How to Play Thirteen (Tiến Lên)
Thirteen is the national card game of Vietnam, where it is called Tiến Lên, which means "go forward" or "advance". Families play it at the New Year, at weddings and on any ordinary evening, and it has traveled with Vietnamese families all over the world. If you grew up with games where the Ace is high and you match suits, Thirteen will feel a little upside down at first: the 2 is the best card, suits have a ranking of their own, and you can play several cards at once. Give it two or three hands and it clicks. This page explains the rules step by step, exactly as our free online Thirteen game plays them.
What You Need
- One ordinary deck of 52 cards, with the jokers taken out.
- Four players is best. Two or three can play too; everyone still gets 13 cards and the rest stay out of the game.
- Paper and a pencil if you want to keep score over several hands.
The Object of the Game
Be the first player to get rid of all 13 of your cards. There is no trump, no tricks to count and no melds to lay down: just a race to empty your hand. The player who goes out first wins the hand, and the others keep playing to decide second, third and last place.
The Card Order
This is the one thing to learn before anything else. In Thirteen the cards rank like this, from lowest to highest:
3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King, Ace, 2
So the 3s are the weakest cards in the deck and the 2s are the strongest. When two cards have the same rank, the suit breaks the tie:
Spades ♠ (lowest), Clubs ♣, Diamonds ♦, Hearts ♥ (highest)
That means the very lowest card in the deck is the 3 of spades and the very highest is the 2 of hearts. The 9 of hearts beats the 9 of diamonds, but any 10 beats any 9. An easy way to remember the suits: the two black suits are below the two red ones, and in each color the suit that comes first in the alphabet is lower.
On this site: your hand is always sorted in Thirteen order, lowest on the left, and a small key at the top of the table shows "Low 3 4 5 … K A 2 High" and "♠ < ♣ < ♦ < ♥" the whole time.
The Deal
Shuffle and deal the cards one at a time until every player has 13. With four players that uses the whole deck. With two or three players, put the leftover cards aside face down; nobody looks at them.
The Combinations
On your turn you play one of these, face up in the middle of the table:
| Combination | What it is | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Single | Any one card | 8♦ |
| Pair | Two cards of the same rank | J♠ J♥ |
| Three of a kind | Three cards of the same rank | 5♣ 5♦ 5♥ |
| Four of a kind | All four cards of one rank | 9♠ 9♣ 9♦ 9♥ |
| Run | Three or more ranks in a row, any suits | 6♠ 7♥ 8♣ 9♣ |
| Double run | Three or more pairs in a row | 4♠ 4♦ 5♣ 5♥ 6♠ 6♣ |
A run can be as long as you like, from three cards up to twelve (3 through Ace), and its suits do not have to match. A 2 can never be part of a run, and runs do not wrap around: Queen-King-Ace is a run, but King-Ace-2 and Ace-2-3 are not.
Starting the Game
The player who holds the 3 of spades goes first, and that first play must include it. They may play it alone, or as part of a pair of 3s, a run starting 3-4-5, or any other combination that contains it. (With fewer than four players the 3 of spades might not have been dealt; then whoever holds the lowest card dealt starts with it instead.) Play then goes around the table.
In later hands of the same game, the winner of the previous hand leads first and may play anything.
Beating the Play
When it is your turn and there are cards on the table, you have two choices: beat them, or pass. To beat a play you must answer with the same kind of combination with the same number of cards, and a higher top card. The top card is simply the highest card in the combination.
- A single is beaten by a higher single.
- A pair is beaten by a higher pair. 9♣ 9♥ beats 9♠ 9♦, because its top card, the 9♥, is higher than the 9♦.
- A run of four is beaten only by a run of four with a higher top card. A run of five will not do, and neither will a run of three.
- A double run of three pairs is beaten by a higher double run of three pairs.
You never have to play, even if you can. Sometimes passing is the smart choice, to keep a pair or a run in one piece.
Passing and Rounds
Once you pass, you are out of that round. You cannot come back in, even if the play comes around to something you could beat. The others keep going until everyone but one player has passed. That player, the last one to play, clears the table and starts a new round by leading any combination they like.
If the last player to play has just gone out, the lead passes to the next player still holding cards.
A Worked Example
Four players sit around the table: you, Lan on your left, then Frank, then Dot.
- You hold the 3♠, so you start. You lead a run: 3♠ 4♦ 5♣.
- Lan plays 6♠ 7♠ 8♥, a higher run of three.
- Frank has no run of three that beats 8♥, so he passes. He is out until this round ends.
- Dot holds 6♣ 7♦ 8♠, but its top card, the 8♠, is lower than Lan's 8♥, so it is not allowed. She plays 9♠ 10♦ J♣ instead.
- You pass. Lan passes. Frank is already out of the round.
- Everyone else has passed, so Dot clears the table and leads anything she likes. She leads a single 4♥, and a new round begins with everyone back in.
Bombs: Beating the 2s
Because the 2 is the highest card, a single 2 would be almost impossible to beat. Thirteen has a special answer, usually called a bomb:
- Four of a kind beats a single 2.
- A double run of three pairs (like 5-5-6-6-7-7) beats a single 2.
- A double run of four pairs (like 8-8-9-9-10-10-J-J) beats a pair of 2s, and a single 2 too.
After a bomb, the next player must beat the bomb itself, with a higher four of a kind or a higher double run of the same length. In our game bombs are on unless you switch them off in Settings; see the variations page for other ways families play them.
Going Out and Places
The first player to play their last card wins the hand. The round they finished in carries on without them, and the others keep playing for second and third place. When only one player still holds cards, they take last place and the hand is over. (Settings also lets you end the hand as soon as the first player goes out. The others are then placed by how many cards they still hold.)
Scoring
Thirteen has no single official scoring system. Our game uses a simple one based on finishing places, added up over a set number of hands (five, unless you choose another length):
| Place | Four players | Three players | Two players |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 3 points | 2 points | 1 point |
| 2nd | 2 points | 1 point | 0 points |
| 3rd | 1 point | 0 points | — |
| 4th | 0 points | — | — |
The highest total after the last hand wins the game. If two players are tied for the lead, one more hand is played, and so on until there is a clear winner. If you prefer, Settings can count wins only: one point for each hand you win.
Quick Answers to Common Questions
Can I play a run that includes a 2?
No. 2s can be played as singles, pairs, three or four of a kind, but never in a run or a double run.
Does the suit matter in a run?
Only for the top card. 6♠ 7♠ 8♥ beats 6♦ 7♦ 8♦ because the 8♥ is higher than the 8♦.
Can I pass and then play later in the same round?
No. Once you pass, you wait until the round ends and someone leads again.
Can I lead a 2?
Yes, you may lead anything, but a lone 2 is usually more useful later, to win a round when you need the lead.
Ready to Play?
In our game, you tap cards to pick them and the message box tells you exactly what you have picked and whether it beats the table. The Play button only appears when your play is allowed, and Suggest a Play shows you what you can play. When you are ready to win more often, read the strategy guide. If you enjoy racing to empty your hand, you may also like Crazy Eights and Idiot.