How to play Yahtzee

The objective

Your goal is simple: roll combinations and finish with the highest score. This guide uses the most common beginner-friendly rules. Families and groups may agree on variations before starting.

What you need

Five dice, a cup, score sheets, and pencils.

How to set up

1. Give each player a score sheet.
2. Choose who rolls first.

How to play: step by step

1. Roll all five dice.
2. Keep any dice and reroll the others up to twice.
3. After at most three rolls, score one unused category.
4. Complete all thirteen categories and total the sheet.

Beginner strategies

• Save flexible categories for difficult turns.
• Consider the upper-section bonus.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Scoring zero too early in a valuable category.
• Forgetting that each category is used once.

Frequently asked questions