Mahjong Ready

Your first seat at the table

Invited to play?
You’ve got this.

See how one complete hand unfolds—from the deal and the Charleston to the moment someone calls “Mah Jongg.”

Start the 5-minute guide See the game sequence

The essentials in about five minutes. Open the details whenever you want a closer look.

The goal

Four players. One card.
Your own 14-tile match.

American Mah Jongg is a rummy-like tile game for four players. You’ll use the current year’s card as your menu of possible winning hands.

Before the first hand

Meet the tiles

Learn the tile families and the table will start making sense.

01

Three numbered suits

Craks, Dots, and Bams each run from one through nine. Most of your rack will come from these.

02

Winds & Dragons

Four winds and three dragons show up across the card. “Soap” is the white dragon—and can also act as a zero.

03

Flowers & Jokers

Flowers are interchangeable. Jokers can substitute in many groups, but not in singles or pairs—and Jokers are never passed.

A card line, decodedFictional example
Read the groups
Two Flowers, then three groups of four matching tiles.
Follow the colors
Different colors mean different suits—not fixed tile colors.
Check the fine print
The note beneath a real line tells you which variations are allowed.
See this example with real tiles
An example to learn with, not an official card line.

Your most important tool

The card is your menu.

The National Mah Jongg League publishes a new card of winning hands each year. Everyone refers to it while playing, including experienced players.

  • Start with one or two promising sections or lines; do not force one exact hand too early.
  • For numbered groups, use the printed colors to track same-suit and different-suit relationships; a color is not permanently assigned to Bams, Craks, or Dots.
  • Read a colored D as the dragon matching that color’s suit. On a tile, Soap is blank or framed; the card uses 0 only when Soap represents zero.
  • Switch hands when your draws point somewhere better.
Buy the current official card

Keep the card beside you. Referring to it is part of the game.

One hand, start to finish

Here’s what happens, in order.

Follow one hand from setup to finish. Select any step to jump straight to its explanation.

  1. 1Choose East & set upPlayers roll for the first East, build four walls, then select their starting tiles.Go to this step
  2. 2Read your rackSort your tiles and use the card to spot one or two possible hands.Go to this step
  3. 3CharlestonComplete the required right-over-left passes, then decide on the optional second Charleston and courtesy pass. Jokers stay in your rack.Go to this step
  4. 4East discardsEast begins with an extra tile, so the first discard starts normal play.Go to this step
  5. 5Draw & discardTake one tile, reconsider your hand, then discard one tile.Go to this step
  6. 6Finish the handDeclare Mah Jongg when all 14 tiles match, or finish without a winner when the wall runs out.Go to this step

Step one

First, set the table.

Think of the walls as the game’s shuffled deck and draw pile. The group mixes all 152 tiles face-down, then builds them into four walls before anyone sees a tile.

The deal at a glance

Each wall
19 stacks · two tiles high
East starts with
14 tiles
Everyone else
13 tiles

East is the dealer. The other seats follow as South, West, and North.

See the deal, step by stepChoosing East, building walls, counting the break, and taking your tiles.

This walkthrough follows NMJL-style setup. Home-table customs can differ, especially when choosing the first East.

1

Choose the first East

In NMJL-style play away from home, each player rolls both dice. The highest total becomes East—the dealer and starting player—and tied players roll again.

Your table may differ: some home groups roll one die instead, while others let the host begin as East. Ask which method the group uses before the first hand. After a hand, the East position normally passes to the next player under the table’s rotation.
2

Mix and build

Turn all 152 tiles face-down and mix them in the center. Without looking, each player takes 38 tiles and makes one equal-length wall along their rack.

19 stacks×2 tiles high=38 tiles
3

Roll, count, then break the wall

1. Roll

After the walls are built, East makes a new dice roll. In this example, the total is 7.

2. Count to 7

Start at the right end of East’s wall and count seven two-tile stacks to the left.

3. Make the break

After counting stack 7, make a gap immediately to its left. The first stack on the left side of that gap is where players begin taking tiles.

4. Move the open end toward the center

After making the gap, East angles the end players will use toward the center so everyone can reach it. Some players call this serving the wall.

4

Select starting tiles

East takes the first two stacks immediately left of the gap—four tiles. Then South, West, and North each take the next two stacks—four tiles apiece. Keep moving left along the walls for three rounds, until everyone has 12 tiles.

For the final picks, look at the next three stacks from the open end. East takes the top tile of stack 1 and the top tile of stack 3—the first and third positions across the top row. South takes the bottom of stack 1, West takes the top of stack 2, and North takes the bottom of stack 2.

East now has 14 tiles; South, West, and North each have 13. The bottom tile of stack 3 stays in the wall for play.

What happens to the walls? They stay in place as the draw pile. Once the Charleston ends, players draw from the open end of the wall one tile at a time.

Step two

Take a moment with your tiles.

Place your tiles in the sloped part of your rack, faces toward you. Group similar tiles and compare one or two possible hands before the Charleston begins.

Look for possibilities, not a commitment.This example has two pairs. Compare what you have with the card before deciding which tiles to pass.

At a new table: follow East’s lead, take only your own tiles, and ask if you are unsure where to take them from.

Step three

Pass tiles in the Charleston.

Before anyone draws, players pass three unwanted tiles at a time. The first three passes go right, over, then left. “Over” means across the table.

Never pass a Joker. Keep every Joker in your rack during both Charlestons and the courtesy pass.

  1. 1
    First Charleston · required

    Everyone passes exactly three tiles face-down: right, over, left.

  2. 2
    Second Charleston · optional

    It happens only if everyone agrees. The three passes reverse: left, over, right.

  3. 3
    Courtesy pass · optional and separate

    Each pair of opposite players may exchange 0, 1, 2, or 3 tiles. It is still offered when the second Charleston is skipped.

Everyone passes at the same time. Shown here: the first pass, to each player’s right.
What should I pass?

Start with isolated tiles that appear in few of the hands you’re considering. Avoid breaking useful pairs too early, and never pass a Joker.

What if I lose track of the direction?

Ask. Every beginner does, and most hosts will announce each pass: right, over, then left.

How does the courtesy pass work?

You negotiate only with the player opposite you. Each of you may offer up to three tiles; the smaller number controls the exchange. For example, if you want to pass three but the opposite player wants to pass one, you each pass one. If either player wants zero, that pair does not exchange tiles. The other opposite pair decides separately.

When is a blind pass allowed?

Only on the first Charleston’s left pass and the second Charleston’s final right pass. You may pass along one, two, or all three incoming tiles without looking at them, adding your own tiles as needed to make three. A Joker may never be included.

Steps four and five

Find the rhythm of a turn.

East makes the first discard. After that, nearly every turn follows the same simple beat.

1

Draw

Take one tile from the wall. You now have 14 tiles in total, counting any exposed groups.

2

Consider

Compare your rack with the hands you’re watching on the card.

3

Discard

Name one tile clearly and place it face-up in the center.

One interruption to expect

A discard can change whose turn it is.

Why? A tile someone throws away may be exactly what another player needs to complete a group in the hand they’re building.

1
They speak up promptly.

They say “Call,” “Wait,” or “Hold.” The claim window normally closes when the next player racks or discards the drawn tile, declares Mah Jongg, or starts a Joker exchange.

2
They expose the group.

The card line must allow exposures (marked X). They place the claimed tile with its matching tiles on top of the rack, then discard one tile. They do not also draw from the wall.

3
Play continues from there.

The next turn goes to the player on the caller’s right. Anyone who was skipped simply waits for their next turn.

Calling rules & Joker exchanges

Usually: you call only to complete a group of three or more identical tiles in an exposed hand. A discard may complete a single or pair only when it gives you Mah Jongg.

If two players call: a Mah Jongg claim outranks an ordinary exposure. For equal claims, standard rules give priority to the player next in turn—unless another caller has already begun exposing tiles before the competing call.

The tradeoff: calling can move your hand forward, but the group stays visible and generally cannot return to your concealed rack.

Jokers are different: after starting your turn by drawing and racking a tile, or by calling and exposing a discard, you may trade an exact matching natural tile for a Joker already visible in an exposure. A discarded Joker is dead and cannot be called.

Step six

Match every tile in one card line.

Here’s a fictional learning example. The line asks for 14 tiles, and the finished rack supplies every one of them.

One line. Four matching groups.Fictional learning example · 14 tiles
FF

Pair of Flowers

2222

Kong of 2 Dots

3333

Kong of 3 Bams

4444

Kong of 4 Craks

Every position is filled. Each group is paired with its matching notation. A Kong is four identical tiles. Here, the numbered groups use three different suits.

When your rack matches the line Call “Mah Jongg!”

Play stops, you show the table your completed hand, and the hand is over.

What if nobody wins? If the final wall tile and its discard produce no Mah Jongg, the hand ends as a wall game with no winner. Mix the tiles, rotate East according to the table’s rules, and build new walls for the next hand.

Ready to try it?

Turn a little knowledge into practice.

Start with one decision in the drills, or settle in for a complete practice hand.

Try a practice drill Sit at the practice table