How to Play Go Fish: Rules, Scoring and Tips for 2 Players

Go Fish is the card game almost everyone learns first. It needs only a standard 52-card deck, takes about ten minutes, and works very well with exactly two players. This guide gives the full rules, explains how to score, shows what changes with two players, and ends with tips that help you win more often than luck alone would suggest.

What you need

• A standard deck of 52 cards, no jokers.
• Two to six players. Two is the easiest to learn and the most skill-based.
• A flat surface to lay down finished sets.

The goal is to collect as many books as you can. A book is all four cards of the same rank, for example four kings or four sevens. Suits do not matter for the book itself.

Setup

1. Shuffle the deck and pick a dealer.
2. Deal seven cards to each player when there are two or three players. With four or more players, deal five each.
3. Put the rest of the deck face down in the middle. This is the pond (also called the stock).
4. Look at your cards and keep them hidden from your opponent.

If you were dealt a complete book right away, lay it face up in front of you.

How a turn works

On your turn you ask the other player for cards of one rank.

1. Choose a rank you already hold. You can only ask for a rank if at least one card of it is in your hand. You say something like: "Do you have any sevens?"
2. If they have any, they must hand over all of them. You add them to your hand and take another turn.
3. If they have none, they say "Go fish." You draw the top card of the pond.
4. If the card you draw is the rank you asked for, show it. Most groups let you take another turn. If it is a different rank, your turn ends.

Whenever you complete a book, lay it down in front of you. Completing a book usually also lets you carry on. Some groups end the turn instead, so agree on this before you start.

What if you run out of cards?

If your hand is empty on your turn, draw from the pond (the usual rule is one card, though some families draw a new hand of up to five or seven). If the pond is empty too, your turn is skipped. If you have no cards and it is your opponent's turn, they simply ask you nothing and carry on.

How the game ends and who wins

The game ends when all 13 books have been laid down. This happens once the pond is empty and the remaining cards have been played out. Count your books. The player with the most books wins. With two players and 13 books there is never a tie, because 13 is odd.

Go Fish with exactly two players

Two players change the game in a useful way. There is only one opponent to ask, so everything you learn about their hand matters.

• Every time your opponent asks you for a rank, they must be holding at least one card of that rank. That is free information.
• Every time you ask and they say "Go fish," you also learn something: they have zero cards of that rank, at least until they draw.
• With only two hands and a pond, you can often work out which ranks are still hidden.

That is why two-player Go Fish rewards a good memory far more than a game with five people, where you cannot keep track of everyone.

Tips that actually help

1. Remember what your opponent asked for. If they asked for queens last turn and you did not give any up, they still hold at least one queen unless they have completed the book. Ask for queens yourself if you have one.
2. Ask for ranks you hold more than one of. Two or three of a rank means fewer cards are left for your opponent to hold, so the book is closer.
3. Do not ask for a rank that you only hold one of unless you have to. The information you give away is the same, but the chance of success is lower.
4. Notice what you gave away. If your opponent just took your three jacks, they now know you have none. If they ask you later, the answer is "Go fish" unless you drew some.
5. Keep a card they do not know about. Cards you drew from the pond and have not asked for are secret. When you draw a rank you did not ask about, your opponent cannot guess it.
6. Ask before the pond runs low. Late in the game, draws stop and the game turns into pure deduction. If you have noted who holds what, that is where you win.
7. Lie if the rules allow it. Some groups allow you to ask for a rank you do not hold as a bluff. This is a house rule, not the standard game.

Easy variations

• Ask by suit. Instead of any rank, you ask for a specific card ("Do you have the seven of hearts?"). This is harder and works well for older children.
• Pairs instead of books. Players collect pairs of the same rank. This is the best version for very young players, who can finish a game in five minutes.
• Fish for matching colours or shapes. Go Fish can be played with picture cards, animal cards or any set with matching pairs.
• Cards face up for beginners. Play the first game with cards held in the open to learn the flow of asking.
• Cannot ask twice for the same card in a row. This stops players from asking for one rank over and over.

Common questions about the rules

Can I ask for a rank I do not hold? In the standard rules, no. You must hold at least one card of the rank you ask for.

What if they lie? The rules assume honest answers. If you find out later that someone hid a card, that player forfeits the game or the cards go back. Most families simply decide to be honest.

Does Go Fish have a strategy? A small one. It is mostly memory and bookkeeping, with a bit of luck from the draws.

Where to go next

If you enjoy Go Fish, the next step is a game with the same pairs-and-sets idea but more decisions: rummy. Read how to play rummy with 2 players, or browse the 2 player card games guide for eight more options for two. You can also find free card and board games to play in your browser in the Board and Card games category, including Rummy Multiplayer.

Go Fish is a traditional game with no owner. Some boxed card sets sold under the same name are trademarks of their publishers. This page is an independent guide and is not affiliated with any publisher.