What is the goal of Hearts?

The goal of Hearts is to score as few points as possible. Hearts is an avoidance game, so unlike most trick-taking games you do not want to win tricks that contain penalty cards. Each heart you capture is worth 1 point and the Queen of Spades is worth 13. A game usually runs deal after deal until someone reaches 100 points, and the player with the lowest total at that point wins.

How does passing cards work in Hearts?

Before each deal, players pass three cards face down to another player, chosen before they see the cards coming back to them. The direction rotates every deal: left on the first hand, right on the second, across (to the player opposite) on the third, and a hold hand with no passing on the fourth, then the cycle repeats. Passing is used to offload high hearts, the Queen of Spades and high spades, or to create a void in a suit.

What does breaking hearts mean?

Breaking hearts means a heart has been played into a trick for the first time, which happens when a player who cannot follow the suit led discards a heart. Until hearts are broken, no one is allowed to lead a trick with a heart. Once broken, hearts can be led normally for the rest of the hand. The rule prevents the game from collapsing into hearts on the very first lead.

What is shooting the moon in Hearts?

Shooting the moon is when one player captures all 13 hearts and the Queen of Spades in a single deal. Instead of taking the full 26 penalty points, that player scores 0 and every opponent is hit with 26 points each. It is a high-risk, high-reward play: if even one heart ends up in another player's tricks, the attempt fails and the shooter keeps the points they collected. Some versions let the shooter subtract 26 from their own score instead.

How many points is the Queen of Spades worth in Hearts?

The Queen of Spades is worth 13 penalty points, the same as taking all 13 hearts combined. That makes her the single most dangerous card in the game. Much of Hearts strategy is about avoiding the Queen: leading spades to flush her out if you do not hold her, or finding a safe trick to discard her on if you do.

Which card leads the first trick in Hearts?

The player holding the 2 of Clubs must lead it to start the first trick of every hand. Everyone follows suit if they can. Penalty cards (any heart or the Queen of Spades) cannot be played on this opening trick, so even a player who is void in clubs must discard a non-penalty card unless their entire hand is penalty cards, which almost never happens.

How to Play Hearts: Rules & Strategy

Hearts is a classic four-player trick-taking game where the goal is the opposite of most card games: you want as few points as possible. This guide covers the full rules, card passing, scoring, breaking hearts and shooting the moon, plus the beginner strategy that turns lucky wins into consistent ones.

What is Hearts?

Hearts is a trick-taking game from the same family as Whist and Spades, but with a twist that makes it stand out: it is an avoidance game. Instead of trying to win tricks and points, you are trying to dodge them. Every heart you collect is worth a point, the Queen of Spades is worth a punishing 13, and the player with the lowest score at the end wins.

It is normally played by exactly four players, each playing for themselves, using a standard 52-card deck with no jokers. There is no trump suit, so the highest card of the suit led always wins the trick. That simple setup hides a surprising amount of depth, which is why Hearts has stayed popular for over a century and remains one of the most-played games online.

Setup and the deal

Shuffle a standard 52-card deck and deal all the cards out, 13 to each of the four players. Cards rank in the usual order within each suit, with the Ace high and the 2 low. There are no wild cards and no trumps.

The aim across a full game is to keep your running total as low as possible. A game typically continues, deal after deal, until someone reaches 100 points, at which point the game ends and whoever has the fewest points is the winner.

Passing cards

Before play begins each deal, players pass three cards from their hand to another player. This is your first chance to shape your hand, getting rid of dangerous cards before anyone has played a single trick. You choose and pass your three cards face down before looking at the cards coming to you.

The direction of the pass rotates each deal in a fixed cycle:

First deal: pass three cards to the player on your left.
Second deal: pass three cards to the player on your right.
Third deal: pass three cards across the table to the player opposite you.
Fourth deal: a hold hand with no passing at all.

Then the cycle repeats. Passing is a key skill: most players use it to dump high hearts, the Queen of Spades, or to deliberately create a void (an empty suit) so they can throw penalty cards away later.

How a hand is played

Play moves clockwise, one card per player per trick. A few firm rules govern every trick:

The 2 of Clubs always leads the first trick. Whoever holds it must play it to start the hand.
You must follow suit. If you have a card in the suit that was led, you must play one. Only if you are void in that suit may you play something else.
No trumps. The highest card of the suit led wins the trick, and that player leads the next one.
No penalty cards on the first trick. You may not play any heart or the Queen of Spades on the opening trick, even if you cannot follow clubs (unless your entire hand is penalty cards, which is extremely rare).

The winner of each trick collects those four cards face down and leads to the next trick. This continues until all 13 tricks are played, then points are tallied.

Breaking hearts

You cannot simply lead a heart whenever you like. Hearts must be broken first. A heart is broken when a player, unable to follow the suit led, discards a heart into a trick. Until that happens, no one is allowed to lead with a heart.

Once hearts are broken, they may be led normally for the rest of the hand. This rule stops the game from collapsing into hearts on the very first lead and gives everyone a chance to organise their hand first.

Scoring

At the end of each hand, players count the penalty cards they captured in their tricks:

Each heart is worth 1 point (13 hearts, so 13 points are in play).
The Queen of Spades is worth 13 points on its own.

That makes 26 penalty points available in every deal. Remember, these are bad: the player with the lowest total when someone crosses 100 points wins the game. Because of this, the Queen of Spades dominates the game. Capturing her is as costly as taking every single heart, so much of Hearts strategy revolves around who gets stuck with that one card.

Shooting the moon

Here is the brilliant gamble that gives Hearts its edge. If a single player manages to capture all 13 hearts and the Queen of Spades in one deal, that is called shooting the moon. Instead of taking a disastrous 26 points, that player scores 0, and every other player is hit with 26 points each.

Shooting the moon is a high-risk, high-reward play. It can flip a losing game in a single hand, but if even one heart slips into an opponent's pile, your plan collapses and you keep all the points you collected. Crucially, the threat of the moon shapes defensive play too: if you see one player hoovering up hearts, you may deliberately take a single heart yourself to spoil their run. (Many versions offer the shooter an alternative of subtracting 26 from their own score instead, but adding 26 to everyone else is the most common rule.)

Beginner strategy that actually works

Once you know the rules, a handful of habits will quickly lift you above casual play.

Pass dangerous cards early

Use your pass to offload trouble. The Queen of Spades, the Ace and King of Spades (which can force you to take the Queen), and your highest hearts are prime candidates. Passing high spades is often safer than keeping them and being forced to win the Queen.

Create and exploit voids

If you can pass away every card of one suit, you become void in it. Later, when that suit is led, you can legally discard a heart or even the Queen of Spades onto someone else's trick. A short suit is one of the most powerful tools in the game.

Get rid of high cards safely

High cards are liabilities because they win tricks you do not want. Play your dangerous high cards on tricks where the points are low or where someone else is already winning, so you shed risk without collecting penalties.

Control the Queen of Spades

If you do not hold the Queen, lead spades to flush her out of an opponent's hand, ideally forcing whoever holds her to play it on a trick they cannot avoid winning. If you do hold her, look for a safe moment to discard her on a trick led in another suit when you are void in spades.

Watch the table

Track which suits have been led and who failed to follow, so you know who is void. If one opponent is collecting suspiciously many hearts, recognise a possible moon attempt early and break it by taking a heart yourself.

How Hearts compares to other trick-taking games

If you enjoy Hearts, the trick-taking family has plenty more to explore, and the skills transfer directly. Spades and Callbreak flip the goal on its head: there you bid for tricks and trumps matter. Court Piece and 29 are partnership trick-takers with trump suits and rich bidding, while Euchre is a fast, four-player classic built around a small deck and a chosen trump. For something looser and more casual, 99 and Crazy Eights reward a completely different kind of thinking. Learning Hearts first gives you a strong feel for following suit, counting cards and managing voids that pays off across all of them.

Play now

Ready to dodge the Queen and try shooting the moon? Play Hearts free online at Love Card Games against smart bots or real people, with no download and no signup, straight in your browser. When you want a new challenge, the full lineup of free card games is waiting on the Love Card Games homepage.