How to Play Fifty

By Jaques of London · Est. 1795 · Updated 2026-08-17

Fifty is a straightforward dice game for two to four players built entirely around rolling doubles. Each combination of matching dice scores differently, and one dreaded result wipes points from your total, which keeps every turn tense regardless of how far ahead you are.

It travels well, needs only two standard dice and something to keep score with, and plays quickly enough for a kitchen table between other things. It is a firm favourite at family gatherings precisely because the rules take under a minute to explain yet the swings in fortune keep everyone watching every throw.

A little history

The precise origins of Fifty are unclear. It belongs to a wide family of simple doubles-based dice games that have circulated in Britain and North America for generations, passed on informally rather than through any single published ruleset. No definitive first printed source has been reliably identified, and the game is best understood as traditional folk play.

Setting up

1. Seat two to four players around a flat surface.
2. Designate one player as scorekeeper, or give each player their own score sheet.
3. Write every player's name at the top of the scoring area with a starting total of zero.
4. Decide who goes first, commonly by each player rolling one die and the highest going first, with play continuing clockwise.

How to play

1. On your turn, roll both dice together.
2. If the two dice show different numbers, your score does not change. Your turn ends.
3. If both dice show the same number, consult the scoring rule for that double (see Winning section for the full table).
4. Apply the score change to your running total immediately.
5. Play passes clockwise to the next player.
6. If a score penalty takes your total below zero, your score stays at zero rather than going negative, unless your group has agreed otherwise before the game.
7. Continue until one player reaches exactly 50 or, depending on the version played, reaches 50 or more. Agree which rule applies before starting.
8. If playing the exact-50 rule, a result that would take a player beyond 50 is ignored and their score stays where it was.

Winning and scoring

The first player to reach the agreed target wins. The standard scoring for doubles is as follows. Double 1 scores 3 points. Double 2 scores 0 points and has no effect. Double 3 scores 3 points. Double 4 scores 0 points and has no effect. Double 5 scores 25 points. Double 6 subtracts 6 points from your current total. In many traditional versions of the game, double 6 is the only result that changes your score negatively, making it the result every player dreads. Some groups treat double 2 and double 4 as scoring zero with no effect, while others treat them as losing turns. Agree on this before play begins. The winning condition is typically the first player to reach exactly 50, though a simpler version accepts 50 or more.

The fine points

The most common dispute concerns what happens when a player's score would go below zero after rolling double 6. The standard ruling is that the score floor is zero: the penalty applies only to the extent the total allows, and no player records a negative score. If two players reach 50 on the same round, the winner is the player who reached it first in turn order that round, not a shared victory.

The exact-50 rule produces a second common dispute: if a player needs 3 points to win and rolls double 5 for 25 points, does the roll simply not count or does the player bust back to a lower total? The majority traditional ruling is that the roll is void and the score unchanged. Busting back to zero or to half the total are regional variants that should be declared at the start, not introduced mid-game when they suit someone.

How to win more often

• Track how far you are from 50 before each roll. If you are close, a double 5 will overshoot under exact-50 rules, so manage expectations rather than assuming a big roll will finish the game.
• Pay attention to opponents' totals. If someone is on 47 and needs 3 to win, they need a double 1 or double 3. Knowing the exact doubles they need helps you understand the probability of the game ending on their next turn.
• Double 5 is the most powerful single result, jumping you 25 points in one throw. Early in the game, reaching a total around 22 to 25 means a double 5 would land you near or on 50, which is often the fastest route to winning.
• Do not ignore the double 6 risk when you are on a high score. Being on 48 and rolling double 6 drops you to 42, which is a painful but recoverable position. Being on 6 and rolling double 6 returns you to zero, which is far more damaging in a short game.
• With younger players, consider playing to 50 or more rather than exactly 50. It removes the overshoot frustration and keeps the game moving.

Variations

Fifty or More

In this simpler version, a player wins by reaching 50 or any total above it. There is no overshoot penalty: if you are on 40 and roll double 5 for 25 points, your total becomes 65 and you win immediately. This version suits younger players or anyone who finds the exact-target rule frustrating.

One Hundred

The target is raised to 100, making the game considerably longer and increasing the chance that double 6 will swing the outcome late on. All other rules remain the same. Double 5 remains the standout result since it can cover a quarter of the target in a single roll, which keeps that particular combination exciting throughout a longer game.

Bust Back to Zero

Under this harsher variant, if a roll would take a player's total past the target, their score resets to zero rather than staying unchanged. This dramatically increases the tension in the late game and can make a player who was about to win completely start over. It is a punishing rule that suits groups wanting a longer, higher-variance game.

Team Fifty

With four players, split into two teams of two sitting alternately around the table. Each team maintains a single shared score and players take turns within the normal turn order. A team wins when its shared total reaches 50. Strategy becomes collaborative, and a single double 6 from one team member directly sets back a partner who may have spent several turns building the total.

Fifty: frequently asked questions