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How to Play Skip-Bo with 2 Players

Quick answer

To play Skip-Bo with 2 players, deal each player a 30-card stock pile and turn the top card face up. Take turns: draw up to 5 cards, build the shared piles from 1 to 12, and end with one discard. The first to empty their stock pile wins.

The rules are the same as for 3 or 4 players. Only the table is quieter, so watching your opponent matters more.

Practice with a guided gamePlay Spite & Malice freeFree, no sign-up. Spite & Malice is the classic two-player game Skip-Bo is based on.

Setup for two takes a minute

  1. Each player draws a card; the higher number deals. Wild cards don’t count.
  2. The dealer deals 30 cards face down to each player. These are the stock piles. For a short game, deal 10 each.
  3. Both players turn their top stock card face up.
  4. The other 102 of the 162 cards go face down in the middle as the draw pile.
  5. The non-dealer goes first.
2-player Skip-Bo tableThe draw pile and up to 4 shared building piles sit in the middle. Each of the 2 players has a 30-card stock pile and room for 4 discard piles in front of them.Shared middleDraw102ABCDBuilding piles 1→12You30StockDiscard pilesOpponent30StockDiscard piles
Two-player table: each of you has a 30-card stock pile and room for 4 discard piles. The draw pile and up to 4 building piles sit between you.

Each turn: draw, build, discard

  1. Draw until you hold 5 cards.
  2. Build on the shared piles in order, 1 up to 12. A pile starts with a 1 or a wild card. You may play your stock card, any card in your hand, and the top card of each of your discard piles.
  3. Keep going as long as you like. Play all 5 hand cards and you draw 5 more.
  4. Discard one hand card onto one of your 4 discard piles. That ends your turn.

A pile that reaches 12 is finished. Set it aside; the space is free for a new pile.

Watch one full turn

Your stock card is a 6. Pile A shows a 3. Press “Next play” to see how one turn can clear 3 stock cards. Each move is picked by the computer player from our Spite & Malice game. Here the Skip-Bo wild card stands in for the king.

Example turn: 3 stock cards in one turn

Opponent’s stock pile (30 cards)

Building piles (shared)

  • A: empty
  • B: at 1 needs 2
  • C: empty
  • D: empty

Your stock pile (27)

Your hand (0)

  • empty

Your discard piles (top card shown)

  • 1: 1 card
  • 2: 0 cards
  • 3: 0 cards
  • 4: 0 cards

Turn over: 3 stock cards played in one turn, using 6 cards from hand and discard piles, then one discard.

  1. Play the 4 from your hand on building pile A.It is a step toward your stock card, a 6.
  2. Play the 5 from discard pile 1 on building pile A.It is a step toward your stock card, a 6.
  3. Play your stock card, the 6, on building pile A. 29 cards left in your stock pile.Stock cards are the only cards that win the game, so they come first.
  4. Play the Skip-Bo wild from your hand on building pile A as a 7.It is a step toward your stock card, an 8.
  5. Play your stock card, the 8, on building pile A. 28 cards left in your stock pile.Stock cards are the only cards that win the game, so they come first.
  6. Play the 9 from your hand on building pile A.It is a step toward your stock card, a 12.
  7. Play the 10 from discard pile 1 on building pile A.It is a step toward your stock card, a 12.
  8. Play the 11 from your hand on building pile A.It is a step toward your stock card, a 12.
  9. Play your stock card, the 12, on building pile A. 27 cards left in your stock pile. Pile A reaches 12 and is set aside.Stock cards are the only cards that win the game, so they come first.
  10. Discard the 2 on discard pile 1. That ends your turn.An empty discard pile is the safest place for a card you can’t use yet.

The turn used 6 cards from the hand and discard piles to reach 3 stock cards. Your stock pile went from 30 to 27. Note where the wild card went: it filled the 7 that nothing else could, right below a stock card.

In a two-player game, every pile you leave is a gift or a wall

With only two of you, whatever you leave on the building piles is exactly what your opponent faces next. At the end of the example, the 2 stayed off pile B. Pile B showed 1, and your opponent’s stock card is a 3. A 2 on pile B would have left it at 2, one below their stock card. They would have played it at once.

  • Check their stock card before every play. Don’t leave a pile one below it.
  • Play past it when you can. If their card is a 7, a pile at 8 is safe for now.
  • Hold a wild card for your own stock card rather than for an extra hand card.

Scoring is the same for two

The winner of a game scores 25 points plus 5 for every card left in the other player’s stock pile. The first to 500 wins the match. Our Skip-Bo score sheet does the sums.

Skip-Bo is a registered trademark of Mattel, Inc. This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by Mattel.

If you like Skip-Bo, try

Questions people ask

Can you play Skip-Bo with 2 players?

Yes. Skip-Bo is for 2 to 6 players, and two players use the normal rules. Each of you gets a 30-card stock pile, and 102 cards are left in the draw pile.

How many cards do you deal for 2-player Skip-Bo?

30 cards each for a full game, or 10 each for a short game. No hand is dealt; each player draws 5 at the start of their turn.

Are the 2-player rules different from the 4-player rules?

No. The turn, the building piles, the discard piles and the scoring are all the same. Only the partnership game for four players changes anything.

How do you score a 2-player game?

The winner scores 25 points plus 5 for each card left in the other player’s stock pile. Play several games; the first to 500 points wins.

Is there a way to play Skip-Bo for 2 online?

Our free Spite & Malice game plays the same way against the computer: kings are the wild cards and you build from ace up to queen.