Nap: Rules and How to Play
Nap is a quick trick-taking card game for 3–6 players that takes about 15 minutes. Bid the tricks you can take with five cards; the highest bidder plays alone. Free. In-browser. No account.
What is Nap? How you win
Nap is a trick-taking card game in which everyone bids how many of five tricks they can take, and the highest bidder plays alone against all the others. Make your bid and every other player pays you points according to the bid. When everyone has dealt the agreed number of times, the highest score wins.
Setting up Nap: players and the deal
- Three to six players (four or five is most common). Empty seats are filled by the computer on this site.
- Using a 52-card pack (no jokers), deal starting left of the dealer: three cards each, then two each, for five cards. The rest are not used. The deal passes to the left each hand.
How to play Nap: bidding and playing cards
- Starting left of the dealer, each player bids once or passes. Bids start at Three (a party setting allows Two).
- The highest bidder leads to the first trick. The suit of that card is trumps for the hand (misère has no trumps).
- Others must follow the suit led if they can; otherwise they may trump or discard.
- The highest trump wins the trick, or if there is none, the highest card of the suit led. The winner leads next. Aces are high and twos are low.
Bidding in Nap: order and ranking
Starting left of the dealer, each player gets one chance to bid higher than the previous bid or pass. The highest bidder plays alone against everyone else.
| Bid (low to high) | Aim | Points per player |
|---|---|---|
| Three | Take at least three tricks | 3 |
| Misère | Take no tricks (no trumps) | 3 |
| Four | Take at least four tricks | 4 |
| Nap | Take all five tricks | 5 (win or lose) |
| Wellington | Take all five (only after Nap) | 10 (win or lose) |
- Misère ranks between Three and Four.
- If everyone passes, the hand is not played and the next dealer deals again (a party setting makes the dealer bid instead, from One).
- Party settings can allow bids from Two, or pay Nap as win 10, lose 5 (Wellington 20 and 10).
- Blücher (all five, only after Wellington; 20) can be switched on in the party settings.
Nap scoring and the end of the game
- After five tricks, the bidder is paid or pays according to whether the bid was made.
- By default the game ends when everyone has dealt twice (eight deals for four players, counting hands redealt after all passes); the highest score wins.
How Nap is scored
Scores are points only — no chips. If the bidder succeeds, each other player pays the bidder; if the bidder fails, the bidder pays each other player the same amount.
| Example (four players) | Bidder | Each other player |
|---|---|---|
| Bid three, took three | +9 | −3 |
| Bid three, took two | −9 | +3 |
| Nap made | +15 | −5 |
| Nap failed | −15 | +5 |
- Extra tricks beyond a number bid score nothing more.
- All the scores always add up to zero.
Defaults on this site
| Item | Default on this site |
|---|---|
| Players | 3–6 players (set automatically by the party size) |
| Turn time limit | None by default (the host can set 30 or 60 seconds) |
| If someone drops mid-game | Reopening on the same device returns you to your seat. If you do not return, the CPU plays in your place. |
| Draws | In ranked play, a draw counts as halfway between a win and a loss for your rating. |
| Source of the rules | Based on the standard reference rules |
Rules supervised by Qdan, Inc. (based on the standard reference rules)
Nap house rules (settings on this site)
Defaults follow the standard reference rules. The party can change these.
| Name | Description | Default | Changeable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deals | The game ends when everyone has dealt this many times; the highest score wins. | Twice each | Yes |
| Lowest bidLowest bidA bid is the number of tricks you promise to take with your five cards. Lowering the minimum lets players with weaker hands have a go, so fewer deals are passed out. Starting at Three means only strong hands bid, which makes for tighter games. | The smallest number of tricks you may bid. | Three | Yes |
| MisèreMisèreMisère is a bid to take no tricks at all, played with no trumps. It ranks between Three and Four and is worth 3 points either way. With it on, you can bid even on a hand with few high cards. | Allow the bid to take no tricks (ranks between Three and Four, worth 3). | On | Yes |
| Bids above NapBids above NapNap is a bid to take all five tricks. Wellington, allowed only after Nap, is the same all-five bid for double the points; Blücher, allowed only after Wellington, doubles again. With None, bidding stops as soon as someone bids Nap. | Higher bids to take all five tricks, allowed after Nap. | Up to Wellington | Yes |
| Nap payoutNap payoutWith win or lose 5, a successful Nap collects 5 from each opponent and a failed one pays 5 to each. With win 10, lose 5, only the winning payout doubles, so bidding Nap pays off more often. Wellington and Blücher change in the same proportion. | Points for making or failing Nap (and Wellington and Blücher). | Win or lose 5 | Yes |
| If all passIf all passWith redeal, if everyone passes, the deal is scrapped and the next player deals. With the dealer bidding, the dealer must bid, from One upwards even if that is below the lowest-bid setting, so every deal is played out. | What happens when everyone before the dealer passes. | Redeal | Yes |
| PackPackStripping by players keeps only the top "players + 3" ranks (A–9 for three, A–8 for four, A–7 for five, A–6 for six). Fewer cards go undealt, so it is easier to work out where the high cards are, and taking all five tricks becomes more realistic. | Use all 52 cards, or strip low cards to suit the number of players. | 52 cards | Yes |
Nap terms
- Trick
- One round in which everyone plays a card. The highest card takes it.
- Bidder
- The highest bidder, who leads first and plays alone against everyone else.
- Nap
- A bid to take all five tricks — the game is named after it.
- Misère
- A bid to take no tricks at all, played without trumps.
- Wellington, Blücher
- Bids above Nap, also to take all five tricks, allowed only after Nap. They score more.
Nap rules FAQ
Is this the Japanese game Napoleon?
No. The Japanese game called Napoleon is for five players with a secret partner and is about capturing picture cards. Nap is the British game in which you bid tricks with a five-card hand and the bidder plays alone. It is also called Napoleon in English.
How are trumps chosen?
The suit of the first card the bidder leads is trumps. It is not named during the bidding. Misère has no trumps.
What if I take more tricks than I bid?
A number bid is made if you take at least that many. Extra tricks score nothing more.
What if everyone passes?
By default the hand is not played and the next player deals again. A party setting makes the dealer bid instead, from One.
Play now with these rules
Last updated 2026-09-26 · Run by Qdan, Inc.