Spit card game rules
The goal
Be the first player to get rid of all your cards. There are no turns: both players play at the same time, laying cards one rank higher or lower onto two shared center piles. The player who spots a play first gets to make it.
What you need
- Two players
- You against the computer when you play online.
- One 52-card deck
- No jokers. Each player gets 26 cards.
- Rank only
- Suits and colors are ignored.
- No turns
- Both players play at once.
Setting up
Shuffle the deck and split it so each player has 26 cards. Each player then lays out their own half:
- 1Five stockpiles. Deal five piles in a row holding 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 cards, which uses 15 cards. In the classic game only the top card of each pile is face up.
- 2The spit pile. Your other 11 cards go face down beside you. This is your spit pile.
- 3The center piles. Both players say “Spit!” together and flip the top card of their spit pile into the middle. These two cards start the two center piles that both players build on.
Computer’s stacks and spit pile
Your stacks and spit pile
On this site
The deal is done for you, with the computer’s stacks along the top and yours along the bottom. Only the top card of each stack is shown; the card underneath appears when you play the one above it. Your first spit card starts Pile 1 and the computer’s starts Pile 2, leaving ten cards in each spit pile.
How to play
One up, one down
You may play the top card of any of your stockpiles onto either center pile if it is exactly one rank higher or lower than that pile’s top card. A pile showing a 7 takes a 6 or an 8. Suits don’t matter, and the direction can change at any time, so a pile can run 7, 8, 7, 6, 5.
Ranks wrap around: an ace fits on a king or a 2, and a king fits on a queen or an ace. Both the classic game and the game on this site use this wraparound.
No turns: play as fast as you can
Both players play at the same time, one card at a time. Traditionally you use one hand only. If both players go for the same pile at once, the card that lands first stays and the other player takes theirs back.
On this site
Click or tap the top card of one of your stacks. If it fits only one pile, it moves there on its own. If it fits both, it is picked up: tap the pile you want, or drag the card there with a mouse. Cards you can’t play right now are dimmed. If a card doesn’t fit, the game tells you and nothing moves. The computer plays at a steady pace you can set to relaxed, normal or fast; on normal it is a little faster than one card per second.
Uncovering your stockpiles
When you play the top card of a stockpile, the next card in it becomes available. In the classic game you turn it face up yourself. You may also move a face-up card into an empty space, so you can keep up to five stockpiles going and dig out cards that are still buried.
On this site
The next card turns over automatically. There is no moving cards between stacks: cards only go from your stacks to the center piles, and an empty stack stays empty until the next round is dealt.
Calling spit
When neither player can make a move, both call “Spit!” and turn the top card of their spit pile onto the center, usually each onto the pile on their own side. Play carries on straight away with the new top cards.
On this site
Press the Spit button between the center piles. It only works when there is no legal play for either side; until then it stays dimmed. Your spit card lands on Pile 1 and the computer’s on Pile 2. If you don’t press it, the computer calls spit after a moment. If one spit pile is empty, only the other player’s card is turned over. The same button turns the first cards at the start of each round.
When the spit piles run out
On this site
Once both spit piles are used up, play carries on with the cards in the middle. If neither of you can play and there are no spit cards left, the round ends early: whoever has fewer cards left in their stacks takes the smaller center pile, the other player takes the larger one (on a tie, each takes the pile on their side), and a new round is dealt as described below.
How to win
At the card table, Spit is usually played over several rounds. A round ends when one player has emptied all of their stockpiles. That player slaps the smaller center pile to claim it, and the other player takes the larger pile plus any cards still in their stockpiles and spit pile. Both shuffle what they hold and deal fresh stockpiles. A player with fewer than 15 cards deals as many stockpiles as they can and has no spit pile, so only one center pile is used. The first player to get rid of every card wins. Details vary between tables.
On this site
The game is played in rounds, the classic way described above. You win the moment you have no cards left in your stacks or your spit pile. Cards in the center piles don’t belong to anyone, so they don’t count against you. If the computer runs out first, it wins. Press Play again to deal a new game.
Spit vs Speed: what’s the difference?
Spit and Speed are both two-player races where you build up or down by one rank on shared center piles, and people often use one name for the other game. The real difference is where your playable cards come from. Rules for both vary between groups; this is the usual pattern.
| Spit | Speed | |
|---|---|---|
| Where you play from | Five stockpiles laid out face up in front of you | A hand of five cards, refilled from your own draw pile |
| When nobody can move | Each player flips a card from their own spit pile | Both flip a card from side piles set aside at the start |
| Structure | Usually several rounds, with center piles picked up between them | Usually a single race |
| How you win | Get rid of every card you own | Play out your hand and draw pile first |
If you know Speed, Spit is an easy switch: the one up, one down rule is the same, but your options sit face up on the table, where your opponent can see them too.
Common questions
- Can you play a King on an Ace in Spit?
- Yes. Ranks wrap around, so an Ace can go on a King or a 2, and a King can go on a Queen or an Ace. That is the most common house rule, and it is the rule used on this site.
- Do suits or colors matter in Spit?
- No. Only the rank counts. A 9 of any suit can go on any 8 or any 10.
- How many players can play Spit?
- Spit is a two-player game: one deck is split between two people. On LetsPlayCards.Online your opponent is the computer, so you can play without a partner.
- What happens when nobody can play?
- Both players call "Spit!" and turn the top card of their spit pile onto the center. Online, you press the Spit button, which works once neither you nor the computer has a legal play. If you wait, the computer calls it.
- Can I move cards between my own stacks?
- In the traditional game, yes: you can move a face-up card into an empty space so buried cards come into play. The online version keeps it simpler. Cards only move from your stacks to the center piles, and an empty stack stays empty until the next deal.
- Is Spit the same game as Speed?
- They are close relatives and the names are sometimes swapped, but most rule books treat them as separate games. Spit uses five stockpiles laid out in front of you. Speed uses a hand of five cards that you refill from a draw pile.
Ready to play?
You know the rules. Now find out how quick you are against the computer.