for every five points.

In our game: open Settings and, under House rules, choose "Play to 250 points". It takes effect when you start a new game. The game ends the moment someone reaches the target.

Calling Your Own Score (Muggins)

In the strict version, scores are never automatic. After you play, you announce your count, and if you miss it (or don't notice it), your opponent can call "Muggins!" and take those points. Some groups only let the opponent take the points; others also add a penalty for a wrong claim. It keeps everyone counting, and it is where the name Muggins comes from.

In our game: choose "Muggins call" in Settings. The count box then shows the open ends without the total. After each play you tap Claim if you think the ends make a multiple of 5, or No Score if not. A wrong claim simply scores nothing. Points you leave unclaimed can be taken by the computer, and when the computer doesn't claim, you get a Call Muggins! button on your turn: tap it if the ends it left make a multiple of 5. The Easy computer sometimes forgets its own count; Normal and Hard never do.

Leaving Tiles in the Boneyard

In some homes you may draw every tile from the boneyard. In others, the last two tiles stay face down and can never be drawn. That keeps a little mystery right to the end, since nobody can work out exactly where every tile is, and it makes blocked hands a bit more common.

In our game: choose "Leave the last two" in Settings. When only two tiles remain in the boneyard, a player who can't play must pass.

How Much to Draw

We use the most common rule: draw until you can play. A few families draw just one tile and pass if it doesn't fit, which keeps hands shorter and makes holding back tiles riskier. In games with three or four players, many groups stop drawing when two tiles remain.

Who Leads

Our game gives the lead to the highest double in every hand, or to the heaviest tile when no doubles were dealt. Other common customs: the winner of the previous hand leads any tile they like; players take turns leading; or the first hand starts with the highest double and later hands with whatever the leader chooses. Some groups reshuffle when nobody holds a double.

The Spinner

Nearly everyone agrees that the first double is the spinner, but there are two differences worth knowing. Some families let you play on the spinner's long sides straight away, without first covering both ends. And a few let every double spin. Both make the layout bushier and the counts larger. We follow the standard rule: only the first double spins, and its sides open after both ends are covered.

Scoring When You Go Out

We round the opponent's leftover dots to the nearest five, so 12 counts 10 and 13 counts 15. Some players always round up, and others count the exact total of dots. In a blocked hand, some groups give the player with fewer dots the whole of the opponent's total instead of the difference.

Threes and Fives

A popular cousin, often played in British pubs, scores multiples of three as well as multiples of five. A count of 15 scores both ways. It is usually played to 61 on a cribbage board, with one point for each three or five. Our All Fives game sticks to fives only.

What Our Game Does

Our game follows the rules on the How to Play page: double-six set, seven tiles each, the highest double leads, draw until you can play, automatic scoring, and the first to 150 wins. Three of the variations above are built in as house rules: play to 250, the Muggins call, and leaving the last two tiles in the boneyard. Your choices are remembered on your device and used from your next game.

Settings also let you choose the computer's level (Easy, Normal or Hard) and play a particular deal number, so you can replay a hand or share it with a friend. For a different domino game with a branching table, try Chicken Foot.