The easiest five-player version of Spades is cutthroat Spades, in which all five players play individually. Remove the 2♦ and 2♥, deal 10 cards to each player, and set the two remaining cards aside. Each player bids and scores separately, and the hand lasts 10 tricks.
Five-Player Spades at a Glance
| Rule | Five-player setup |
|---|---|
| Players | 5 individual players |
| Deck | Standard 52-card deck |
| Cards removed | 2♦ and 2♥ |
| Cards per player | 10 |
| Cards set aside | 2, face down |
| Tricks per hand | 10 |
| Partnerships | None |
| Trump suit | Spades |
| Target score | Usually 500 points |
1. Prepare the Deck and Deal
- Remove the 2 of diamonds and 2 of hearts.
- Shuffle the remaining 50 cards.
- Deal 10 cards to each player.
- Set the two leftover cards aside without looking at them.
- Choose a dealer. The player to the dealer's left leads the first trick.
Each player plays for themselves. The two undealt cards stay out of the hand.
2. Bid the Number of Tricks You Expect to Win
Starting with the player to the dealer's left, each player announces a bid from 0 to 10. The bid is the number of tricks that player expects to win.
For example:
- Player 1 bids 3
- Player 2 bids 1
- Player 3 bids 2
- Player 4 bids 0
- Player 5 bids 2
The bids do not have to add up to 10. There are always 10 tricks in the hand.
A bid of zero is called nil. Agree on nil scoring before the game starts.
3. Play the Tricks
The player to the dealer's left leads the first trick. Players must follow the suit led when possible. A player who cannot follow suit may play any card, including a spade.
The highest card in the led suit wins unless a spade is played. Any spade beats every non-spade card. When more than one spade is played, the highest spade wins.
The winner of each trick leads the next one.
Card rank runs from high to low:
Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3
Spades are always trump. Under standard rules, players cannot lead spades until someone has used a spade to trump another suit. If a player has only spades left, that player may lead one. This is called breaking spades.
4. Score Each Player After 10 Tricks
Score every player separately.
- Making the bid: 10 points for each trick bid
- Extra tricks: 1 point for each trick above the bid
- Missing the bid: lose 10 points for each trick bid
Example: Making a Bid
A player bids 3 and wins 4 tricks:
- Contract points: 30
- Extra trick: 1 point
- Total: 31 points
Example: Missing a Bid
A player bids 3 and wins 2 tricks:
- Score: −30 points
A game often ends when a player reaches 500 points. For a shorter game, agree on a target of 300 points instead.
Optional Rules to Agree on First
Decide these rules before dealing:
- Are nil bids allowed?
- Does reaching 10 bags cause a −100-point penalty?
- Must spades be broken before they can be led?
- Does the game end at 300 or 500 points?
- If two players reach the target score in the same hand, who wins?
For a straightforward first game, use the following settings:
- Allow nil bids.
- Apply a −100-point penalty at 10 bags.
- Require spades to be broken before they can be led.
- Play to 500 points.
- If multiple players reach 500 in the same hand, the highest score wins.
Alternative: Rotate One Player Out
For traditional team-based Spades, four people can play in two partnerships while the fifth person sits out. Rotate the sitting-out player after each complete game and change the partnerships.
This keeps the standard four-player format, with 13 cards per player, but one person is inactive during each hand. Cutthroat Spades works better when all five people want to play every round.