Hand & Foot is a North American partnership card game related to Canasta, played with five 52-card decks plus ten jokers — 270 cards. Each of the four players is dealt two piles of eleven cards: a hand, played first, and a face-down foot, played only after the hand is used up. On your turn you draw two cards or take the top seven of the discard pile, meld as you wish, and discard one card. Teams score for melded cards, completed books and red threes; after four deals the higher total wins.
Play now — it's freeFive standard 52-card decks are shuffled together with their ten jokers — 270 cards. Card values: 4-5-6-7 count 5; 8-9-10-J-Q-K count 10; aces and deuces (twos) count 20; jokers count 50; black threes count 5.
Twos and jokers are wild cards. The threes are special: red threes (♥3 ♦3) are bonus cards, black threes (♠3 ♣3) are stop cards. All other cards (4 through ace) are natural cards.
Each player receives a hand of 11 cards and a face-down foot of 11 more. Partners sit opposite each other (seats 0/2 vs 1/3). Red threes dealt to your hand are laid face up at once and replaced from the stock; red threes in your foot stay hidden until you pick it up. One card is turned up to start the discard pile — if it is wild or a red three it is buried in the stock and another card is turned.
A turn begins in one of two ways: draw two cards from the stock, or take the top seven cards of the discard pile (the whole pile if it holds fewer than seven). You may then make as many melds as you like, and the turn always ends by discarding one card face up on the pile.
| Action | Rule |
|---|---|
| Draw from stock | Two cards; a drawn red three is tabled at once and replaced, so it never uses up a draw |
| Take the discard pile | Top 7 cards only; the top card must not be a three |
| Taking the pile | You must hold two natural cards matching the top card, and meld them with it immediately |
| End of turn | Discard exactly one card; discarding a black three blocks the next player from taking the pile |
A meld is three to seven cards of the same natural rank (4 up to ace). Wild cards may substitute, but a meld must always contain at least twice as many natural cards as wild cards — a three-card meld can hold one wild, a five- or six-card meld two, and a seven-card meld at most two. A meld made only of wild cards (twos and jokers) is also allowed. Threes can never be melded.
A partnership keeps one open meld per rank, capped at seven cards; once a meld becomes a book you may start a new meld of that rank. A seven-card meld is complete and is called a book.
| Book (7 cards) | Bonus |
|---|---|
| Clean book — no wild cards | 500 |
| Dirty book — contains wild cards | 300 |
| Wild book — all twos and jokers | 1,500 |
Red threes are bonus cards: lay them face up at once and draw a replacement. They score +100 each if your team melded during the deal, and −100 each if it never did. Red threes hiding in a foot you never opened count against you like any leftover card.
Black threes are stop cards: discarding one prevents the next player from taking the discard pile. They cannot be melded and are the safest discard in the game.
Unlike classic Canasta there is no frozen pile in Hand & Foot. Taking the pile simply requires: the top card is not a three, you hold two natural cards of the same rank as the top card (two wilds if the top card is wild), and you immediately lay those cards down with it.
When taking the pile for your team's first meld, only the top card of the pile counts toward the minimum meld requirement — the six cards underneath do not, though you may lay extra melds from your hand at the same time.
The first time a team melds in a deal, the cards laid down must total at least the minimum for that round (red threes and book bonuses do not count):
| Round | Minimum initial meld |
|---|---|
| Deal 1 | 50 |
| Deal 2 | 90 |
| Deal 3 | 120 |
| Deal 4 | 150 |
Example: on deal 1 two fives and the top five of the pile count 15 — not enough. Lay three aces alongside for 60 more and you reach 75, which clears the 50-point minimum.
When your hand is empty you pick up your foot and play on from it. Two ways to get there: meld every card of your hand and pick up the foot at once (you still discard at the end of that turn), or meld all but one card and discard the last — the foot then opens at the start of your next turn.
Going out ends the deal. You may only go out when your team has at least one clean book and one dirty book, and your partner has already picked up their foot. Until then you must always keep at least two cards after melding — one to discard and one to keep playing. Going out scores +100.
The deal also ends when the stock runs out (a player who must draw cannot). No going-out bonus is scored then.
At the end of the deal each team scores its melded cards at face value, plus book bonuses, plus red threes, minus the face value of everything left in hands and unopened feet:
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Each clean book (7 natural cards) | 500 |
| Each dirty book (7 cards with wilds) | 300 |
| Each wild book (7 twos/jokers) | 1,500 |
| Each red three (team melded) | 100 |
| Red threes with no meld at all | −100 each |
| Going out | 100 |
| Cards left in hands and feet | minus face value |
A match is always four deals. Totals accumulate, and the partnership with the higher score after the fourth deal wins (ties are settled without a chip swing).
Never discard a wild card without a reason — it hands a 50-point card to whoever takes the pile.
Save wild cards to finish books: two wilds on five naturals make a 300-point dirty book.
A black three is the safest discard — it blocks the pile for one full turn.
Watch the round ladder: by deal 4 your team needs 150 points to open, so hoard aces and kings before your first meld.
Get into your foot early: your partner cannot go out until you have picked up yours.
Five 52-card decks plus the ten jokers they come with — 270 cards in all (one more deck than players is the classic ratio).
It is best for four players in two fixed partnerships, partners sitting opposite each other.
Two piles of eleven: a hand of 11 cards you play first, and a face-down foot of 11 cards you only touch once the hand is gone.
A completed meld of exactly seven cards of the same rank. A clean book has no wild cards and scores 500, a dirty book contains wilds and scores 300, and a book of pure wild cards scores 1,500.
At most half as many as natural cards: one wild in a three-card meld, two in a five- to seven-card meld. A meld of only twos and jokers is also legal.
The top card must not be a three. You must hold two natural cards matching its rank (two wilds if the top is wild), and you must immediately meld them together with the top card. You take the top seven cards of the pile.
100 points each — plus if your team melded during the deal, minus if it never did. Red threes stuck in an unopened foot count against you like any leftover card.
Discarding one stops the next player from taking the discard pile. Black threes can never be melded.
Either meld your entire hand and pick up the foot at once, or meld all but one card and discard the last — the foot opens at the start of your next turn.
Your team needs at least one clean book and one dirty book, and your partner must already be playing from their foot. Then play every card from your foot (with an optional final discard) for a 100-point bonus.
A match is four deals, each with a higher minimum meld requirement: 50, 90, 120 and 150 points. The highest total after four deals wins.
Yes — you can play Hand & Foot online free at handfoot.yeeqia.com directly in your browser, no download or sign-up required.