How to play backgammon
The full rules in plain words, from setting up the board to bearing off your last checker. Then practise against the computer, which shows your legal moves as you go.
The goal
Each player has 15 checkers. You win by being the first to move all 15 into your home board (points 1 to 6) and then bear them off the board. Your opponent moves the same way in the opposite direction, so the checkers race past and block each other.
The board and setup
The board has 24 narrow triangles called points, in four quarters of six. The strip down the middle is the bar. Points are numbered from each player's own side: your 1-point is your opponent's 24-point.
- 2 checkers on your 24-point (the back checkers, deep in the opponent's home board)
- 5 checkers on your 13-point (the midpoint)
- 3 checkers on your 8-point
- 5 checkers on your 6-point
That is 167 pips of travel for each side at the start (see the pip count below).
Starting the game
Each player rolls one die. The higher number moves first, playing both numbers rolled. On a tie, both roll again. After that, players take turns rolling two dice.
Moving checkers
- The two dice are two separate moves. A roll of 5 and 2 lets you move one checker 5 points and another 2 points, or one checker 7 points in two hops, as long as it can land after each hop.
- A checker may land on any point that is empty, holds your own checkers, or holds exactly one opposing checker. It may not land on a point with two or more opposing checkers: that point is blocked.
- Doubles are played twice: a roll of 4 and 4 gives you four moves of 4.
- You must use both numbers if you legally can. If only one can be played, you must play it; if either but not both can be played, you must play the larger one. If nothing can be played, you lose your turn.
Hitting and the bar
A single checker alone on a point is a blot. If your opponent lands on it, it is hit and placed on the bar. A checker on the bar must come back in before you move anything else: it enters in your opponent's home board, on the point matching one of your dice (a 3 enters on the opponent's 3-point, your 22-point). If both numbers are blocked, you lose the whole turn.
Two or more of your checkers on a point make it safe. Six blocked points in a row form a prime, a wall no checker can jump.
Bearing off
Once all 15 of your checkers are in your home board, you may start taking them off. A die removes a checker from the matching point: a 4 bears off from the 4-point. You may also use a die to move inside your home board instead. If you roll higher than your highest occupied point, you may bear off from the highest point you have (a 6 with nothing above the 4-point bears off from the 4-point). If one of your checkers is hit during the bear-off, it must come all the way around before you can bear off again.
Winning: single game, gammon, backgammon
| Result | When | Worth |
|---|---|---|
| Single game | The loser has borne off at least one checker. | 1 × the cube |
| Gammon | The loser has not borne off any checkers. | 2 × the cube |
| Backgammon | The loser has borne off nothing and still has a checker on the bar or in the winner's home board. | 3 × the cube |
The doubling cube
Matches and money games use a doubling cube marked 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 and 64. Before rolling, a player who thinks they are ahead may offer to double the stakes. The opponent either takes (play on for twice as much, and only they may redouble next) or drops (concede the game at the current value). See the doubling cube guide.
Match play and the Crawford rule
A match is played to a number of points, such as 5. Games are scored as above until someone reaches the target. When a player first reaches one point short of winning, the next game is the Crawford game: nobody may double in it. Doubling is allowed again in later games.
The pip count
Your pip count is the total number of points your checkers still have to travel to bear off: add up each checker's point number (a checker on your 8-point needs 8 pips). Both sides start at 167. The lower count is ahead in the race. Backgammon Lounge shows both counts beside the board.
Questions
How many checkers does each player have in backgammon?
Fifteen. They start with two on the 24-point, five on the 13-point, three on the 8-point and five on the 6-point.
Which way do the checkers move?
Each player moves from their own 24-point toward their own 1-point, so the two sides move in opposite directions. Your home board is points 1 to 6.
What happens when you roll doubles?
You play the number four times. Double 3s give four moves of 3, which can be split between checkers.
Do you have to use both dice?
Yes, if any legal move uses both. If only one die can be used, you must use it, and if either one could be used but not both, you must use the larger.
Can you bear off with a higher number than needed?
Only when no checkers sit on higher points. With checkers only on points 1 to 4, a 6 bears off a checker from the 4-point.
What is a gammon?
A win before the loser has borne off any checkers. It counts double the cube value; a backgammon counts triple.
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