How to Play Whist
Whist ruled the card tables of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries before Bridge grew out of it. The rules fit on a card; the skill is in the play.
The rules
- Four players in two partnerships, sitting opposite: you and North against West and East. The pack is dealt out, thirteen each.
- The dealer's last card is turned up and its suit is trumps.
- The player left of the dealer leads. Follow suit if you can; otherwise play any card. The highest trump wins the trick, or the highest card of the suit led if no trump was played. The winner leads next.
- After thirteen tricks, each trick a partnership took beyond six scores one point.
- The deal passes to the left. The first partnership to five points wins.
Playing on kawu
Click a card to play it; cards you can't play are dimmed. The trump card, hand number and score sit in the corner. Hint suggests a card.
Next, read the Whist strategy.
Frequently asked questions
Does the dealer have to show the trump card?
Yes. The dealer's thirteenth card is dealt face up to name trumps, then taken into hand. On kawu it's shown in the corner all hand long.
Are there honours?
Not here. kawu plays the plain modern form: only tricks over six count. Ace, king, queen and jack of trumps score nothing extra.
Can partners signal?
No talking and no signals: your partner is a computer that plays its own hand. You read it only through the cards it plays.
Last updated 2026-10-21