Play Yatzy online for free
Yatzy is the classic game of five dice and one score card. Roll up to three times, hold the dice you like, and write the result in one of 13 boxes. Fill them all and add up your score. This version has real 3D dice that tumble across a felt tray: tap a die to slide it onto the ledge and hold it, tap again to put it back.
Play solo and chase your best score, take on the computer on Easy, Medium or Hard, or pass the screen around with up to four players. A coach shows which dice to hold and which box to use, based on the mathematically perfect strategy, so every game teaches you something. And every day there is Daily Dice: the same rolls for everyone, so the only difference is how you play them.
How to play Yatzy
- Roll all five dice. Tap Roll (or the tray).
- Hold the dice you want to keep by tapping them. Held dice move to the ledge at the front of the tray.
- Roll again up to two more times. You can change which dice you hold before each roll.
- Pick a box on the score card. The open boxes light up and show what each would score with your dice. You can score after any roll; after the third you must.
- Every box is used exactly once. If nothing fits, you have to put a zero somewhere, so choose the box that hurts least.
- After 13 turns the card is full. Add the upper bonus and any Yatzy bonuses: the highest total wins.
Yatzy scoring
The score card has an upper section for single numbers and a lower section for poker-style combinations.
| Box | What scores | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Ones to Sixes | The total of that number only | ⚃⚃⚃⚀⚄ in Fours = 12 |
| Upper bonus | 35 points if Ones to Sixes add up to 63 or more (three of each number) | |
| 3 of a kind | At least three the same: the total of all five dice | ⚄⚄⚄⚁⚅ = 23 |
| 4 of a kind | At least four the same: the total of all five dice | ⚂⚂⚂⚂⚅ = 18 |
| Full house | Three of one number and two of another: 25 | ⚁⚁⚄⚄⚄ = 25 |
| Small straight | Four in a row: 30 | ⚀⚁⚂⚃⚅ = 30 |
| Large straight | Five in a row: 40 | ⚁⚂⚃⚄⚅ = 40 |
| Yatzy | All five the same: 50 | ⚅⚅⚅⚅⚅ = 50 |
| Chance | Anything: the total of all five dice | ⚀⚂⚃⚄⚅ = 19 |
Yatzy bonus and the Joker rule
If you roll another Yatzy after scoring 50 in the Yatzy box, you get a 100-point bonus, and the roll works as a Joker. It must go in the matching upper box if that is still open (five 4s in Fours = 20). If that box is full, you can use it in any open lower box at full value: 25 in Full house, 30 or 40 in the straights. Only if the whole lower section is full does it go in an upper box as a zero. If you had to put a zero in the Yatzy box earlier, the Joker rule still applies but there is no bonus.
The highest possible score is 1,575: every box at its maximum and twelve Yatzys in a row.
Yatzy strategy
The computer's Hard level and the coach use the exact best strategy, worked out by checking every possible score card. Playing perfectly averages 254.6 points, earns the upper bonus in about 68% of games and scores at least one Yatzy in about 34%. A few lessons from it:
- Aim for three of each number in the upper section. Three 1s, three 2s and so on add up to exactly 63, which earns the 35-point bonus. The score card shows how far ahead or behind that pace you are (for example +4 or −2). Four 5s or 6s give you room to spare; two 1s cost very little.
- Hold what you have more of. With three of a kind and two rolls left, you make a Yatzy about 9.3% of the time and at least four of a kind about 52% of the time. Going for a Yatzy from scratch in one turn works about 4.6% of the time.
- Straights early, pairs later. Four in a row with an open end (2-3-4-5 or 3-4-5-6) completes a large straight with one of two numbers. Early in the game the straights are worth chasing; late in the game, take sure points.
- Save Chance. It is your safety net for a roll that fits nowhere. Using it early for 20 points is often a mistake that costs more later.
- Choose your zeros. When you must score nothing, the Ones box or the Yatzy box late in the game usually costs least. Throwing away a large straight early costs the most.
Yatzy, Yahtzee or Yacht?
They are all the same family of dice games. Yacht is the older game it grew from; Yahtzee is the American brand name for the version with an upper bonus and Yatzy bonuses; and Yatzy is the name used in Scandinavia and much of Europe. Scandinavian Yatzy has 15 boxes, adds One pair and Two pairs, uses fixed straights (1-2-3-4-5 and 2-3-4-5-6) and gives a 50-point upper bonus. This page plays the 13-box American rules, the ones most players in the US know as Yahtzee.
If you like dice, try Backgammon, which uses the same rolling dice on a full board, or its sailors' variant Acey Deucey. For a push-your-luck game with six dice, play Farkle. And if the dice made you think of dominoes, there is a domino game with a coach too. For a quiet game of cards on your own, play FreeCell.
FAQ
Is this Yatzy game free?
Yes. It runs in your browser for free, with no download and no account, on a computer, tablet or phone.
Is Yatzy the same as Yahtzee?
Almost. Yahtzee is the trademarked American version of the same public-domain dice game. This page uses the American 13-box score card: upper bonus of 35 at 63 points, 25 for a full house, 30 and 40 for the straights, 50 for five of a kind and 100 for each extra one. Scandinavian Yatzy uses 15 boxes with pairs and fixed straights.
Can I play Yatzy against the computer?
Yes. Choose Easy, Medium or Hard in New game. Hard plays the mathematically perfect strategy, which averages about 254.6 points a game; Medium makes small mistakes and Easy simply goes for the most points it can see.
Can I play Yatzy with friends?
Yes, two to four players can take turns on the same device. Each player has a column on the score card and dice of their own colour. There is no online multiplayer.
What is a small straight in Yatzy?
Four dice in a row: 1-2-3-4, 2-3-4-5 or 3-4-5-6. The fifth die can be anything. It scores 30 points. A large straight is five in a row (1-2-3-4-5 or 2-3-4-5-6) and scores 40.
How many points is a Yatzy bonus?
A Yatzy is worth 50 points. If you already have 50 in the Yatzy box, every extra Yatzy earns a 100-point bonus, and you also score it in another box under the Joker rule.
What are the odds of rolling a Yatzy?
About 1 in 1,296 on a single roll of five dice. If you use all three rolls and keep the most common number each time, the chance in one turn is about 4.6%. Holding three of a kind with two rolls left, it is about 9.3%.
What is a good Yatzy score?
Perfect play averages about 254.6 points. Half of perfectly played games end between roughly 215 and 275, so anything over 250 is a very good game, and 200 to 250 is solid.
What is Daily Dice?
A daily game where everyone gets the same dice: if you hold the same dice as someone else, you get the same next roll. At the end you see what perfect play would have scored with your dice, and you can share your result.
Yahtzee is a registered trademark of Hasbro. This free game is not affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro.