Cribbage scoring is the single biggest barrier for new players. The combinations -- fifteens, pairs, runs, flushes, nobs -- seem overwhelming at first. But once you understand the logic behind each one, counting your hand becomes fast and almost automatic. This guide walks through every scoring combination with clear examples.
Before diving into individual combinations, the most important thing to understand is this: every scoring combination is counted separately and independently. A single set of cards can score points in multiple categories at once. A pair of 7s scores 2 points for the pair AND both 7s combine with other cards to make fifteens. You count every combination that applies -- nothing cancels anything else out.
Always count your hand in the same order: fifteens first, then pairs, then runs, then flush, then nobs. This systematic approach prevents you from missing anything.
Any combination of cards whose values total exactly 15 scores 2 points. Card values: Ace = 1, numbered cards = face value, all face cards (J, Q, K) = 10.
The combinations can use 2, 3, 4, or all 5 cards (your 4-card hand plus the starter). You must count every possible combination separately.
New players only look for two-card fifteens and miss three, four, and five-card combinations. Always check every possible grouping. A hand with four 5s and a face card has multiple ways to make 15 and can score over 20 points from fifteens alone.
Two cards of the same rank score 2 points. Suit does not matter -- two Kings of different suits are a pair.
Three cards of the same rank score 6 points -- because there are three different pairs within three of a kind. Three 7s contain the pairs 7-7, 7-7, and 7-7 (each combination counted separately).
Four cards of the same rank score 12 points -- there are six different pairs within four of a kind.
Three or more cards in sequential rank score 1 point per card. Suit does not matter. A-2-3 is a valid run. So is J-Q-K. Gaps are not allowed -- 4-5-7 is not a run.
Double runs occur when a pair creates two separate runs. A hand of 4-4-5-6 scores a run of 3 twice (4-5-6 and 4-5-6 using the other 4) for 6 points, plus 2 for the pair, for 8 total.
Four cards of the same suit in your hand score 4 points. If the starter card also matches that suit, you score 5 points. In the crib, a flush only counts if all five cards -- the four crib cards plus the starter -- are the same suit. A four-card flush in the crib scores nothing.
If you hold a Jack in your hand that matches the suit of the starter card, you score 1 point. This is called Nobs (or His Nobs). The Jack must be in your hand -- a Jack in the crib matching the starter scores nobs only for the dealer when counting the crib.
Let's count this hand step by step: You hold 5-5-5-J (starter is a 5 of a different suit than the Jack).
The maximum possible cribbage hand is 29 points: three 5s plus a Jack in hand, with the fourth 5 (matching the Jack's suit) as the starter. This scores 16 points from fifteens, 12 from the pair royal of 5s, and 1 for nobs. It is one of the rarest hands in the game.
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