How to Play Farkle – Complete Rules, Scoring & Strategy Guide
May 2025 · 10 min read
Farkle is one of the simplest dice games to learn and one of the most compelling to master. This complete guide covers every rule, every scoring combination, and the strategy you need to stop Farkling and start winning.
What is Farkle?
Farkle is a classic press-your-luck dice game for 2 or more players. The goal is to be the first player to bank 10,000 points over multiple turns of rolling and scoring six dice. The defining tension of Farkle is the decision every turn: bank what I have now, or roll again for more?
The risk of rolling again is the titular "Farkle" — a roll where none of the dice score any points. When you Farkle, you lose every point accumulated that turn. Zero. Banking nothing. That gut-punch moment is the heartbeat of the game.
Farkle has been a family and party game staple since the 1990s. It goes by many names — Zilch, 10,000, Greedy, Cosmic Wimpout — but the core push-your-luck mechanism is the same. It's easy to explain in two minutes and impossible to put down.
Ready to play? Try Farkle free in your browser — no download, no sign-up.
🎲 Play Farkle Free →What You Need to Play Farkle
To play Farkle in person, all you need is:
- Six standard 6-sided dice (D6)
- A way to track scores — paper and pen, or a phone
- Two or more players
To play online, you need nothing but a browser. Our free online Farkle game handles the dice, scoring, and opponent automatically.
How to Play Farkle – Step by Step
1. Start of Turn
On your turn, roll all six dice. After every roll, you must set aside at least one scoring die (or combination). You cannot put dice back once set aside.
2. Score or Roll Again
After setting aside your scoring dice, choose: bank your turn total (add points to your running score and end your turn) or roll again using the remaining dice. Rolling again risks a Farkle.
3. Farkling Out
If you roll the remaining dice and none of them score — no 1s, no 5s, no three-of-a-kind, no special combination — that's a Farkle. Your entire turn total is lost. You score nothing for that turn and pass the dice.
4. Getting on the Board
You cannot bank until your first scoring turn reaches at least 500 points. This "getting on the board" rule applies only to your very first bank. After that, you can bank any positive score.
5. Player Order
Players take turns clockwise. Each player must complete their turn before the next player rolls. In multiplayer Farkle, strategy shifts based on how close your opponents are to 10,000 points.
Farkle Scoring Chart
These are the standard Farkle scoring combinations. Only 1s and 5s score individually — all other dice must form sets of three or more.
| Combination | Points |
|---|---|
| Single 1 | 100 pts |
| Single 5 | 50 pts |
| Three 1s | 1,000 pts |
| Three 2s | 200 pts |
| Three 3s | 300 pts |
| Three 4s | 400 pts |
| Three 5s | 500 pts |
| Three 6s | 600 pts |
| Four of a kind | 1,000 pts |
| Five of a kind | 2,000 pts |
| Six of a kind | 3,000 pts |
| Straight (1–2–3–4–5–6) | 1,500 pts |
| Three pairs | 1,500 pts |
Four-of-a-kind = double the three-of-a-kind value. Five-of-a-kind = quadruple. Six-of-a-kind = 3,000 pts for all numbers except 1s (six 1s = 8,000 pts in some variants).
The Hot Dice Rule
Hot Dice occur when every die you rolled scores a combination. When this happens, you have a special option: keep all accumulated turn points and roll all six dice again from scratch.
This is the single best position in Farkle. You carry your full turn score safely and re-roll six dice — the lowest possible Farkle risk. Hot Dice chains (hitting Hot Dice multiple times in a row) can produce enormous turn scores of 3,000–5,000+ points.
The rule: always roll on Hot Dice. The only exception is if your accumulated turn score would give you an outright win and you're in the final round. In that case, bank and win.
Winning the Game
The first player to bank a total of 10,000 or more points triggers the final round. All other players get one final turn to beat that score.
This final round rule is crucial: if you're trailing when someone reaches 10,000, you must abandon normal conservative strategy and go for a massive turn. Banking 350 points when you need 2,000 more does nothing. Push every roll.
The player with the highest score after the final round ends wins. Ties go to the player who triggered the final round (they had the highest score first).
Practice the rules with our free online version — Easy, Medium, and Hard CPU difficulty.
🎲 Play Farkle Free →Farkle Strategy Tips
Bank at the right time
With 1 die left and 300+ pts, almost always bank. A single die Farkles 67% of the time — worse odds than a coin flip. Only keep rolling a single die if you desperately need points to get on the board.
Always roll on Hot Dice
When all six dice score, you reset to six fresh dice with your turn score locked in. The Farkle risk is only ~2%. Never bank Hot Dice unless you're in the final round and the points would win you the game.
Aggressive opening turns
You need 500 points just to bank for the first time. This means push harder than usual in opening turns — banking 400 with 3 dice left is useless until you're on the board.
Adjust to the score gap
If you're 2,000 points behind, normal conservative thresholds won't close the gap. Expand your risk tolerance. If you're 2,000 ahead, tighten up — let your opponent chase you into Farkles.
Farkle FAQ
How many players can play Farkle?
Farkle can be played with 2 or more players. The standard game works best with 2–6 players. In our online version you play one-on-one against the CPU.
How many points do you need to win Farkle?
The first player to reach 10,000 points wins Farkle. After one player crosses 10,000, every remaining player gets one final turn to try to beat that score.
What is the minimum score to bank in Farkle?
You need at least 500 points to bank for the very first time — this is called "getting on the board." After that, you can bank any positive score on subsequent turns.
What are Hot Dice in Farkle?
Hot Dice occur when every die in your current roll scores a combination. When this happens, you may roll all six dice again and continue accumulating points for the turn without losing your score.
Can I play Farkle online for free?
Yes. PlayDice offers free online Farkle with no download and no account required. Play in your browser on any device at playdice.online/play/farkle/.
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Now You Know the Rules — Play!
Put everything into practice with free online Farkle. No download, no sign-up.
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