How to Play Yacht

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

Yacht is a classic dice game for two to eight players in which the challenge is to roll five dice across twelve turns and squeeze the best possible score out of each roll. Players choose which scoring category to fill after each turn, so every decision carries genuine weight: a spectacular roll wasted on the wrong box can cost you the game.

The game is popular at kitchen tables, on camping trips, and as a travel game because the equipment is minimal and the rules take under five minutes to learn. Children who can add reliably can play alongside adults on equal terms, which makes it a genuine all-ages choice rather than a compromise.

A little history

Yacht is widely documented as a game that became popular in the mid-twentieth century, particularly in North America, though its precise origins are unclear. It shares its core mechanism with several older European dice games and belongs to a broad family of roll-and-score games. The name is traditionally associated with leisure sailing circles, and some accounts link its spread to wealthy American social clubs in the 1940s, but the documentary evidence for a single inventor or definitive origin is thin.

Setting up

1. Gather five six-sided dice and provide each player with a copy of the scoresheet listing all twelve scoring categories.
2. Each player also needs a pencil or pen.
3. Decide who goes first: traditionally, each player rolls one die and the highest roll starts. Re-roll ties.
4. Agree on the number of rounds before starting: a standard game is exactly twelve rounds, one for each scoring category.
5. Arrange seating so players take turns in clockwise order.

How to play

1. On your turn, roll all five dice. This is your first roll.
2. After the first roll, you may set aside any dice you wish to keep and re-roll the rest. You are not required to keep any dice.
3. After the second roll, you may again set aside any dice and re-roll the remainder for a third and final time.
4. After your third roll (or earlier if you are satisfied), you must assign your result to exactly one unfilled category on your scoresheet. You cannot leave a turn unscored.
5. If your dice do not qualify for a category you want, you must still fill a category, scoring zero in it. Choose strategically which category to sacrifice.
6. Play passes clockwise. Each player completes their turn before the next player rolls.
7. The twelve scoring categories are: Ones, Twos, Threes, Fours, Fives, Sixes (score the sum of the relevant face), Full House (three of one number and two of another: score the sum of all five dice), Four of a Kind (at least four dice showing the same face: score the sum of those four dice), Little Straight (1-2-3-4-5: scores 30 points), Big Straight (2-3-4-5-6: scores 30 points), Choice (any five dice: score the sum of all five), and Yacht (all five dice the same: scores 50 points).
8. A category may only be used once per game. Once filled, it is closed to that player.
9. After all players have completed twelve turns, the game ends and scores are totalled.

Winning and scoring

The player with the highest total score after twelve rounds wins. There is no bonus for filling the upper section (Ones through Sixes) in Yacht as standard, unlike some related games. Simply sum all twelve categories: the maximum theoretical score is 50 (Yacht) + 30 (Little Straight) + 30 (Big Straight) + high totals in the remaining categories. In practice, scores between 150 and 250 are typical, and anything above 200 is a strong game. In the event of a tie, some house rules call for a single sudden-death round: each tied player rolls all five dice once and scores in any remaining open category, or simply takes a sum of all five dice; the highest score wins. Agree on a tiebreaker rule before play begins.

The fine points

The most common dispute concerns Four of a Kind: the category requires at least four dice to show the same face, and only those four dice count toward the score, not the fifth. If a player rolls five of the same face and has already filled the Yacht box, they may score it as Four of a Kind, but they score only the sum of four dice, not all five. The fifth die contributes nothing. A second frequent argument is whether you must declare kept dice before re-rolling: there is no such requirement in the standard rules. You may pick up previously set-aside dice and re-roll them on any subsequent roll within the same turn, as long as you have not yet taken your third roll.

Full House requires exactly three of one number and two of another. Five of a kind does not qualify as a Full House, and two pairs with a singleton do not qualify either. If a player writes a score in a category they have already filled, the correction should be made immediately: erase or cross out and reinstate the correct entry; any score recorded in a closed category is void and the player must choose a different open category, scoring zero if nothing fits.

How to win more often

• Prioritise the Yacht category early in the game: the 50-point bonus is the single highest fixed score available and is hardest to achieve, so commit rolls to pursuing it when you have three or four matching dice after your first roll.
• Keep your Choice category as a safety net for turns when nothing useful materialises. Filling it with a high sum (28 or above) is a reasonable outcome; filling it with a low sum because you left it too late is a costly mistake.
• Target the Little and Big Straights when you already hold three or four consecutive dice after roll one: the odds improve sharply, and 30 points for either is strong value.
• When you have a genuinely poor roll and no good fit, sacrifice a low-value upper-section category such as Ones rather than wasting a high-potential slot like Yacht or Straight.
• Track your opponents' open categories. If a rival needs only a Big Straight to win and has three rolls left, adjust your expectations for their likely score and plan accordingly.

Variations

Cheerio

Cheerio is a close relative of Yacht played widely in New Zealand and parts of the Caribbean. The scoring categories and roll structure are identical to Yacht, but Cheerio traditionally includes a category called 'Straight' that accepts either 1-2-3-4-5 or 2-3-4-5-6 and scores 25 points rather than the two separate 30-point straights of Yacht. Some regional versions also score Full House at a flat 25 points rather than the sum of all five dice.

Three-Roll Limit Removed

Some informal house rules allow only two rolls per turn rather than three, increasing the pressure on every decision and shortening the game slightly. This variant rewards players who know the probability of completing combinations in a single re-roll and punishes those who rely on the third roll as a crutch. It is a good way to speed up play with experienced groups.

Team Yacht

With larger groups of six to eight, players may split into two teams of equal size. Each team maintains a single shared scoresheet, and teammates take turns rolling on behalf of the team. After each roll, teammates may confer before deciding which dice to keep and which category to fill. Final scores are compared team versus team, making Yacht a cooperative as well as competitive experience and suiting family play where skill levels vary widely.

Extended Scoresheet

Some players add extra categories beyond the standard twelve to lengthen the game and introduce fresh decisions. Common additions include Three of a Kind (sum of the three matching dice), Two Pairs (sum of all five dice if two distinct pairs are present), and a Chance category equivalent to Choice. These additions raise the maximum possible score considerably and suit players who find the standard game resolves too quickly.

Yacht: frequently asked questions