Dominoes Game: Sets, Mexican Train and How to Choose

What a dominoes game is

Dominoes is a family of games played with rectangular tiles. Each tile has two ends, and each end shows a number of dots, called pips, or a blank. Almost every domino game comes back to one move: play a tile so one of its ends matches an open end on the table.

That's why one set plays many games. The rule sheet we read for this page, from University Games, has four in it: a scoring game, two "train" games and a solitaire. The tiles are the same. The rules on top of them change.

The thing that changes most from set to set is the highest number. Sets are named by their highest double, the tile with the same number on both ends:

Set	Numbers	Tiles	Typical games
Double-6	blank to 6	28	straight dominoes, Muggins
Double-9	blank to 9	55	Mexican Train, Chickenfoot
Double-12	blank to 12	91	Mexican Train, Chickenfoot

The tile counts in that table match the sets listed in our data.

A math-teacher aside, because I'd be fired from my own house otherwise. There's a formula hiding in that table. Take the highest number, add 1, multiply by that number plus 2, and divide by 2. Double-6 gives 7 × 8 ÷ 2 = 28. Double-12 gives 13 × 14 ÷ 2 = 91. It works because every pair of numbers shows up on exactly one tile. My seventh graders call this "the domino trick." The textbook calls it something longer.

How dominoes plays: straight dominoes (Muggins)

These notes come from the University Games domino rule sheet, product 54005, dated 2016, in our own words. The full sheet is linked in the sources. It calls its first game Muggins, which is straight dominoes with scoring.

Setup

Muggins uses a double-6 set. With a bigger set, you keep only the tiles with 6 or lower, which leaves 28. It's for 2, 3 or 4 players, and four can play as two teams of partners sitting opposite each other.

Turn the tiles face down and shuffle them. With 2 players, each draws 7. With 3 or 4, each draws 5. Keep your tiles hidden. The rest are the boneyard, the pile you draw from.

A turn

The first player puts any tile in the middle. It doesn't have to be a double. After that, each player plays one tile that matches an open end of the line. If you have a tile that fits, you must play it. If you don't, you draw from the boneyard until you get one that fits or the boneyard runs out.

Doubles go in sideways, across the line. The very first double can be played on from all four sides, which opens up the layout.

Scoring

After each turn, add up the pips on every open end of the layout. If the total is a multiple of five, the player who just played scores that many points. If a player forgets to claim a score, an opponent can call "Muggins" and take the points.

So shouting at a friend about their addition is written into the rules. I read that line twice to be sure. It's there.

Ending a round and winning

A round ends when someone plays their last tile or nobody can play. The player who went out adds up the pips left in everyone else's hands, rounded to the nearest five, and scores that. If the game is blocked, the player with the lowest pip count scores the others' totals instead. The first player or team to 250 points wins.

How Mexican Train plays

Mexican Train is the domino game most of the bigger sets in our data are built for. The University Games page calls it the most popular domino game played today. These notes come from the same rule sheet.

Setup

1. Put the highest double, called the engine, in the hub in the middle of the table.
2. Shuffle the rest face down. Each player draws the same number of tiles; the rule sheet has a chart by set size and player count.
3. The rest form the boneyard.

A turn

On your turn you play one tile, matching ends. You can play it on your own train, which runs out from the engine toward you, or on the Mexican Train, a shared line anyone can add to, or on any train that has a marker on it.

If you can't play, draw one tile and play it if you can. If you still can't, put a train marker on your own train. That marker means your train is open, and other players may play on it until you play on it again.

Doubles

Doubles go in sideways. When you play a double, you must play one more tile, either on the double or somewhere else you're allowed to play. A double that nobody has played on yet is "open," and while it's open, nobody can play anywhere else until someone covers it. Doubles are where most of the groaning happens.

Ending a round and winning

When you're down to one tile, you have to let everyone know. The round ends when someone plays their last tile, or when the boneyard is empty and nobody can play. Everyone adds up the pips on the tiles still in their hand. That's your score for the round, and low is good.

Each new round starts with the next-lowest double as the engine: double-12, then double-11, all the way down to double-blank. With a double-12 set, that's 13 rounds. Lowest total at the end wins.

House rule: we write the round number next to the score, not just the engine. Thirteen rounds is a lot of counting down, and it's easy to lose your place around the double-7.

Chickenfoot and a game for one

The same rule sheet has Chickenfoot, another train-style game for double-9 or double-12 sets, where each double grows a "foot" of tiles before play can move on, and the player left holding the double-blank takes a 50-point penalty. It also has Castle Rock, a solitaire where you try to clear the whole set by matching tiles in a row. If you sometimes play alone, a set with a solo mode on the listing is worth a look.

Domino sets on Amazon US

As of 2026-10-23, our data shows 14 domino sets on Amazon US. The table on this page has all of them. Here's what tells them apart, by what the listings say.

Double-6 sets: 28 tiles

These are the sets for straight dominoes and Muggins.

• Melissa & Doug Dominoes Tabletop Game with Wooden Storage Box: ages 4+, 2 to 5 players. The youngest starting age in our data.
• Pressman Double Six Wooden Dominoes: ages 5+, 2 to 4 players, 28 hardwood tiles.
• Queen Games Dominos Set Double 6, Wooden Case: 2 to 4 players, melamine tiles.
• Queen Games Double 6 with 4 Domino Racks: racks and a travel case.
• Queen Games Double 6 with Colored Dots: a gift case.
• Spin Master Legacy Deluxe Double-6: 1 to 4 players, with a solo mode listed.
• University Games Double 6 Domino Game Travel Tin: ages 8+, 2 or more players.

Double-9 set: 55 tiles

• Spin Master Double 9 Dominoes Set in Storage Tin: ages 8 to 12 on the listing, 2 to 6 players. It's the only set in our data with an upper age on the label. A 55-tile set plays Mexican Train and Chickenfoot with shorter games than double-12.

Double-12 and Mexican Train sets: 91 tiles

• Cardinal Mexican Train Dominoes in Metal Case: ages 8+, 2 to 8 players, plastic trains, aluminum case.
• Queen Games Mexican Train Set with Wooden Hub: ages 8+, 2 or more players, 9 plastic trains, a wooden hub, aluminum case.
• Spin Master Legacy Deluxe Mexican Train Double-12: ages 8+, listed as a deluxe edition.
• Spin Master Yellowstone Mexican Train Dominoes: ages 8+, 2 to 8 players, Yellowstone-themed trains, wood storage case.
• Spin Master Double 12 Set with 4 Wooden Domino Racks: ages 8+, 2 to 6 players, plus a storage tin.
• University Games Front Porch Classics Spinner Dominoes Mexican Train Travel Tin: ages 8+, 2 to 8 players, with trains and an aluminum case.

What the extras do

• A hub: the center piece that holds the engine double. The rule sheet's Mexican Train starts there.
• Train markers: the small trains that show a player's train is open. Count the players you'll seat and check the listing has enough.
• Racks: stand your tiles up so you can see them and nobody else can. A double-12 hand is long, so racks help most there.
• A case or tin: 91 tiles is heavy, and a case with a latch is the difference between a game and a scavenger hunt.

Lucho's take: "My tía plays Mexican Train every Sunday. She doesn't count her own tiles. She counts yours."

How to choose a dominoes set

Start with your usual group. For 2 to 4 people who want a quick game, a double-6 set covers it. For a bigger table, 5 to 8, look at the double-12 Mexican Train sets, most of which list 2 to 8.

Then check the age. Most double-12 sets in our data say 8+. If your youngest is 4 or 5, the Melissa & Doug set at 4+ and the Pressman set at 5+ are the ones whose labels fit.

Then the extras. If you plan to play Mexican Train, you want a hub and enough trains for your table. Some double-12 sets in our data list both, some list only the tiles. Read the components line.

Last, where it lives. A tin or a travel case packs into a car. A wooden box looks good on a shelf. Both hold the same tiles.

Safety: small parts

Check the age label on the listing. Toys with small parts are a choking hazard for children under 3, and the small plastic trains in Mexican Train sets count. Keep them in the case between games.

Who should skip dominoes

Skip a double-12 set if your table is usually two people. It works, but a 13-round game for two is a long night; a double-6 set is the better fit.

Skip Mexican Train for kids under the listed 8+. The matching is easy, but the open-double rule and the end-of-round counting are where younger kids get stuck.

And if your group wants a game with a theme and a story, dominoes may feel plain. It's numbers and matching from first tile to last.

If you like dominoes, look at these

Chosen by what they share with dominoes: tiles, matching and numbers.

• Classic board games: the long-running family shelf
• Rummikub: number tiles, sets and runs
• Qwirkle: matching tiles by color and shape
• Shut the Box: another quiet game of adding numbers
• Travel games: small boxes for the road

More of each maker's games are on the Spin Master and Melissa & Doug brand pages.

Shuffle face down. Then count the dots twice.