500 (Contract) Rules — How to Play and Keep Score
A bidding, trick-taking game for four in partnerships, built around a table of contract values that makes the choice of suit matter as much as the number of tricks. It is the national card game of Australia and has a long following in the American Midwest. The scoresheet is what makes it awkward on paper: contract values are irregular, defenders score separately, and a failed contract subtracts.
Score a game of 500 (Contract) →
Overview
A bidding, trick-taking game for four in partnerships, built around a table of contract values that makes the choice of suit matter as much as the number of tricks. It is the national card game of Australia and has a long following in the American Midwest. The scoresheet is what makes it awkward on paper: contract values are irregular, defenders score separately, and a failed contract subtracts.
Setup
Four players in two partnerships, sitting so partners are opposite each other. The pack is 43 cards: a standard pack stripped of the 2s, 3s and black 4s, plus one joker. Deal ten cards to each player and three face down to the middle as the kitty.
How to play
Bidding opens to the dealer's left and moves round. Each bid names a number of tricks from six to ten and a suit, or no-trumps, and must be worth more than the previous bid in the table below. Misère may also be bid. A player who passes takes no further part in the auction.
The winning bidder takes the kitty, adds it to their hand, and discards any three cards face down. They then lead to the first trick. Play follows suit if able; the joker is the highest trump. In a misère contract the bidder's partner lays their hand down and takes no part.
Scoring
The contract table. Suits rank spades, clubs, diamonds, hearts, no-trumps, and each extra trick adds 100:
| Tricks | ♠ | ♣ | ♦ | ♥ | No-trumps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 40 | 60 | 80 | 100 | 120 |
| 7 | 140 | 160 | 180 | 200 | 220 |
| 8 | 240 | 260 | 280 | 300 | 320 |
| 9 | 340 | 360 | 380 | 400 | 420 |
| 10 | 440 | 460 | 480 | 500 | 520 |
Misère is worth 250 and Open Misère 500, both sitting outside the suit table.
If the bidding side takes at least the tricks they bid, they score the contract value. Extra tricks beyond the contract are worth nothing — a side that bids seven and takes nine still scores exactly the seven-trick value.
If the bidding side falls short, they subtract the contract value from their total. This is the reason totals go negative and the reason the sheet needs negative entries.
Taking all ten tricks scores at least 250 by default, so a cheap contract that sweeps the table is not under-rewarded. The setting allows the plainer treatments.
The defending side scores ten per trick taken, regardless of whether the contract was made. On a misère hand the defenders score nothing by default; they are playing only to force one trick on the bidder.
Misère succeeds if the bidder takes no tricks at all, scoring 250. Taking even one trick fails the contract and subtracts 250.
Ending the game
The first side to reach 500 wins, immediately, as soon as that hand is scored — there is no playing out of the remaining hands. A side that drops to −500 loses at once.
Because only the bidding side can reach the target, a side sitting on 460 must win a contract to finish; they cannot back into a win on defender tricks alone.
Common variations
Three-handed play with everyone for themselves, six-handed play in two teams of three with an extended pack, and tables that add Nullo between the seven and eight-trick bids.
Scoring at a glance
| Who wins | First to target |
|---|---|
| Played to | 500 points by default |
| Score sheet | A bid and a result per player per round; the score is derived |
| Typical round score | -520 – 520 |
| Negative scores | Possible |
| Worth knowing | The bidding side enters their contract result; the defending side enters ten per trick taken. |
500 (Contract) — score sheet
Worked example
Settings: targetScore: 500, defenderTrickValue: 10, slamBonus: minimum250.
Partnerships: North/South and East/West.
| Hand | Contract | Result | N/S | E/W |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | N/S bid 7♦ (180) | took 8 tricks — made | +180 | +20 |
| 2 | E/W bid 8♥ (300) | took 7 tricks — set | +30 | −300 |
| 3 | E/W bid Misère (250) | took 0 tricks — made | 0 | +250 |
| 4 | N/S bid 9 no-trumps (420) | took 10 tricks — made | +420 | 0 |
Running totals after each hand:
| After | N/S | E/W |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 180 | 20 |
| 2 | 210 | −280 |
| 3 | 210 | −30 |
| 4 | 630 | −30 |
Expected final standings: N/S 630, rank 1 — winners; E/W −30, rank 2.
finished: true after hand 4, because N/S crossed 500 on a made contract.
Points to check in the implementation: hand 1 pays 180, not 180 plus a bonus for the
overtrick; hand 2 subtracts the full 300 while N/S still bank 30 for their three
defending tricks; hand 3 pays the defenders nothing because
defendersScoreOnMisere is off; hand 4 pays 420 rather than the 250 slam minimum,
because the contract value is already higher.
House rules and settings
Every table plays 500 (Contract) a little differently. These are the 8 rules groups argue about. Each one is a setting in the app — and changing it recalculates a match that is already in progress, which is the thing no other score keeper does.
Play to: what is the default in 500 (Contract)?
The first side to reach this total wins immediately, the moment the hand is scored.
Default: 500. Adjustable from 300 to 1500 in steps of 50.
In the app: “Play to”.
Lose at minus: what is the default in 500 (Contract)?
A side that falls to this total loses at once — going "out the back door". Set it very low to switch the rule off in practice.
Default: -500. Adjustable from -1500 to -200 in steps of 50.
In the app: “Lose at minus”.
Taking all ten tricks: what are the options in 500 (Contract)?
What a side scores when it wins every trick. Most tables guarantee a minimum of 250 so a small bid that sweeps the table is still rewarded.
Default: At least 250. Three options:
In the app: “Taking all ten tricks”.
Misère is worth: what is the default in 500 (Contract)?
A contract to lose every trick. Open Misère, played with the hand face up, is worth double this.
Default: 250. Adjustable from 100 to 500 in steps of 50.
In the app: “Misère is worth”.
Defenders score per trick: what is the default in 500 (Contract)?
Each trick the defending side takes is worth this. Set it to zero if your table only scores the bidding side.
Default: 10. Adjustable from 0 to 20 in steps of 5.
In the app: “Defenders score per trick”.
Defenders score during misère: on or off in 500 (Contract)?
Normally the defenders score nothing on a misère hand — they are only trying to force a single trick on the bidder.
Default: off.
In the app: “Defenders score during misère”.
Three-handed play: on or off in 500 (Contract)?
Each player bids and plays alone rather than in partnerships, using a shortened pack.
Default: off.
In the app: “Three-handed play”.
Lowest legal bid: what are the options in 500 (Contract)?
Some tables require a bid of at least seven to discourage cheap contracts.
Default: Six tricks. Two options:
In the app: “Lowest legal bid”.
Variants of 500 (Contract)
Open Misère
The bidder lays their hand face up after the first trick and must still lose every trick. Worth double a plain misère.
Nullo
A no-trump contract to take no tricks, ranked between the seven and eight-trick bids, used on tables that want a cheaper misère.
Joker in no-trumps
In a no-trump contract the joker is the only trump and its holder may name the suit it belongs to when leading.
500 (Contract) is also known as
Five Hundred, Australian 500, Contract 500, Avondale 500. These are the same game — the rules and the score sheet above apply to all of them.
Keep score offline
The sheet above works in your browser. Cardzo for iPhone remembers your players, survives a closed tab, and works in a field with no signal.
Coming to the App Store.