Gin Rummy
Meld your cards, knock low, and race the computer to 100.
How to play Gin Rummy
You and the computer each hold ten cards. On your turn, draw the face-down stock or the top discard, then discard one card. Arrange your hand into melds: sets of three or four of the same rank, or runs of three or more in the same suit. Leftover cards are your "deadwood". Once your deadwood totals 10 or less, tap KNOCK to end the hand and score the difference; melding every card (zero deadwood) is "gin" for a 25-point bonus. First to 100 points wins the match.
Deadwood is the number that matters
Win at Gin Rummy and you're really just keeping one number low: your deadwood, the value of the cards left over after your melds. Face cards count ten, aces one, everything else its face value. You can knock the moment your deadwood drops to ten or less, so from the first turn you should be shedding big unmatched cards. A stranded King is ten points of dead weight. An unmatched 3 barely stings.
Here's a worked hand. You're dealt three 7s, the 4-5-6 of spades, and a King, a Queen, a 9 and a 2 left over. Two melds are already done, and your deadwood is 10 plus 10 plus 9 plus 2, which is 31. Throw the King first, then the Queen. Two turns later you're at 11, and one decent draw puts you under ten with a knock ready. Beginners hoard those Kings hoping a set arrives. Usually it doesn't, and the hand slips away while they wait.
Middle cards do the most work
Not all cards are equal raw material. A 7 can sit in three different runs (5-6-7, 6-7-8 and 7-8-9) plus a set of 7s. An ace fits one run (A-2-3) and one set, and that's it. So the middle cards, 5 through 9, give you the most ways to finish a meld, and early in the hand they're worth keeping over the edges of the deck. The flip side: your opponent wants them just as badly, which makes middle cards the riskiest discards late in a hand. And remember a card can only serve one meld at a time. That 7 can anchor a run or a set, never both at once.
Read the discard pile
Every card you throw is information, and every card the computer takes is a confession. When it lifts a discard, it just told you what it's building. Don't feed it the neighbours: if it took an 8, sit on your 7s and 9s as long as you can. Your own draws should lean on the face-down stock, which keeps your plans secret, because taking the face-up card announces them. Old gin players even bait the pile. They call it advertising: throwing a card near the one they want, hoping the opponent reads the area as safe and tosses back its neighbour. It works best early, while discards still look innocent.
The pile also tells you which of your own cards are safe to throw. A card is safe when the cards that could use it are dead. If two 8s are already lying in the discards, your 8 can never complete a set of three, so the only danger left is a run in its suit. Check whether the 7 and 9 of that suit have shown up too, and if they have, the 8 is stone cold safe. Late in a hand, this kind of counting is worth more than any clever meld.
Knock early or hold for gin?
Melding every card, zero deadwood, is gin, worth a 25-point bonus on top of the opponent's deadwood. Tempting, but greedy. If your deadwood is already low and the computer looks close to knocking, take the sure points now. A modest knock beats getting undercut, where the opponent turns out to hold equal or lower deadwood and the points swing the other way. Chase gin only when you're genuinely one card away and the discards say you have time. The match runs to 100 points, and steady hands win it more often than hero hands. A 12-point knock you actually collect is worth more than a gin you never finish.
A whist teacher's invention
Gin Rummy has a birth certificate. Elwood T. Baker, a whist teacher from Brooklyn, worked it up in 1909 with his son Charles Graham Baker, who went on to write for the movies. It grew out of the wider rummy family, and the liquor naming was a fashion of the day: one of its ancestors was actually called whiskey poker. The game's big moment came in the 1930s and 40s, when Hollywood adopted it as the between-takes game on studio lots and gossip columns printed the stars' running scores. It suits that setting perfectly. Hands are fast, the decisions are constant and small, and the scoreboard rewards nerve without ever letting luck stop mattering.
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Gin Rummy: frequently asked questions
What is deadwood?
Deadwood is the total value of the cards left in your hand that are not part of any meld (aces = 1, face cards = 10). You can knock once it drops to 10 or fewer.
What is "gin"?
Gin is when all ten of your cards form melds, leaving zero deadwood. It earns a 25-point bonus on top of your opponent’s deadwood, and cannot be undercut.
What is an undercut?
If you knock but the defender’s deadwood is equal to or lower than yours, they undercut you: the defender scores the difference plus a 25-point bonus instead.
Is Gin Rummy free to play?
Yes. Gin Rummy runs free in your browser against the computer, with no download and no sign-up, in a clean style.
What exactly is deadwood?
It's the cards left in your hand that aren't part of any meld, counted by value: face cards ten, aces one, the rest their pip value. The lower your deadwood, the sooner you can knock and the more you score.
When am I allowed to knock?
As soon as your deadwood totals ten points or less. Knocking ends the hand and you score the difference between your deadwood and your opponent's.
What does going gin mean?
Forming melds with every card so you have zero deadwood. Gin earns a 25-point bonus on top of your opponent's deadwood, but reaching it takes longer and carries more risk than a plain knock.
Should I draw from the discard pile or the stock?
Favour the stock. Taking the face-up discard tells the opponent what you're building, whereas the stock keeps your hand secret. Only grab the discard when it clearly completes or strongly advances a meld.
Which cards should I keep early in a hand?
Middle cards, 5 through 9. A 7 can join three different runs plus a set, while an ace or a King has far fewer ways to meld. Keep flexible middle cards and pairs early, and shed lonely high cards while they're still safe to throw.
How does the match end?
The first player to reach 100 points across multiple hands wins the match. Individual hands are scored on the deadwood difference plus any gin bonus.
Is Gin Rummy free to play?
Yes. Gin Rummy is completely free on Inkplay, with no download, no sign-up, and no in-game purchases. Open the page and play instantly on desktop or mobile.
Can I play Gin Rummy unblocked?
Yes. Gin Rummy runs entirely in your browser with no download, install, or plugins, so it loads instantly and keeps working even on school or work networks where bigger game sites get blocked.
More games to play
In the mood for more? Try Chess, Tic Tac Toe, Connect Four, Reversi, or browse all board games and the full games list on Inkplay. Gin Rummy also appears in Card Games.