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How to play backgammon

Backgammon is a race for two players. Move your 15 checkers around the board and into your home, then take them off. The first to take them all off wins.

The board

The board has 24 narrow triangles called points, in four groups of six. The strip down the middle is the bar. Each player has a home board, the six points where their checkers finish.

Each player numbers the points from their own side. Your home board is points 1 to 6, and point 24 is the farthest from home.

The setup

Each player starts with 15 checkers: two on their 24-point, five on their 13-point, three on their 8-point and five on their 6-point.

Backgammon starting position. Light has 2 checkers on point 24, 5 on point 13, 3 on point 8 and 5 on point 6, and dark mirrors them.
The starting position, numbered for the light player.

Which way you move

The two players move in opposite directions, each from their 24-point down toward their 1-point. Checkers only ever move forward.

Arrow showing the light player's path from point 24 along the top of the board, then along the bottom to point 1.
The light player's path. Dark travels the same route in reverse.

Starting the game

Each player rolls one die. The higher number goes first and plays those two dice as the first move. If both dice match, roll again.

Taking a turn

  1. Roll two dice.
  2. Move a checker forward by the number on each die. You can move two checkers, or one checker twice.
  3. If you roll a double, you play that number four times.

You can land on any point unless your opponent has two or more checkers there. If you can play both dice, you must.

Hitting

A single checker alone on a point is called a blot. Land on your opponent's blot and it goes to the bar. A checker on the bar has to come back in through the other player's home board before its owner can move anything else. If the point matching the die is blocked, that player can't enter.

Bearing off

Once all 15 of your checkers are in your home board, you can start taking them off. This is called bearing off. A 4 takes a checker off your 4-point, for example. If you get hit during this stage, that checker must travel all the way home before you can continue.

Winning

The first player to bear off all 15 checkers wins. You win double, a gammon, if your opponent hasn't borne off a single checker. For the full details, see the backgammon rules.

Try it

The best way to learn is to play. Start on Beginner, and tap Hint whenever you're stuck to see the best move drawn on the board. When you're ready for more, read our beginner strategy tips.

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