Pinochle Scoring: How to Count Your Points
Quick answer
Pinochle scoring has two parts. First you score meld, card combinations you show before play, such as a marriage (20) or aces around (100). Then you score counters: every ace, ten and king you win in tricks is worth 10, and the last trick is worth 10 more, 250 points in all.
If the bidding team's meld plus counters reaches its bid, it scores all of it. If not, it is “set” and loses the amount of the bid.
Pinochle points come from meld and from tricks
Every hand of four-player pinochle is scored the same way, for both teams:
- Meld. After trump is named and cards are passed, everyone lays down their scoring combinations. Each team adds up its meld and writes it down.
- Counters. After all 12 tricks, each team counts the aces, tens and kings it won, at 10 points each. The team that took the last trick adds 10.
- The bid. The team that won the auction must reach its bid with meld and counters together. The other team just scores what it earned.
A team's score for the hand is its meld plus its counters, with two exceptions: a bidding team that falls short, and a defending team that wins no counter at all. Both are explained below.
Meld points: a marriage is 20, a run is 150
| Meld | Cards | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Run | A, 10, K, Q, J of trump | 150 |
| Royal marriage | K and Q of trump | 40 |
| Marriage | K and Q of the same suit (not trump) | 20 |
| Dix | 9 of trump | 10 each |
| Aces / kings / queens / jacks around | One of that rank in every suit | 100 / 80 / 60 / 40 |
| Pinochle | J♦ and Q♠ | 40 |
| Double pinochle | Both J♦ and both Q♠ | 300 |
A card may count in two melds only if they are of different kinds: the K♠ can be in a spade marriage and in kings around, but not in two marriages. Every value, with card pictures and the double melds, is on our printable pinochle meld chart.
Counters: every ace, ten and king is worth 10
Only three ranks score in the play. Queens, jacks and nines are worth nothing once the tricks start.
- The deck has 24 counters: two aces, two tens and two kings in each suit. That is 240 points.
- The team that wins the last trick gets 10 more.
- So every hand has exactly 250 points to win in tricks. If your side took 160, the other side took 90.
The old count. Some older books and many 2-handed players count ace 11, ten 10, king 4, queen 3, jack 2. It adds up to the same 240 (plus 10 for the last trick), so the totals stay the same. Most four-player games today use the simple count of 10.
Pinochle score calculator
Try any hand. The calculator finds your meld with the same engine that runs our free game, then tells you whether your side made its bid.
Pinochle score calculator
Pick a hand and a trump suit. The calculator finds your meld. Then set your partner's meld, the counters your side won and your bid.
Your meld: 320
- Run in hearts: Ace of hearts + Ten of hearts + King of hearts + Queen of hearts + Jack of hearts = 150
- Marriage in spades: King of spades + Queen of spades = 20
- Dix: Nine of hearts = 10
- Aces around: Ace of clubs + Ace of diamonds + Ace of hearts + Ace of spades = 100
- Pinochle: Jack of diamonds + Queen of spades = 40
3. The rest of the hand
Your partner's meld
Counters your side won (A, 10, K)
Your side's bid
Meld 320 + partner 40 = 360. Counters 150 + last trick 10 = 160.
Total 520, bid 300: you made it! Your side scores 520.
The other side scores its 90 in counters, plus its own meld.
Make the bid and you score everything; miss it and you lose the bid
The bid is a promise about meld and counters together. At the end of the hand:
- Made: meld + counters is equal to or more than the bid. The bidding team scores all of it, not just the bid.
- Set: meld + counters is less than the bid. The bidding team scores nothing for the hand, not even its meld, and the bid is taken off its score.
Example. You bid 300. Your team melds 180 and wins 140 in counters: 320. You made it, so you score 320. With only 110 in counters you would have 290, and you would lose 300 instead.
Throwing in. After seeing the meld, the bidder may give up before any card is played. The bidding team loses the bid, and the other team scores only its meld. It saves time when the bid is hopeless.
Four real hands, scored the way our game scores them
These hands were dealt and played by the computer players in our free game. The numbers come straight from the game's scoring, and the calculator above follows the same rule.
| What happened | Bid | Bidding team | Other team |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bid made | 260 | Meld 280 + counters 170 = 450. Scores 450. | Meld 40 + counters 80. Scores 120. |
| Set | 250 | Meld 110 + counters 130 = 240, short of 250. Scores -250. | Meld 90 + counters 120. Scores 210. |
| Other team lost its meld | 250 | Meld 160 + counters 250. Scores 410. | Melded 60 but won no counter and not the last trick. Scores 0. |
| Bidder threw in | 300 | Meld 120, too far from the bid. Scores -300. | Scores its meld only: 120. |
The other team keeps its meld only if it takes a counter
The team that did not win the bid always scores its counters. It scores its meld too, but only if it wins at least one counter or the last trick during the play. Players call this saving the meld.
One exception: each nine of trump (the dix, 10 points) counts even if the team takes nothing. The bidding team has no such test. It keeps its meld whenever it makes the bid.
Keep a running total; the first team to 1500 wins
- Write both teams' scores after every hand and keep a running total. Scores below zero are normal after a set.
- The first team to reach 1500 wins.
- If both teams pass 1500 on the same hand, the team that won the bid wins.
- The lowest bid is 250. If everyone else passes, the dealer must take the bid at 250.
Scoring house rules vary, so agree before you deal
- Game length: 1000 for a short game, 2500 for a long evening.
- Minimum bid: some tables open at 150, 200 or 300 instead of 250.
- Counting: the old 11-10-4-3-2 count instead of 10 for each ace, ten and king. Totals stay the same.
Our free pinochle game follows the rules on this page and keeps score for you. New to the game? Start with how to play pinochle.
If you like Pinochle, try
Euchre
2–4 players · 20 min · Learn in a game or two
Partners, trump and the two bowers. Take three tricks of five.
Canasta
2–6 players · 60 min · Learn in a game or two
Meld sevens of a kind with your partner. Red threes are a bonus.
Cribbage
2–4 players · 20 min · Learn in a game or two
Race your pegs to 121. Count fifteens, pairs and runs.
Questions people ask
How do you score points in pinochle?
Each hand has two parts. First each team scores its meld: combinations such as a marriage (20) or a run (150). Then each team scores its counters: 10 for every ace, ten and king won in tricks, plus 10 for the last trick. The bidding team must reach its bid or it loses the amount of the bid.
How many points are counters worth in pinochle?
Each ace, ten and king is worth 10. There are 24 of them in the 48-card deck, so 240 points. The last trick adds 10, for 250 points in every hand.
What happens if you do not make your bid in pinochle?
Your team is “set.” You score nothing for that hand, not even your meld, and the amount of the bid is taken off your score. Your score can go below zero.
Does the other team score its meld?
Yes, if it wins at least one counter or the last trick during the play. If it takes nothing at all, its meld is lost, except for any nines of trump (the dix), which always count.
Do you need to take a trick to score meld?
Only the team that did not bid has to take something: a counter or the last trick. The bidding team scores its meld whenever it makes its bid.
How many points do you need to win pinochle?
1500 in the four-player game we describe. If both teams pass 1500 on the same hand, the team that won the bid wins. Many families play to 1000 or 2500 instead.