With two players there's no deal. The deck sits face down between you and you take turns drawing: look at the top card, keep it or throw it away, and take the next card the other way. When the deck runs out you each hold 13 cards. Then you bid and play as in the standard game, each for yourself.
Spades is a four-player game, but it works well for two. The version below is the one recorded by Pagat, the standard reference for card game rules. You need one standard 52-card deck and no jokers.
Getting your hands: draw, don’t deal
There’s no deal. Shuffle the deck and put it face down between the two of you. Take turns drawing; agree who goes first, for example taking turns each hand.
On your turn:
- Draw the top card and look at it. Don’t show it.
- If you want it, put it in your hand. Then draw the next card, look at it, and discard it face down.
- If you don’t want it, discard it face down. Then draw the next card and put it in your hand, whatever it is.
So every turn you see two cards, keep one and throw one away. Keep going until the deck is gone. You’ll each end with 13 cards in hand and 13 discarded.
The discards stay face down and out of play. Neither of you knows exactly which 26 cards are missing, which is what makes the bidding interesting.
Bidding
Each player bids the number of tricks they expect to win, from their own hand, as in the standard game. You play for yourself, so there’s no team bid. Agree before you start whether nil is allowed.
Play
Play follows the standard rules: follow suit if you can, spades are trumps, and spades can’t be led until one has been played on another suit (unless you hold only spades). Pagat doesn’t say who leads to the first trick, so agree it before you start (for example, the player who drew second). The winner of each trick leads the next. With two players, each trick has just two cards.
Scoring
Pagat says to play and score “according to the same rules” as the three- and four-player games. Each player scores for themselves:
- Make your bid: 10 points for each trick you bid.
- Overtricks (bags): as your table plays them; see the house rules for the usual bag penalty.
- Fail your bid: minus 10 points for each trick you bid.
Agree a target before you start; Pagat’s three-player game suggests 300, 400 or 500. The cutthroat sheet on the score sheets page works for two players scoring individually: use two of its columns.
Other ways to play with two
- With jokers. Bicycle’s rules for spades with jokers include a two-player game. The two jokers are added as the highest trumps and the two of clubs and two of diamonds are removed.
- Two hands each. A version contributed to Pagat by Darrin Berkley deals four hands and gives each player two, played as if from two seats, with its own bidding rules and jokers. It plays more like the four-handed game but has more rules to learn.
For the standard four-player game, play spades online against the computer or with friends.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you play spades with two people?
Yes. In the usual two-player game you don't deal: you take turns drawing from the deck, keeping one of each two cards you see and discarding the other, until you each have 13 cards. Then you bid and play as in the standard game, each scoring for yourself.
How many cards do you get in two-player spades?
Thirteen each. Each of you sees 26 cards while drawing, keeps 13 and discards 13 face down, so 26 cards are never played.
How do you score two-player spades?
Each player scores their own bid as in the standard game: 10 points a trick for making it, minus 10 a trick for failing, bags for overtricks, and nil if your table allows it. Agree a target, such as 300 or 500, before you start.