How to Play Spit
No turns, no waiting: race to empty your piles first.
Also known as Speed
Learn Spit for 2 players: five stock piles of 1 to 5 cards, playing one rank up or down with K-A-2 wrapping, when to call Spit and how the slap works. Work through a race, then play in your browser.
A few seconds of a race
The center piles show the 8♣ and the K♣, and your face-up stock cards include the 9♥, A♦ and 5♣. Play the 9♥ on the 8♣, and the A♦ on the K♣, since ranks wrap. The A♦ uncovers a 2♥, which goes straight on the A♦. The 5♣ fits neither pile, so it waits; if neither player can play, tap Spit!.
| Situation | Result |
|---|---|
| 9♥ with the 8♣ on top | Plays: one rank up, suits ignored |
| A♦ with the K♣ on top | Plays: King, Ace and 2 connect |
| 5♣ with the 9♥ and A♦ on top | Waits: not one rank from either pile |
| Neither player can play | Tap Spit! to turn new spit cards onto the piles |
| A player's stock runs out | Both race to slap; the first slapper takes that pile |
There are no turns: the card that lands first stays. Empty your stock piles with no spit cards left to win; a game that reaches the move limit (1,500 by default) goes to the fewest cards left.
Practise this game in your browser🎯 Objective
Be the first player to get rid of all your cards. If the move limit comes first (1,500 moves unless you change it at setup, from 100 to 3,000), the player with the fewest cards left wins.
🃏 Spit Setup & Rules
- Strictly 2 players with one 52-card deck. Each gets 26 cards and lays out five stock piles of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 cards, with only the top card of each pile face up.
- Your other 11 cards are your face-down spit pile. Tap Spit! and both players turn their top spit card face up to start two center piles.
▶ How to Play Spit
- There are no turns. Tap a face-up stock card one rank above or below either center card to play it, suits ignored. Ranks wrap: an Ace goes on a King or a 2. If both piles take it, tap the pile you want.
- The card under a played one turns face up. Tap a face-up card and then an empty pile to move it into the gap and uncover the card beneath; you never have more than five piles.
- When neither player can play, tap Spit! to turn new spit cards onto the center piles. A player with no spit cards left lets the other spit alone.
- When a player's stock piles are empty, both race to slap a center pile: the first slapper takes it and the other player takes the other pile. Each shuffles in their leftover cards and lays out again.
- With fewer than 15 cards you lay out what you can, with no spit pile, and only one center pile is used.
- Empty your stock piles with no spit cards left and you win.
🎬 Watch: How to Play Spit
This video is embedded from YouTube and remains the intellectual property of its respective creator and/or rights holder. Vanikar LLC claims no ownership of, or rights in, the video content, and no affiliation with or endorsement by its creator is implied. The video is displayed via YouTube’s public embed feature in accordance with the YouTube Terms of Service and the agreements between YouTube and the content uploader.
📖 Detailed Guide
Setting up your table
- From the game menu choose Spit. It is strictly 2 seats: you and one AI player, or two people.
- Tap the AI player to choose Easy, Medium or Hard. Easy waits longest before each move and Hard the least.
- Set the move limit: 1,500 by default, from 100 to 3,000. A game rarely runs past 500 moves.
- Each player gets 26 cards, dealt one at a time, and lays out five stock piles of 1 to 5 cards, with the other 11 as a face-down spit pile.
Racing to play
- Tap Spit! and both players turn their top spit card face up: those start the two center piles.
- Tap a face-up stock card that is one rank above or below a center card. Suits do not matter, and King, Ace and 2 connect.
- If the card fits both piles, tap the pile you want. When both players go for the same pile, the card that lands first stays.
- When the top card of a stock pile goes, the one under it turns face up.
Gaps and spitting again
- Tap a face-up card and then an empty pile to move it into the gap, which turns up the card it was covering.
- You never have more than five stock piles.
- When neither player can play, tap Spit! to turn new spit cards onto the center piles. A player with no spit cards left lets the other spit alone.
- If both players are stuck and nobody has spit cards left, the cards under each center card are shuffled into new spit piles: a house rule that keeps the game moving.
Slapping and winning
- When a player's stock piles are empty, both race to slap a center pile. The first slapper takes it; the other player takes the other pile.
- Each player shuffles their new pile in with their leftover cards and lays out again, then Spit! starts the next race.
- With fewer than 15 cards you lay out what you can, with no spit pile, and only one center pile is used.
- Empty your stock piles with no spit cards left and you win. At the move limit, the fewest cards left wins.
📊 Spit Scoring
There are no points: the first player to get rid of every card wins. A game that reaches the move limit, 1,500 moves unless you change it at setup (100 to 3,000), stops there and the player with the fewest cards left wins; equal counts are a tie. The app adds one house rule: if both players are stuck and nobody has spit cards left, the cards under each center card are shuffled into a new spit pile, so the game keeps moving.
❓ Spit — Frequently Asked Questions
How many players do you need for Spit?
Spit is played with 2 players. On Vanikar, empty seats can be filled with AI opponents so you can always start a game.
Is Spit the same as Speed?
They are close relatives. Spit uses 5 stock piles of 1 to 5 cards and a spit pile; the game usually sold as Speed uses a hand of 5 cards and a draw pile instead. The app plays Spit.
Can an Ace go on a King in Spit?
Yes. Ranks wrap around, so an Ace goes on a King or a 2, and a King goes on a Queen or an Ace. Suits never matter.
What happens when your stock piles run out?
Both players race to slap a center pile. The first slapper takes it, the other player takes the other pile, and each lays out again. With fewer than 15 cards there is no spit pile, and only 1 center pile is used.
How fast do app opponents play Spit?
At their own pace, with no turns: Easy is the slowest, Medium quicker and Hard the quickest, though still beatable. A very long game stops at the move limit, 1,500 moves by default.