Play Bid Whist Online

Yes. The table on this page runs in your browser, on a phone or a computer, with three computer players: your partner and two opponents. There is no app to install and no account to create. Pick Easy, Standard or Expert in Options and deal.

The direction decides which cards win. Uptown (Up) is the usual order: ace, king, queen down to two. Downtown (Down) turns it over: ace, then two, three, four up to king, so low cards win tricks. The ace is the highest card in both. You choose the direction with your bid, or after winning a no-trump bid.

Six cards are dealt face down to the middle. The player who wins the bidding names trump, then picks up the kitty, which is turned face up for the table, and discards six cards face down. Those six discards count as the bidding team's first book, so a hand has thirteen books: twelve tricks plus the kitty.

Two by default: the big joker and the little joker. In a suit contract they are the two highest trumps, above the ace of trump. In a no-trump contract they have no power: you may only play one when you cannot follow suit, and it never wins the trick. You can switch jokers off in Options, which shrinks the kitty to four cards.

Taking all thirteen books in a hand: every trick plus the kitty. A Boston multiplies the hand's score by four. At game to 7 a Boston also wins the match outright, since thirteen books are seven over six.

Only the bidding team scores. If it takes at least its bid over six books, it scores one point for every book over six, not just for the ones it bid. If it falls short it loses the number it bid. A no-trump contract doubles both results. The first team to 7 wins, and a team that drops to minus 7 loses.

Each player bids once or passes, starting left of the dealer. A bid is a number from 3 to 7 (books over six) with a direction: Up, Down or No-trump. A higher number always wins; at the same number, No-trump beats Up and Down, which tie. The dealer bids last and may equal the high bid. If the first three players pass, the dealer must bid.

Classic Whist has no bidding, no jokers and no kitty: trump is turned up or rotates, and each trick over six scores one point. Bid Whist adds an auction for the right to name trump and the direction, two jokers as top trumps, and the kitty.

The practice table on this page stays free. To play with friends, open a HopLobby lobby and send one link: our party games run in the browser too.

The table works in a phone browser down to 320 pixels wide, with tap-to-play and no sideways scrolling. It needs a connection to load; there is no offline app. Your practice match is saved in the browser, so a refresh offers to continue it.

Choose Easy, Standard or Expert in Options. Your partner plays at the same level as the opponents. Easy bids the minimum with three or more aces, kings and jokers, never downtown or no-trump, and makes slips. Standard counts its books, makes voids with the kitty and covers its partner. Expert simulates the cards it cannot see to choose its bids and plays. No level can see your hand, the face-down kitty or the bidder's discards.

Yes, in practice. When it is your turn to bid, a Suggested bid chip shows what the Standard computer would bid, with a one-line reason. Hint does the same for every other decision, and the guided first hand walks you through a whole hand.