How to Count a Cribbage Hand
To count a cribbage hand, add your four cards to the starter card and score, in order: fifteens (2 points each), pairs (2 each), runs (1 point per card, three or more in a row), a flush (4 points, or 5 with the starter) and nobs (1 point for a jack matching the starter suit). Every different combination counts, so one card can score several times. The highest hand is 29.
The five ways a hand scores
You count four cards in your hand plus the starter card (the card cut from the deck). The starter belongs to every hand and to the crib, so you always count five cards. Ace is low and worth 1. Jacks, queens and kings are each worth 10 when you add up fifteens.
| Score | Points | What counts |
|---|---|---|
| Fifteen | 2 each | Every different group of cards that adds to 15 |
| Pair | 2 each | Every pair of the same rank (three of a kind is 3 pairs = 6, four of a kind is 6 pairs = 12) |
| Run | 1 per card | Three or more cards in sequence, any suits, ace low (Q-K-A is not a run) |
| Flush | 4 or 5 | Four cards in your hand of one suit = 4, or 5 if the starter matches too. In the crib only a 5-card flush counts. |
| Nobs | 1 | The jack in your hand that matches the suit of the starter |
Count in this order
Most mistakes come from counting in a random order. Take the same path every time.
- Fifteens first. Look for pairs of cards that make 15 (a 5 with any ten-card, a 6 with a 9, a 7 with an 8), then three-card and four-card groups. Each group is 2 points, and the same card can appear in several groups.
- Pairs. Two points for each pair.
- Runs. Three points for a run of three, four for a run of four, five for a run of five.
- Flush. Check the four hand cards, then the starter.
- Nobs. Look for a jack that matches the starter suit.
Say it out loud as you go. "Fifteen two, fifteen four, fifteen six, and a pair is eight" is faster and harder to get wrong than adding silently.
Worked example 1: a double run
7♥ 8♠ 8♦ 9♣ + starter 6♥
- Fifteens: 6+9, 7+8 (spade), 7+8 (diamond). Three groups = 6.
- Pair: the two 8s = 2.
- Runs: 6-7-8-9 can be built two ways (with either 8) = 4 + 4 = 8.
Total: 16.
Worked example 2: a double double run
4♥ 4♠ 5♦ 6♣ + starter 6♥
- Fifteens: 4+5+6, built with either 4 and either 6. Four groups = 8.
- Pairs: the two 4s and the two 6s = 4.
- Runs: 4-5-6 with two choices of 4 and two choices of 6 = four runs of three = 12.
Total: 24.
Worked example 3: a triple run
7♥ 7♠ 8♦ 9♣ + starter 7♦
- Fifteens: 7+8, once with each of the three 7s = 6.
- Pairs: three 7s make 3 pairs = 6.
- Runs: 7-8-9 with three choices of 7 = three runs of three = 9.
Total: 21.
Worked example 4: the flush and the starter
2♥ 6♥ 9♥ K♥ + starter 3♠
- Fifteens: 6+9, and 2+3+K = 4.
- Flush: four hearts in the hand = 4. The starter is a spade, so it stays 4.
Total: 8. If the starter had been the 3♥, the flush becomes 5 and the total is 9.
In the crib the same four hearts score nothing with the 3♠ starter, and score 5 with the 3♥ starter. The crib needs all five cards in one suit. Some tables play a different crib flush rule, so agree it before the first deal.
Worked example 5: nobs
J♦ 2♣ 6♠ 8♥ + starter 3♦
- Fifteens: J+2+3 = 15, so 2 points.
- Nobs: the jack of diamonds matches the diamond starter = 1.
Total: 3. With a 3♣ starter instead, the jack no longer matches and the hand is worth 2.
Run and pair values worth memorizing
Once you count a few hundred hands, these shapes become one glance instead of an addition. The numbers below are the runs and pairs only, without fifteens.
| Shape | Example | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Run of 3, 4 or 5 | 4-5-6 | 3, 4 or 5 |
| Three of a kind | 9-9-9 | 6 |
| Four of a kind | 7-7-7-7 | 12 |
| Double run of 3 | 4-4-5-6 | 8 |
| Double run of 4 | 6-7-8-8-9 | 10 |
| Triple run | 7-7-7-8-9 | 15 |
| Double double run | 3-3-4-4-5 | 16 |
The 29 hand and the scores that never happen
The best possible hand is three 5s and the jack of the starter's suit, with the fourth 5 as the starter: 5♣ 5♦ 5♥ J♠ + starter 5♠.
- Fifteens: each of the four 5s with the jack (4 groups) plus every set of three 5s (4 groups) = 8 groups = 16.
- Pairs: four 5s make 6 pairs = 12.
- Nobs: the jack of spades matches the starter = 1.
That is 29. The same hand with the jack in the wrong suit is 28. I ran every possible four-card hand and starter through Cribbage Trainer's scoring code. The top score is 29, and a hand can never score 19, 25, 26 or 27. If you count one of those, recount.
Common counting mistakes
- Forgetting that a queen or king is worth 10 toward fifteens, but still ranks above a jack for runs and pairs. A jack and a queen are not a pair.
- Stopping at the first fifteen. A 5 with three ten-cards is three fifteens, not one.
- Counting a three-card flush. Three hand cards plus the starter in one suit scores nothing.
- Counting the nobs jack when it matches the suit of a card in your hand instead of the starter.
- Counting a run that wraps. Ace is low only.
The dealer's two points when the starter is a jack ("his heels") are pegged right when the card is turned, not in the count.
How Cribbage Trainer helps
Cribbage Trainer is a free iPhone and iPad practice app. Its Scoring Room and hand reading drills show you five cards and ask for the count, then explain each fifteen, pair, run and flush. The scoring rules in the app follow the table above, with aces low, no wrapping runs, and the 5-card crib flush. The app has no opponents and works offline, so five minutes in a waiting room is a few dozen hands.
Practice counting until it is automatic
Cribbage Trainer drills fifteens, pairs, runs, flushes and nobs on real hands, with the reasoning for every answer. Free on iPhone and iPad.
See Cribbage TrainerQuestions
How do you count a cribbage hand?
Add the four cards in your hand to the starter card, then score fifteens (2 points each), pairs (2 each), runs (1 per card), a flush (4 or 5) and nobs (1). Count in that order so you do not miss overlapping combinations.
What is the highest hand in cribbage?
29 points: three 5s and a jack in the hand, with the fourth 5 as the starter, and the jack matching the starter suit. The same hand with the jack in a different suit scores 28.
Can you score 19 in cribbage?
No. A cribbage hand can score 0 to 29, but 19, 25, 26 and 27 are impossible. If you count one of those totals, recount the hand.
Does a flush count in the crib?
Only if all five cards, the four crib cards and the starter, are the same suit. That scores 5. A four-card flush in the crib scores nothing, unlike a hand.
Do face cards make a pair in cribbage?
Only if they are the same rank. A jack and a queen are both worth 10 for fifteens, but they are different ranks, so they do not make a pair. Two kings do.
Sources
House rules vary, especially around the crib flush. Use the rules agreed at your table. Cribbage Trainer is an independent app and is not affiliated with any cribbage organization.