How to Play Pip

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

Pip is a straightforward matching game played with a standard double-six domino set. Each player draws a hand of tiles and takes turns extending a shared chain by placing a domino whose end value matches one of the open ends on the layout. The game moves quickly, rewards attention to what your opponents hold, and produces enough tactical tension to keep experienced players just as engaged as newcomers.

It is a natural fit for kitchen tables, holiday cottages and pub back rooms alike. With a playing time well under an hour and rules that take minutes to explain, it works equally well as a light family game and as a competitive two-player contest. A full session is typically played over several hands, with scores accumulated until one player reaches an agreed target.

A little history

The origins of dominoes itself are unclear, though the game is widely documented in Europe from the eighteenth century, with strong early records from Italy and France. How and when a simplified pip-matching format became standardised under the name "Pip" is not precisely recorded; the name is simply the word for the spots on a domino tile, and variants of the blocking-and-scoring format it describes have been played under various names across Europe and the Americas for generations. It is traditionally regarded as one of the most accessible entry points into domino gaming.

Setting up

1. Turn all 28 tiles face down and shuffle them thoroughly on the table. This pool of face-down tiles is called the boneyard.
2. Each player draws their starting hand: 7 tiles each for 2 players, 6 tiles each for 3 players, or 5 tiles each for 4 players.
3. Players keep their tiles upright and visible only to themselves.
4. The remaining tiles stay face down in the boneyard for the duration of the hand.
5. Determine who goes first. The player holding the heaviest double (highest equal-pip tile) plays that tile to start the layout. If no player holds a double, the player with the heaviest single tile opens instead.

How to play

1. The opening player places their chosen tile face up in the centre of the table to begin the layout. This tile creates two open ends, each showing a pip value.
2. Play proceeds clockwise. On your turn you must place one tile from your hand so that one of its ends touches an open end of the layout and the touching pip values match. For example, a [3-5] tile may be placed against an open [3] end or an open [5] end.
3. When a double is placed, it is laid crossways on the arm it joins. Both ends of a double show the same number; the double itself does not branch the layout unless you are playing a variation that allows branching.
4. If you cannot play a tile, you must draw from the boneyard one tile at a time until you draw a tile you can play, then place it immediately.
5. If the boneyard is empty and you still cannot play, you pass your turn. Announce your pass clearly so all players are aware.
6. You may never pass while tiles remain in the boneyard; you are required to draw.
7. Play continues until one player places their last tile (they call "Domino!") or until the game is blocked because no player can move and the boneyard is empty.
8. At the end of each hand, scores are recorded and tiles are reshuffled for the next hand.

Winning and scoring

A hand ends either when a player goes out by playing their last tile, or when the game is blocked. If a player goes out, they score the total number of pips remaining on all tiles still held by their opponents, rounded down to the nearest multiple of five where that rounding convention is in use (some groups score the raw total; agree before play begins). If the game is blocked, all players count the pips in their own hands; the player with the lowest count wins the hand and scores the difference between their total and each opponent's total, summed together. Play continues over multiple hands until one player reaches or passes an agreed target, typically 100 or 200 points. That player wins the game.

The fine points

The most common dispute concerns the drawing obligation. The rule is firm: a player must keep drawing from the boneyard until they can legally play. There is no option to draw a single tile and then pass. The only exception is when the boneyard is genuinely exhausted, at which point passing is mandatory. A second frequent question is whether a blocked game counts as a win for the player with the fewest pips even if that player is tied with another; standard practice is to split the available score equally between tied players, rounding any remainder down.

Players sometimes disagree about tile placement when a double is in play. In standard Pip, a double is not a spinner and does not create additional branches; play continues only along the two original arms of the chain. If a house rule permitting spinners is desired, all players must agree before the hand begins. Tiles placed incorrectly must be taken back into the player's hand and the turn is forfeited in competitive play, though friendly games often allow a simple correction without penalty.

How to win more often

• Track the open ends carefully. If you can see that an opponent is repeatedly passing or drawing, they are short of tiles matching those end values. Steer the layout toward those values to keep them under pressure.
• Hold doubles back as long as safely possible. A double can only be played on one specific value and cannot be shed at either end of your hand, so it is often your most awkward tile. Play it when the matching end is open, before opponents close it off.
• Count the pips in your hand at all times. If the game looks likely to block, you want to be the player holding the fewest spots. Shed high-pip tiles early when you have the chance.
• Control the open ends. When you have a choice of where to play a tile, favour the placement that creates an open end you hold multiples of. This gives you more options on future turns and fewer forced passes.
• In a two-player game, keep mental track of what tiles have been played. With a known set of 28 tiles, you can calculate with certainty what your opponent might hold. This information becomes decisive in the late game.

Variations

Muggins (All Fives)

In Muggins, a player scores immediately during play whenever the total pip count of all open ends on the layout is a multiple of five. For example, if the two open ends show 3 and 2, the player who created that total of 5 scores 5 points on the spot. End-of-hand scoring is also retained. This variant rewards constant mental arithmetic and makes every placement feel consequential.

Block Dominoes

In Block Dominoes, drawing from the boneyard is not permitted at all. If a player cannot play, they simply pass. The boneyard tiles remain untouched throughout the hand. This produces a tighter, more strategic game because every player's options are limited from the outset and the end position can sometimes be calculated from mid-game.

Draw and Pass (Three-Hand Variant)

Designed specifically for three players, this variant deals 7 tiles to each player, leaving 7 in the boneyard. Drawing rules are as in standard Pip, but when the boneyard empties a player may choose to pass rather than being forced to. This softens the blocking penalty slightly and keeps three-player games from stalling too often in the late stages.

Team Pip

For four players, partners sit opposite each other and their scores are combined. Partners may not show each other their tiles or explicitly communicate their holdings, but they can observe each other's plays and infer strategy. A player who goes out wins the hand for their partnership, and the pair scores the combined pip total of both opposing players' remaining tiles. This format rewards coordination and is well suited to a fixed evening of play.

Pip: frequently asked questions