How to Play Fan Tan
How to Play Fan Tan
Fan Tan is a friendly race to empty your hand by building four card rows from the sevens outward. You need a normal deck of cards, and you can find a regular deck of playing cards from Playmore if you need one. This guide uses one common version of Fan Tan; house rules can vary.
Quick facts
| Players | 3–6 |
|---|---|
| Deck | One standard 52-card deck |
| Goal | Be the first player with no cards left |
| Turn order | Clockwise, starting left of the dealer |
| Key idea | Build each suit down from 7 to 2 and up from 7 to ace |
What you are trying to do
Your goal is simple: play every card in your hand before anyone else. Cards are placed face up in four rows, one row for each suit. Each row begins with its 7. From there, the row grows in both directions. The 6 goes next to the 7 on the low side, followed by the 5, 4, 3, and 2. The 8 goes on the high side, followed by the 9, 10, jack, queen, king, and ace. A sequence is an order of cards that follows this step-by-step pattern.
You do not have to make a complete row yourself. Everyone adds to the same layout, so a play that helps another person may also open a useful card for you later.
What you need
Use one normal 52-card deck with four suits: hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades. A suit is the card family shown by its symbol. You also need a table or other flat playing space. Paper and a pencil, or a notes app, can help you record the winner of each round if you decide to play several rounds. No special tokens are required.
Set it up
Choose a dealer and have that person shuffle. Deal the entire deck face down, one card at a time, moving clockwise and starting with the player on the dealer’s left. With most player counts, some hands will have one more card than others. That is normal. Keep your cards hidden from the other players, but you may arrange them in your hand by suit so that legal plays are easier to spot.
The player on the dealer’s left takes the first turn. In this common version, that player may start with any 7 they hold. If they have no 7, they pass. Play then continues clockwise. Some tables require the 7 of diamonds to begin instead, so agree on the starting rule before dealing.
How to play
- Look for a legal card. On your turn, check your hand for any 7, or for a card that continues a row already on the table. For example, if the 7 of hearts is showing, you may play the 6 of hearts or the 8 of hearts. If the 8 of hearts is already there, the 9 of hearts is also available.
- Play exactly one card when you can. Choose one legal card and place it face up in its suit’s row. A new 7 starts a new row. A lower card belongs on the 7’s lower-number side, while a higher card belongs on its higher-number side. The ace is high in this version, so it comes after the king.
- Keep the rows readable. Arrange the cards in order, with hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades kept separate. If the table gets crowded, stack cards that continue the same end of a row while leaving the next available rank visible.
- Pass only when you cannot play. If none of the cards in your hand is legal, say “pass” or knock lightly on the table. Then the next player takes a turn. Passing is not a choice when you have a legal play; you must play if you can. In this no-token version, passing has no extra cost.
- Continue around the table. Players keep taking one-card turns, opening new suits with sevens and extending existing suits one rank at a time. Watch the exposed ends of every row, because a card that was stuck a moment ago may become playable after another person’s turn.
- Stop when a hand is empty. As soon as one player plays their last card, the round ends. Do not keep playing simply to complete all four rows.
How you win
The first player to play all the cards in their hand wins the round. For a quick game, celebrate that winner and deal again. For a longer family match, give the round winner one point and write it down. Dealership moves to the left for the next round, and the first player to reach an agreed target, such as 5 points, wins the match.
Easy first-game tips
Sort your cards by suit before the first turn. Then identify your sevens, because they open rows and can be valuable at the right moment. Do not automatically play the first legal card you see. If you have two choices, consider which one frees a card trapped behind it and which one reveals a useful end for the next player.
Pay attention to cards that have not appeared yet. If a suit has reached 9 and you hold its 10, you may be able to play it immediately; if you hold its 8, you must wait until the 7 side reaches that rank. Likewise, a king can only be played after the queen, and an ace can only be played after the king.
Remember that a pass is information: it tells everyone that your hand cannot currently reach an open end. Do not feel pressured. Check all four suits on every turn and ask the table to pause if a row becomes confusing.
Quick questions
Can I play more than one card on my turn?
No. You play one card, if you have a legal play. If you cannot play anything, you pass.
Do I have to play a 7 if I have one?
No. In this version, any 7 is legal, but you may choose another legal card instead. You must play some legal card rather than pass.