Yahtzee: The Game, the Rules and the Editions

What the Yahtzee game is

Yahtzee is a roll-and-write dice game. You roll five dice, keep the ones you like, roll the rest, and then write a score in one box on your card. There are 13 boxes and 13 rounds, so every box gets filled exactly once. Highest grand total wins.

That's the whole skeleton. What makes it a game is the box you pick. A roll of three 4s can go in the Fours box, the Three of a Kind box or Chance. Each choice closes a door you might want later. Hasbro's own rulebook says it plainly: the skill is less about rolling well and more about knowing when to fill each box.

Here's the table version of the box facts, from Hasbro's classic rulebook (product code C2406):

• Players: 2 or more
• Ages: 8+
• Contents: shaker cup with lid, 5 dice, 100 score cards
• Rounds: 13, one turn each
• Not included: a pen (the rulebook says so, and my junk drawer agrees)

The newer Hasbro dice-game box (G2662) swaps the shaker for a collapsible cup, adds a storage case with a dice tray, and comes with 80 score sheets. Players and age are the same: 2+ and 8+. There's no co-op mode in either rulebook. Everybody plays their own card, and the only teamwork is passing the pencil.

How Yahtzee plays

The rules below are in my own words, from two Hasbro rulebooks: the Yahtzee Classic rulebook (C2406) and the 2025 Yahtzee Dice Game rulebook (G2662). The two say the same thing with different labels. The older one calls the halves of the card the upper and lower sections. The newer one calls them Number Combos and Special Combos. For the step-by-step version with worked examples, see our full rules.

Who goes first

Everyone rolls one die. High roll starts, and play goes around the table to the left. Write the names on the score card in turn order. That's the setup. It's the shortest setup of any game in my closet, which is the main reason it's still in my closet.

A turn, start to finish

1. Roll all five dice.
2. If you like what you see, you can score it right away.
3. If not, set aside any dice you want to keep and roll the rest. You can also reroll all five.
4. Do that once more if you want. Three rolls total, and on the third roll you can even pick up dice you kept earlier.
5. Write a score in one empty box in your column. You must fill a box every turn, even if the score is 0.

Once a box has a number in it, it's done for the game. You can fill boxes in any order, in either section.

The upper section: count one number

The upper section has six boxes, Aces (1s) through Sixes. You add up only the dice showing that number. Three 3s in the Threes box score 9. Two 1s in the Aces box score 2.

Score 63 or more across those six boxes and you get a 35-point bonus. Both rulebooks give the same shortcut: three of each number gets you there. I can't resist the math. Three 1s plus three 2s and so on up to three 6s is 3 × 21, which is exactly 63. It's the one time I get to say "show your work" at a game table and nobody groans. (Dana groans. Dana counts.)

The lower section: the combos

• Three of a Kind: three matching dice, score the total of all five
• Four of a Kind: four matching dice, score the total of all five
• Full House: three of one number plus a pair, 25 points
• Small Straight: four numbers in a row, 30 points
• Large Straight: five numbers in a row, 40 points
• Yahtzee: all five dice the same, 50 points
• Chance: anything at all, score the total of all five

Chance is the safety net. The classic rulebook suggests saving it for late in the game, when your options run thin.

Extra Yahtzees and the joker rule

Roll a second Yahtzee after you've already scored 50 in the Yahtzee box, and you mark a Yahtzee bonus. The classic rulebook puts each extra one at 100 points. You also still have to fill a box that turn, in this order:

1. The matching upper box (five 6s go in Sixes), if it's open.
2. If that's full, Three of a Kind or Four of a Kind, scored as the total of the dice.
3. If those are full too, Chance or any other lower box at its normal value, so a Full House still scores 25.
4. If nothing above is open, the 2025 rulebook says you put a 0 in an upper box of your choice.

One catch both rulebooks agree on: if you already wrote a 0 in your Yahtzee box, you can't collect the bonus. That's why the classic rulebook warns against zeroing the Yahtzee box early.

How it ends

After 13 rounds every box is full. Add up the upper section, add the 35-point bonus if you earned it, add the lower section and any Yahtzee bonuses. The highest grand total wins.

Lucho's take: "Every game needs a house rule." Ours is written on an index card taped inside the box lid, so nobody has to remember who agreed to what last Saturday.

Yahtzee editions on Amazon US right now

Our data for this page lists 23 Yahtzee editions and versions on Amazon US as of October 2026. The table above shows the players, age and play time each listing states. Where a listing leaves a field out, the table shows a dash, and I won't guess. Here's what tells the groups apart.

The classic dice game, in a few boxes

These are the editions closest to the rulebook above: five dice, a cup and a score pad.

• Hasbro Yahtzee with Collapsible Cup & Storage Case. The listing names 5 dice, 80 score sheets, a collapsible cup and a storage case with a rolling tray. It lists 2+ players and 30 minutes.
• Winning Moves Classic Yahtzee. Listed as the classic edition, ages 8+, 2+ players.
• Milton Bradley Triple Yahtzee. A dice game listed for 1 player and up, with a solo mode on the listing.
• WS Game Company Yahtzee Vintage Bookshelf Edition. Listed as a retro reissue, ages 8+, 1+ players, with solo play. The listing names a rolling cup, dice tray, 5 dice, 8 betting chips, a scorebook and 4 pencils. It's also marked as resale stock.

If you want the game exactly as the rulebook describes it, start with this group. The Vintage Bookshelf box is the only one in our data that lists betting chips, so expect an extra piece in that box that the classic rules don't use.

Yahtzee Jr. for younger kids

Two editions in our data carry the Yahtzee Jr. name, and both list ages 4+:

• Yahtzee Jr. Disney Princess Edition (Hasbro), 2 to 4 players
• Spidey and His Amazing Friends Yahtzee Jr. Marvel Edition (Hasbro), player count not listed

These are the only Yahtzee boxes in our data with a starting age under 8. The listings don't spell out how the Jr. rules differ, so I won't either.

Check the age label on the listing. Toys with small parts are a choking hazard for children under 3, and dice are small parts.

Themed editions from USAopoly

Six themed dice editions are listed from USAopoly: Cup Noodles, Disney Hocus Pocus, Wednesday, Peanuts, The Grinch and KFC. Where the listings give details, they're the classic dice game in a themed package.

• Cup Noodles, Hocus Pocus and Wednesday: ages 8+, 1+ players, 30 minutes, solo mode listed
• Peanuts Edition: ages 8+, 1+ players, solo mode listed
• Grinch and KFC Edition: listed as dice games; the listings don't give players, age or time

What tells them apart is the cup. The listings name a Cup Noodles dice cup, a cauldron cup, a coffin cup and a Snoopy doghouse cup. Hocus Pocus lists 5 custom dice and Wednesday lists a score pad and pencil. If the person you're shopping for already owns plain Yahtzee, the theme is the reason to buy a second copy. Sam would buy a Yahtzee in any cup shaped like a building. He has a theory about architecture and luck.

Spin-offs that play differently

Three listings use the Yahtzee name for a different kind of game:

• Yahtzee Frenzy (Hasbro): a card game, listed as matching and speed play, ages 8+, 2 to 4 players
• Yahtzee Words (Winning Moves): a word game with 7 letter dice, a score pad and a pencil, ages 8+, 2+ players
• Yahtzee On the Rocks (Hasbro): listed as an adult edition, ages 21+, 2 to 6 players, 20 minutes

None of these are the classic score-card game. If you want the rulebook game on this page, skip this group. On the Rocks is listed for ages 21+, so it's for grown-up tables only.

Electronic handhelds

Eight electronic versions are in our data. One is the Hasbro Yahtzee Handheld Digital. The other seven are Milton Bradley handhelds whose listing names include years and case colors: two listed as the 1995 Handheld Electronic Game, a Clear Smoke Case 1995, a 1995 Smoke Clear Case Edition, a 1999 Edition, a Gold Case Edition and a Gold 2002 Edition. The 1999 Edition is marked as resale stock.

The listings don't give player counts, ages or play times for any of them. They are the one group where the dice can't roll off the table, which counts for something on a garage floor.

Which Yahtzee edition fits your table

My one opinion for this page: the age on the box works in both directions. Classic Yahtzee is 8+ because a kid has to add five dice, compare options and hold a plan for 13 rounds. A 5-year-old will roll happily and then hit a wall at the score card. That's what the Jr. editions at 4+ are for. Going the other way, a Jr. box at an adult game night is a short evening.

A few quick matches, from the listings:

• A first family copy: the Hasbro collapsible-cup edition or Winning Moves Classic
• A kid between 4 and 7: one of the two Yahtzee Jr. editions, at 4+
• Playing alone: an edition that lists 1+ players and a solo mode, like Triple Yahtzee or the Vintage Bookshelf Edition
• A gift for someone who owns Yahtzee already: a themed USAopoly edition
• Words over numbers: Yahtzee Words

Score cards run out. The classic rulebook says refill packs exist, and I'd add that a sheet of graph paper and a ruler work fine in a pinch. That's a house rule, not a Hasbro one.

Who should skip Yahtzee

Skip it if your group wants decisions with no luck in them. Every turn starts with a roll, and a great plan can lose to three 1s. Skip it too if you want everyone working together. Yahtzee is everyone for themselves, with a pencil.

And skip the classic box if your youngest player is under 8 and can't add five dice yet. Look at Yahtzee Jr. at 4+, or wait a year. Sam learned to add sixes faster than his times tables, so the wait can be shorter than you think.

If you like Yahtzee, look at these

Pages chosen by what they share with Yahtzee: dice, short rounds and a table of 2 or more.

• Farkle: another press-your-luck dice game with scoring combos
• Dice games: the wider shelf of roll-and-score games
• Liar's dice: dice plus bluffing
• Shut the Box: dice and simple addition, good for practicing sums
• Travel games: small boxes for the road

The Yahtzee name has moved between makers over the years, which is why Milton Bradley and Hasbro both show up in the table. See the Hasbro and Milton Bradley brand pages for the rest of each lineup.

Roll first, argue later.