How to Play Hearts

The Objective of Hearts

The goal in Hearts is simple: have the lowest score when any player reaches 100 points.

Most cards score zero points, but:
- Each Heart card = 1 point
- The Queen of Spades = 13 points

You want to avoid taking these cards in tricks — unless you attempt to take ALL of them (called Shooting the Moon).

Setup and Deal

Hearts is played with a standard 52-card deck and exactly 4 players. Each player receives 13 cards dealt face-down.

Card ranking (high to low): A K Q J 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2

Before play begins, each player passes 3 cards face-down to another player:
- Round 1: Pass to the player on your left
- Round 2: Pass to the player on your right
- Round 3: Pass to the player across from you
- Round 4: No passing (keep all cards)

How to Play a Round

The player holding the 2 of Clubs leads the first trick by playing it face-up.

Play continues clockwise. Each player must follow suit (play a card of the same suit as the lead card). If you have no cards of that suit, you may play any card.

The player who plays the highest card of the lead suit wins the trick and leads the next one.

Important rules:
- You cannot lead with a Heart until Hearts have been 'broken' (a Heart has been played on a previous trick)
- The Queen of Spades can be played at any time once you have no Spades
- You cannot play a Heart or the Queen of Spades on the first trick

Scoring in Hearts

After all 13 tricks are played, count penalty points:

| Card | Points |
|------|--------|
| Each Heart | 1 point |
| Queen of Spades | 13 points |
| All other cards | 0 points |

Add each player's points to their running total. The game ends when any player hits 100 or more points — the player with the lowest total wins.

Maximum per round: 26 points (13 Hearts + Queen of Spades).

Shooting the Moon

If one player takes ALL 13 Hearts AND the Queen of Spades in a single round, they have Shoot the Moon.

Instead of scoring 26 points, the shooter scores 0 and every other player scores 26.

Alternatively (depending on house rules), the shooter may choose to subtract 26 from their own score instead.

Shooting the moon is high-risk but can completely change the game's outcome. Experienced players watch for and block moon attempts.

Passing Strategy

The passing phase is where the game is often won or lost. Key passing principles:

Pass high Spades — The Ace, King, and Queen of Spades are dangerous. Pass the Ace and King of Spades unless you have 4+ Spades to protect the Queen.

Keep your Queen of Spades if you have 4+ Spades — You can protect the Queen by never being forced to play it.

Pass dangerous singletons and doubletons — A single card of a suit means you'll be forced to discard on that suit. If it's a penalty card, pass it.

Keep low cards — Low cards (2, 3, 4) let you duck tricks and avoid taking penalties.

Winning Strategy Tips

1. Count the Hearts played. Track how many Hearts have appeared. If 11 Hearts are gone, only 2 remain — plan accordingly.

2. Watch for moon attempts. If a player takes the first 3 tricks and collects several Hearts, they may be attempting the moon. Other players should sacrifice points to break the attempt.

3. Void a suit early. If you have only 1-2 cards of a suit, play them out quickly. Once you're void in that suit, you can dump Hearts or the Queen of Spades when it's led.

4. Lead low from long suits. Long suits let you control the lead. Lead low cards to force others to play high.

5. Don't underestimate the Queen of Spades. At 13 points, taking it once can cost you the game. Protect yourself with multiple Spades, or get rid of Spades entirely early.