How to Play Pai Gow

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

Pai Gow is a Chinese domino game played with a set of 32 tiles, traditionally between two and four players plus a rotating banker. Each player receives four tiles and must split them into a high hand and a low hand, then beat the banker's equivalent pairs to win. The combination of memory, tile ranking and tactical hand-splitting gives the game genuine depth without overwhelming complexity.

Pai Gow is most commonly played in Chinese communities worldwide and appears in many casinos across Asia, the United States and the United Kingdom. Home play between friends and family is equally widespread. Its pace is measured and social, making it a favourite for longer evening sessions where conversation is as important as competition.

A little history

Pai Gow is traditionally associated with China, and the name is widely translated as 'make nine' or understood to reference a score of nine, which is one of the strongest values in the game. Its precise origins are unclear: the game is generally believed to have developed in China several centuries ago and to have spread through Chinese diaspora communities across South-East Asia and later the Western world. Documented records of formalised tile rankings and banking rules are largely nineteenth and twentieth century in origin, and much earlier history is a matter of tradition rather than verified record.

Setting up

1. Seat all players around the table. Agree on the number of rounds or a target score before starting.
2. Shuffle all 32 tiles face-down on the table by mixing them thoroughly with both hands. This is called 'washing' the tiles.
3. Each player rolls the three dice, or one designated player rolls for all. The player with the highest total becomes the first banker. Ties are re-rolled.
4. Stack the washed tiles into eight face-down stacks of four tiles each.
5. The banker rolls the three dice. The total determines, using a counting system going clockwise from the banker, which stack is dealt first and to whom.
6. Deal four tiles to each player and four to the banker, beginning with the player indicated by the dice count and proceeding clockwise. In a two-player game, deal only two hands: one to the player, one to the banker.
7. Players pick up their tiles and keep them concealed from opponents.

How to play

1. Each player privately examines their four tiles and arranges them into two pairs: a high hand (the stronger pair) and a low hand (the weaker pair). Set the high hand face-down farthest from you, the low hand nearest to you.
2. Tile values: each tile has two ends with pip counts. The value of a pair is determined by the ranking system below, not simply by pip totals. Learn the ranking order before play.
3. Tile ranking (from highest to lowest pair): the Supreme Pair (Gee Joon tiles: 2-1 and 4-2, which count as 3 or 6 and rank above all others), then the six Civil pairs in order (double-six, double-one, double-four, double-three, double-five, double-two), then the eight Military pairs, ranked by pip total. Within Military tiles, if two tiles share the same pip total they form a pair of equal rank; otherwise the higher pip total wins.
4. A single tile's value for scoring purposes is the sum of its two ends, taking only the units digit. So a 6-5 tile scores 1, a 5-4 scores 9, a 6-3 scores 9, and so on. Nine is the highest single-tile score.
5. Special tile scores: the two Gee Joon tiles (2-1 and 4-2) each count as either 3 or 6, whichever produces the better result for the hand in context.
6. When all players are ready, everyone reveals their tiles simultaneously. The banker reveals last.
7. Compare each player's high hand against the banker's high hand, and each player's low hand against the banker's low hand, one player at a time.
8. A player wins if both their high hand and low hand outrank the banker's corresponding hands. The player loses if both hands rank lower. If one hand wins and one hand loses, the result is a push (no chips change hands for that player that round).
9. Ties (identical pip values where no ranking distinction applies) go to the banker in all cases.
10. After all comparisons, chips are paid out or collected. The role of banker then passes one seat clockwise and a new round begins with a fresh wash and deal.
11. Any player may decline the bank when it is their turn. The bank passes to the next player. If playing against a house or designated permanent banker, the bank does not rotate.

Winning and scoring

A player wins a round by beating the banker on both hands. Winning a round earns one unit of stake. Losing both hands loses one unit. A split (one hand won, one lost) is a push and no stake changes hands. Ties on either hand go to the banker, which means a tied high hand and a won low hand still counts as a push, not a win. The overall game is won by the player holding the most chips or tokens when the agreed number of rounds is complete, or who first reaches the agreed target score. When the bank rotates, the banker can of course win chips from multiple players in a single deal, which is why players often compete keenly for the banking position.

The fine points

The most common dispute concerns the Gee Joon tiles and their flexible value. The standard ruling is that the player declares their chosen value (3 or 6) when setting their hand, and that declaration is final once tiles are placed face-down. A player may not change their Gee Joon value after tiles are tabled. A second frequent dispute arises from mixed Civil and Military tiles in the same pair: a Civil tile and a Military tile cannot form a pair regardless of pip total, so always check suit before comparing values. If a player inadvertently places three tiles in one hand and one in the other, the house rule in most organised play is to have the dealer reset the tiles randomly into two pairs of two, removing any strategic advantage.

In some schools of play, 'wong' and 'gong' hands (specific high-scoring tile combinations involving the 9 or 8 tile paired with a zero-scoring tile) outrank all ordinary Military pairs. If your group uses this rule, agree it explicitly before play begins, as it significantly affects hand-setting strategy and is not universal.

How to win more often

• Prioritise building a strong low hand as well as a strong high hand. A brilliant high hand with a weak low hand will almost always result in a push, which neither gains nor loses chips but wastes your best tiles.
• Learn the Civil pair rankings by heart before your first session. Misidentifying a Civil pair as a Military one is the most common beginner error and can cost you a winning hand.
• When holding the bank, set your hands conservatively. The bank wins all ties, so a solid mid-ranking hand in both positions is often more profitable across multiple comparisons than gambling everything on one dominant hand.
• Track which high-value tiles have already been played in previous rounds. Knowing that both double-six tiles have been dealt helps you assess whether your own strong pair is likely to hold against the banker.
• If you are unsure how to split four tiles, a reliable default is to put your two highest-ranking tiles as your high hand and your next two as your low hand, then adjust only if you can clearly see a better split that strengthens the weaker hand without crippling the stronger one.

Variations

Wong and Gong Hands

In this widely played variant, certain special hands outrank all standard Military pairs. A 'wong' is formed by pairing the 9-pip tile (either the 6-3 or 5-4) with a zero-scoring tile (a tile whose pips sum to 10 or 20). A 'gong' is the same construction but with an 8-pip tile. Both beat any ordinary Military pair regardless of the opponent's total. Groups should agree before play whether these hands are in use, and whether they also beat the lower Civil pairs.

Fixed Banker

Rather than rotating the bank clockwise each round, one player acts as permanent banker for the entire session. All other players compete solely against that banker. This format suits situations where one participant wishes to take on a house-style role. The fixed banker must have sufficient chips to cover all other players' potential winnings simultaneously, so agree a table limit before starting.

Team Play

In a four-player game, players pair into two teams of two sitting opposite each other. Partners cannot communicate during hand-setting, but team scores are combined at the end of each round. A team wins a round only if the combined result across both players is positive: for example, one win and one push counts as a team half-point in some scoring conventions. Agree exact team scoring before play begins.

Simplified Scoring (Beginner Variant)

Remove the Civil pair hierarchy and treat all pairs solely by pip total, taking only the units digit as the score. This strips out much of the memorisation burden and makes the game accessible to younger or newer players. The Gee Joon tiles retain their flexible 3 or 6 value. This variant sacrifices strategic depth but is a practical way to introduce the game before players learn the full ranking table.

Pai Gow: frequently asked questions