How do you play backgammon?

Each side has 15 checkers and races them around the board to its home board, then bears them off; the first to bear off all 15 wins. Roll two dice and move one checker by each number, or one checker by both. You may not land on a point held by two or more opposing checkers, and landing on a lone opposing checker hits it to the bar, from where it must enter again before that side moves anything else. Here White moves from point 24 down to 1 and Black from 1 up to 24, and the points are numbered as on the board.

Can I play backgammon against the computer?

Yes. Choose Computer under Play against: you are White and the computer is Black. It looks at every distinct legal way to play its roll and scores each with a few simple rules: hitting counts in its favor, as do making points (home-board points most), bearing off and bringing checkers home, while leaving a lone checker where yours could hit it counts against. It plays the best score, breaks ties at random and does not look ahead, so it is a beginner, not a rated or best-play engine.

Can two people play backgammon on one device?

Yes. Choose A friend under Play against and take turns on the same screen. White moves from 24 down to 1 and Black from 1 up to 24. Each player presses Roll, moves, then presses Done to hand the dice over. There is no online play and no account.

Who goes first in backgammon?

Each side rolls one die and the higher number moves first, playing both of those numbers as its first roll. Equal dice are rolled again. Press Roll to start and the tool rolls both dice and says who starts.

What happens if you cannot use both dice?

You must use both dice if any legal way to play them exists, and all four moves on doubles if you can. If only one die can be used, you must use the larger one when it can be played. If neither can be used, the turn passes. The tool lists only moves that keep these rules, and when you try one that breaks them it says which rule and why.

How does bearing off work in backgammon?

Once all 15 of your checkers are in your home board, a die can take a checker off from the point with that number. A higher number than any point you occupy takes a checker off from your highest occupied point. If one of your checkers is hit and sent to the bar, bearing off stops until that checker has come back into your home board.

The total number of points your checkers still have to travel to bear off: each checker counts its distance from off, and a checker on the bar counts 25. Both sides start at 167. The pip counts for both sides are shown under the board and update with every move.

Is there a doubling cube, or gammons and backgammons?

There is no doubling cube, match score or betting: each game is a single game. When a game ends, the result says whether it was a gammon (the loser bore off no checkers) or a backgammon (the loser bore off none and still had a checker on the bar or in the winner's home board).

Is my game saved if I close the page?

Yes, in this browser only. The game in progress and the hints setting come back when you return, and Save this position keeps up to six positions, each with its board, dice and whose turn it is, that you can load later. Nothing is sent anywhere, and Start over at the top of the page forgets the game and the saved positions.

Backgammon

Play one game of backgammon in your browser against a beginner computer or a friend taking turns on the same device. The board follows the standard rules: 15 checkers a side starting at 167 pips each, a checker on the bar enters before anything else moves, a point held by two or more opposing checkers is blocked, a lone checker that is hit goes to the bar, both dice are used when possible and the larger one when only one can be, doubles play four times, and bearing off starts once all 15 are home. The roll pane lists every legal move for the dice you have left, and with hints on it also marks the checkers that can move on the board, names the moves that are blocked and counts the different ways the roll can end. Move by picking a checker and then a point, by pressing a listed move, or from the keyboard. Undo takes back moves until you press Done, the game in progress is kept in this browser, and you can save up to six positions to come back to. There is no doubling cube, betting or online matchmaking.

boardsetting up

you, white, moving 24 to 1computer, beginner, moving 1 to 24

rollnot rolled

Setting up the board.

hints mark legal moves, not the best one

Play against
Your pips: 167
Computer pips: 167
Dice left: 0
On the bar: 0 and 0
Borne off: 0 and 0

Click or tap a point with your checkers, then the point it goes to; a point two dice away moves through the open landing point between. Or press a move in the legal list. On the keyboard, Tab to the board, then ← → ↑ ↓ move between points, Enter picks up and puts down and Esc puts back; R rolls, D ends the turn, U undoes and H turns hints on or off. Undo takes back moves until you press Done. Points are numbered from White's side, as on the board.

Rules, worked on the board

New gamestandard start
15 checkers a side, 167 pips each
On the bar, roll 5-2points 20 and 23 each held by two or more
cannot enter, so no other checker moves; the turn passes
One die playable, roll 6-2a lone checker on 10, point 2 held
only the larger die, the 6, can be played: 10/4
Bearing off, roll 6all 15 home, highest checker on the 4-point
the 6 bears a checker off from the 4-point

Saved positions

Keep the board, the dice and whose turn it is, up to six positions, in this browser only. Loading one replaces the game on the board.

Board and moves as text

Backgammon, against the beginner computer
Points numbered from White's side: White moves 24 to 1, Black moves 1 to 24.

13  14  15  16  17  18  |  19  20  21  22  23  24
W5  .   .   .   B3  .   |  B5  .   .   .   .   W2

B5  .   .   .   W3  .   |  W5  .   .   .   .   B2
12  11  10  9   8   7   |  6   5   4   3   2   1

bar: white 0, black 0; borne off: white 0, black 0
pips: white 167, black 167
Not started: the opening roll decides who moves first.

Common questions

How do you play backgammon?: Each side has 15 checkers and races them around the board to its home board, then bears them off; the first to bear off all 15 wins. Roll two dice and move one checker by each number, or one checker by both. You may not land on a point held by two or more opposing checkers, and landing on a lone opposing checker hits it to the bar, from where it must enter again before that side moves anything else. Here White moves from point 24 down to 1 and Black from 1 up to 24, and the points are numbered as on the board.
Can I play backgammon against the computer?: Yes. Choose Computer under Play against: you are White and the computer is Black. It looks at every distinct legal way to play its roll and scores each with a few simple rules: hitting counts in its favor, as do making points (home-board points most), bearing off and bringing checkers home, while leaving a lone checker where yours could hit it counts against. It plays the best score, breaks ties at random and does not look ahead, so it is a beginner, not a rated or best-play engine.
Can two people play backgammon on one device?: Yes. Choose A friend under Play against and take turns on the same screen. White moves from 24 down to 1 and Black from 1 up to 24. Each player presses Roll, moves, then presses Done to hand the dice over. There is no online play and no account.
Who goes first in backgammon?: Each side rolls one die and the higher number moves first, playing both of those numbers as its first roll. Equal dice are rolled again. Press Roll to start and the tool rolls both dice and says who starts.
What happens if you cannot use both dice?: You must use both dice if any legal way to play them exists, and all four moves on doubles if you can. If only one die can be used, you must use the larger one when it can be played. If neither can be used, the turn passes. The tool lists only moves that keep these rules, and when you try one that breaks them it says which rule and why.
How does bearing off work in backgammon?: Once all 15 of your checkers are in your home board, a die can take a checker off from the point with that number. A higher number than any point you occupy takes a checker off from your highest occupied point. If one of your checkers is hit and sent to the bar, bearing off stops until that checker has come back into your home board.
What is a pip count?: The total number of points your checkers still have to travel to bear off: each checker counts its distance from off, and a checker on the bar counts 25. Both sides start at 167. The pip counts for both sides are shown under the board and update with every move.
Is there a doubling cube, or gammons and backgammons?: There is no doubling cube, match score or betting: each game is a single game. When a game ends, the result says whether it was a gammon (the loser bore off no checkers) or a backgammon (the loser bore off none and still had a checker on the bar or in the winner's home board).
Is my game saved if I close the page?: Yes, in this browser only. The game in progress and the hints setting come back when you return, and Save this position keeps up to six positions, each with its board, dice and whose turn it is, that you can load later. Nothing is sent anywhere, and Start over at the top of the page forgets the game and the saved positions.

Original rules code and artwork for a single game: entering from the bar comes before any other move, both dice are used when possible and the larger one when only one can be, doubles play four times, and bearing off starts only once all 15 checkers are home. The computer is a beginner that picks among legal moves by simple rules, not a rated or best-play engine, and hints show what is legal, not what is best. There is no doubling cube, match play, betting, prizes or online opponent, and a game in progress is saved in this browser only.