Modern American Canasta: Rules Overview
Quick answer
Modern American Canasta is a stricter four-player version of canasta. Each player gets 13 cards and draws 1 a turn. The first meld needs 125 points, rising to 155 and 180. Melds stop at seven cards, sevens and aces have special rules, wild cards can make their own canasta, and you need 2 canastas to go out. The game goes to 8,500.
Classic and Modern American use the same cards but different rules
| Rule | Classic | Modern American |
|---|---|---|
| Players | 4 in two partnerships (2 and 3 also work) | 4 in two partnerships |
| Cards | 108 (two decks and four jokers) | 108, the same pack |
| Cards dealt | 11 | 13 |
| Draw from the stock | 1 card | 1 card |
| Start of the discard pile | One card turned up | Empty; the 9th card from the bottom of the stock is turned sideways |
| Wild cards in a meld | Up to 3 | Up to 2, and after the first meld only once a meld has 5 natural cards |
| Sevens and aces | Like any other rank | Sevens never take wild cards; aces only in the first meld |
| Melds of wild cards only | Not allowed | Allowed (a wild canasta) |
| Largest meld | No limit | 7 cards |
| First meld, starting score | 50 points | 125 points |
| First meld, higher scores | 90 from 1,500, 120 from 3,000 | 155 from 3,000, 180 from 5,000 |
| Taking the discard pile | Natural pair, or one natural and a wild card when not frozen | Always a natural pair |
| Threes | Red threes bonus cards; black threes block the pile | All threes laid out as bonus cards; never discarded |
| Canastas to go out | 1 | 2 |
| Natural / mixed canasta | 500 / 300 | 500 / 300 |
| Canasta of sevens or aces | 500 | 2,500 |
| Special hands | None | 4 on pagat's list |
| Game ends at | 5,000 | 8,500 |
The Classic column is the game in our canasta rules and our online game. The Modern American column follows pagat.com.
The deal: 13 cards each, and no upcard
- Deal 13 cards to each player. The rest is the stock.
- No card is turned up: the discard pile starts empty.
- The 9th card from the bottom of the stock is turned sideways. It is the turn card. When someone draws it, everyone knows only 8 cards are left.
- Threes, red or black, are laid face up as soon as you get them and replaced from the stock.
Melds stop at seven cards, and sevens and aces are special
- A meld is 3 to 7 cards of one rank. At seven it is a closed canasta.
- A meld may hold no more than 2 wild cards. In your team's first meld, two natural cards are enough. After that, a new meld must have 5 natural cards before any wild card goes on it.
- Sevens never take wild cards. Aces may take wild cards only if the ace meld starts with one in the team's first meld.
- Twos and jokers can make a wild meld of their own.
- When a natural canasta is closed, that rank is dead: nobody may meld it again.
A pure canasta of sevens: 2,500
The rule of five
A wild meld
The first meld needs 125, 155 or 180 points
| Team score | First meld needs |
|---|---|
| Below 3,000 (also below zero) | 125 |
| 3,000 to 4,995 | 155 |
| 5,000 or more | 180 |
The first meld must include a pure meld of three natural cards, or a wild meld of three. For example, three Kings and a two count 50, far short of 125. There are two other ways to open: lay down a complete natural or wild canasta from your hand (“the splash”), with no minimum, or show a special hand.
Open without going out while the turn card is still in the stock, and you draw bonus cards face down: 4 if your team melded first, 3 if the other team already had.
Taking the discard pile always needs a natural pair
You may take the pile only with two natural cards matching the top card, melded with it at once. Threes are never discarded, and wild cards only in rare cases, so the pile is not frozen the classic way. A team with five or more cards in a meld can't take that rank from the pile, because the meld would pass seven.
Going out takes two canastas and a final discard
Your team needs 2 completed canastas. Meld all but one card and discard the last; going out by melding everything is only allowed with a special hand. You may ask your partner once per hand, “May I go out?”, and their answer binds you. Going out earns 100.
Scoring adds big bonuses and big penalties
| Item | Points |
|---|---|
| Mixed canasta | 300 |
| Natural canasta | 500 |
| Canasta of sevens or aces | 2,500 |
| Canasta of twos | 3,000 |
| Canasta of all four jokers and three twos | 2,500 |
| Other wild canasta | 2,000 |
| Going out | 100 |
| Unfinished meld of sevens or of pure aces | −2,500 |
| Unfinished wild meld | −2,000 |
| Three or more sevens, or aces, left in one hand | −1,500 |
| Threes: 1, 2, 3, 4 of them | 100, 300, 500, 1000 |
Threes count as a bonus with two or more canastas, nothing with one, and a penalty with none. Melded cards count plus once your team has a canasta, otherwise minus. Cards left in hand always count minus, at the usual values.
Play from your table's card. Leagues revise Modern American rules often. Bring your group's current rules card to the table; this page is an overview, not a replacement for it.
If you like Canasta, try
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Rules, the list of all 10 phases and free score sheets.
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Build runs and sets, then knock when your leftovers are low.
Questions people ask
How many cards are dealt in Modern American Canasta?
13 cards to each of the four players, from two decks with four jokers. Classic Canasta deals 11.
How many points do you need to go down in Modern American Canasta?
125 points while your team's score is under 3,000 (even if it is negative), 155 from 3,000 to 4,995, and 180 from 5,000 up. A natural or wild canasta held in your hand can also open, with no minimum.
How many canastas do you need to go out in American canasta?
2. You also need to keep one card to discard: you can't go out by melding every card, except with a special hand.
What is the difference between American canasta and regular canasta?
Modern American Canasta deals 13 cards instead of 11, stops melds at seven cards, treats sevens and aces specially, allows canastas of wild cards, has special hands, needs two canastas to go out and plays to 8,500 instead of 5,000.
What are bonus cards in American canasta?
After your team's first meld, if you don't go out and the turn card is still in the stock, you draw extra cards face down: 4 if your team melded first, 3 if the other team had melded already. You add them to your hand at the start of your next turn.