Play Mexican Train dominoes online for free
Mexican Train is the party game of the domino family. Everyone builds a train of tiles out from a central double, there is one extra train that anyone can use, and every double has to be covered. Here you can play it against one to three computer players on Easy, Medium or Hard, with a full double-twelve set of 91 tiles, in your browser, with no download and no account.
The table shows each train as a lane running right from the engine: the Mexican train on top, the computers’ trains below it and yours just above your hand. A lane tagged OPEN carries a marker, so you can play on it too. The tile tracker counts the tiles you haven’t seen, number by number, and the Hint button asks the Hard computer for the best play. Choose a full game of 13 rounds, a short game of 7 or a quick game of 4 in New game.
Mexican Train rules
The rules below are the ones this game uses. They follow the usual home rules for Mexican Train dominoes.
| Players | Tiles each | Boneyard (double-twelve set) |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 15 | 60 (90 tiles after the engine is set aside) |
| 3 | 15 | 45 |
| 4 | 15 | 30 |
| 5–6 (not on this page) | about 12 | 30 / 18 |
| 7–8 (not on this page) | about 10 | 20 / 10 |
How to play Mexican Train
- Set up the engine. Use a double-twelve set (91 tiles). The first round starts from the double 12-12, the "engine", which sits in the middle of the table. Each later round uses the next double down: 11-11, 10-10 and so on to 0-0.
- Draw your hand. Shuffle the other tiles face down. With 2, 3 or 4 players each player takes 15 tiles. The rest form the boneyard.
- Build a train. On your turn, play one tile on your own train, the line growing out of the engine. The half you play against the train must show the same number as the open end.
- Use the Mexican train. There is also one shared train that starts from the engine too: the Mexican train. Any player can play on it at any time.
- Can't play? Draw once. If no tile fits, draw one tile from the boneyard. If it fits, play it. If not, you pass and put a marker on your train: from now on every player may play on it.
- Cover every double. When a double is played, it must be covered at once. The player who played it plays again; if they can't cover it, every other player must try to cover it before any other play is allowed.
- Go out. The first player to play their last tile ends the round. Everyone else scores the pips left in their hand. If nobody can play and the boneyard is empty, the round is blocked and everyone scores their pips.
- Play every round. After 13 rounds (engines 12-12 down to 0-0) the player with the lowest total score wins. This page also has a short game (7 rounds) and a quick game (4 rounds).
To play a tile here, drag it to a lit-up lane, or just tap it: if it only fits one train it goes there, and if it fits several, those lanes light up and you choose. Tap the boneyard when you need to draw. The player who starts rotates from round to round.
Doubles and markers
Doubles are the heart of Mexican Train. A double must be covered by a tile with the same number before the game moves on, and it can sit at the end of any train. When you play a double, you play again straight away. If you can cover it, do. If you can’t, you draw one tile; if that still doesn’t fit you pass, your train gets a marker, and the double stays open. Now every player, in turn, must cover the open double before they can play anywhere else, and if they can’t they draw and pass too.
Markers show which trains are open. When you pass, your train is marked: other players may play on it as well as you, until you next play a tile on it yourself. Other players’ trains are off limits unless they carry a marker, which is why an unmarked train is a safe place to build a long chain.
Mexican Train scoring
| Situation | Score |
|---|---|
| You play your last tile | 0 points for you; every other player scores the pips left in their hand |
| Blocked round (boneyard empty, nobody can play) | Everyone scores their pips; the lightest hand wins the round |
| Double-blank (0-0) | 0 points (some house rules count it as 50) |
| Winner of the game | Lowest total after the last round |
Example: you go out and the computers are left with 9-4 + 2-2 and 12-6. That is 17 and 18 pips, so you score 0 and the computers add 17 and 18. Round by round the engine counts down from 12-12 to 0-0, so a full game is 13 rounds. Keeping score on paper? Print the score sheet above.
Mexican Train strategy
- Play heavy tiles and doubles early. Pips left in your hand count against you, and a double you can’t cover forces you to open your train.
- Only play a double if you can cover it. Hold a second tile with the same number first, then play the double and the cover in one turn.
- Plan a chain. Before you play, look for the longest run of tiles in your hand that fit end to end from your train’s open number. Start the chain with the tile that keeps it longest.
- Use other trains while they last. An open train or the Mexican train gives you a place to play a tile that doesn’t fit your own train, so you don’t have to draw.
- Leave awkward ends. When you play on a shared train, end it on a number the other players are missing (the tracker marks them in red) so they can’t use it.
- Count the numbers. Thirteen tiles carry each number. If you hold five 8s and eight are already out, only a few can be left in the other hands.
The three computer levels show the difference. Easy plays any tile that fits. Medium follows the strategy above. Hard also plays each of its best candidates out to the end of the round dozens of times against possible hands. In 120 test games with four players, one Hard player among three Medium players took the lowest score about 34% of the time, against 25% for an equal player.
Mexican Train and other domino games
Mexican Train is a matching game like the classic domino game for two (Draw dominoes and All Fives, played with a double-six set), but it uses the big double-twelve set, several lines at once and a shared train. Chicken Foot is the close cousin: every double must be covered by three tiles fanned out like a chicken’s foot.
FAQ
How many dominoes do you start with in Mexican Train?
With 2, 3 or 4 players each player starts with 15 tiles from a double-twelve set. Bigger groups take fewer tiles, usually 12 each for 5 or 6 players and 10 each for 7 or 8. The tiles left over form the boneyard.
How many dominoes are in a Mexican Train set?
A double-twelve set has 91 tiles, one for every pair of numbers from 0 to 12, with 1,092 pips in all. A set of double-nine dominoes has 55 tiles and is sometimes used for smaller games.
What is the Mexican train?
It is a shared train that starts from the engine like the players' trains. Any player can add tiles to it at any time, so it is the place to dump a tile that doesn't fit your own train.
What does the marker mean in Mexican Train?
When you can't play after drawing, you put a marker on your train to show it is open. Until you next play a tile on it, every other player may add tiles to your train too. Here the marker shows as an OPEN tag.
How do doubles work in Mexican Train?
A double has to be covered straight away by a tile with the same number. The player who played it plays again. If they have no tile to cover it, they draw once, and if that tile doesn't fit either, they pass and every other player must try to cover the double before anyone can play elsewhere.
How do you win Mexican Train?
After the last round (0-0), the player with the lowest total score wins. In each round the player who goes out scores 0 and everyone else scores the pips left in their hand.
Can you play Mexican Train online against the computer?
Yes. Choose 2, 3 or 4 players in New game: you play against one to three computer players on Easy, Medium or Hard. There is no online multiplayer, but it works on a phone, tablet or computer for free.
What is a good Mexican Train strategy?
Play your heaviest tiles and doubles early, keep a long chain of tiles ready on your own train, use other players' open trains and the Mexican train while you can, and count the tiles. The tile tracker lists the unseen tiles by number. See the strategy section below.
More board games: Domino Game, Chicken Foot, Backgammon, Dots and Boxes, and the dice games Yatzy and Farkle.