How to Play Concentration (Pairs): Card Game Rules

Concentration at a glance

Here are the Concentration card game rules in brief:

What you need

• A deck of cards. A standard 52-card deck is the usual choice. Any set of cards will do, as long as every card has a partner and all the backs look the same.
• Space. You need a table, or a clear patch of floor, big enough to lay out every card without overlapping.

That's all. You don't need a scorepad or a board, because each player's pile of pairs is the score.

How to set up the cards

1. Shuffle the deck well.
2. Lay the cards face down one at a time, so that no two cards touch or overlap.
3. Keep going until every card is on the table.

You can use any pattern. A tidy grid, such as four rows of 13, makes it easier to remember where each card is. Scattering the cards at random (some players call this layout "Spaghetti") makes the game harder. Agree on a layout before you start.

How to play, turn by turn

1. Choose who goes first. Any method works, such as a coin toss.
2. Turn up one card and leave it face up where everyone can see it.
3. Turn up a second card.
4. Compare them. Do the two cards have the same rank?
5. Pair or no pair. If they match, keep them and take another turn. If not, turn them back over, and play passes to the player on your left.

Play continues like this until every card has been taken from the table.

When you find a pair

Take both cards and put them in a pile in front of you. Then turn up two more cards. Your turn lasts as long as you keep finding pairs, so one good turn can win you several pairs in a row.

When the cards don't match

Don't rush to hide them. Bicycle's rules say to leave both cards face up for at least five seconds so every player can see them. Then turn them face down again in exactly the same places, without moving or swapping them. The player on your left goes next.

Every miss shows two cards to the whole table, so watch other players' turns as closely as your own.

How to win

The game ends when the last pair is taken. Everyone counts the pairs in their pile, and the player with the most pairs wins. If two or more players tie for the most, they share the win.

What counts as a pair?

In the standard rules, a pair is any two cards of the same rank, and the suit doesn't matter. The six of hearts pairs with the six of spades, and the queen of diamonds pairs with the queen of clubs. Each rank has four cards, so any two of them make a pair, and each rank gives two pairs in a full game.

Concentration game rules vary from family to family. One house rule some players use asks for the same colour as well. Under that rule, a red six pairs only with the other red six, and a black six only with the other black six. Every card then has just one possible partner, which makes the game harder.

Whichever rule you choose, agree on it before the first card is turned.

How to play Concentration on your own

The rules published by Bicycle and pagat are written for two or more players. You can still try a simple solo version:

1. Lay out the cards as usual.
2. Play every turn yourself, following the normal rules.
3. Keep a tally of your turns with a pen and paper or a pile of coins.
4. When the table is clear, your tally is your score. Lower is better.

Then shuffle, lay out the cards again and try to beat your score. For a shorter game, use just two suits, such as hearts and spades. That gives you 26 cards, and every card has exactly one partner.

Variations to try

House rules differ from table to table. Here are three ways to change the game.

Zebra

A pair must be the same rank but the opposite colour. A red seven pairs with a black seven, but two red sevens don't count.

Two decks

Shuffle two decks together for a bigger, longer game of 104 cards. You can play with the usual rules, or agree that only identical cards (the same rank and the same suit) count as a pair, since every card now has an exact twin.

Picture cards for young players

Concentration doesn't need playing cards at all. Any set of cards works if every picture appears twice and all the backs look alike. With young children, start with just a few pairs and add more as they get the hang of it.

Other names for Concentration

Concentration is also known by several other names. In Britain it is often called Pelmanism, and in Japan it is known as Shinkei-suijaku. Other names include Pairs and Pexeso, and many people simply call it a matching game or a memory game. A different, newer press-your-luck card game is also sold under the name Pairs; it isn't the game described here.

The American TV game show Concentration, which first aired on NBC in 1958, was based on the same idea of finding hidden pairs.

Play a solo version online

MatchingPairs is our free, one-player version of this classic game, and you play it in your web browser. The core idea is the same: turn over two cards and find the pairs. A few things work differently because you play alone on a screen.

There's nothing to download and no sign-up. You can read how the online version works, pick up tips for clearing the board in fewer moves, or see our information for parents.

Play MatchingPairs free

Quick answers

How many people can play Concentration?

Two or more under the standard rules. You can also play on your own by counting your turns and trying to beat your score.

Do you get another turn after a match?

Yes. In the standard rules you keep turning up cards for as long as you keep finding pairs.

Does the colour have to match?

Not in the standard rules: two cards of the same rank make a pair. Some players add a same-colour rule, so agree before you start.

How many cards do you need?

A full 52-card deck makes 26 pairs. For a shorter game, use fewer cards, such as two suits (13 pairs).