How spades scoring works
Spades is a partnership bidding game: each side promises a number of tricks, scores ten a trick for keeping the promise, and pays both for falling short and for taking too many.
The deal and the bid
Four players in two partnerships sit opposite each other, and each is dealt thirteen cards. Spades are always trump. Every player bids the number of tricks they expect to win, and the two partners' bids are added together into the side's contract.
Making the bid
A side that wins at least as many tricks as it bid scores 10 points for every trick bid, plus 1 point for each extra trick. Bid 5 and take 7: 52 points. A side that takes fewer than it bid is set and loses 10 points for every trick bid, so bid 5 and take 4 is minus 50.
Bags, and why sandbagging costs you
The extra tricks are called bags, or sandbags. They are worth a point each, but they pile up from hand to hand, and when a side reaches 10 bags it loses 100 points and the count starts again. That penalty is what stops a side from underbidding safely every hand. Some tables use 5 bags and minus 50 for a faster game.
Nil and blind nil
A player can bid nil, a promise to win no tricks at all. If they manage it the side gains 100; if they win even one trick the side loses 100. Their partner's bid is scored on its own. Blind nil is the same bid made before looking at the cards, for 200 either way. Tables disagree about the tricks a failed nil bidder wins: some count them toward the partner's bid, others count them only as bags.
Winning and losing
The first side to 500 wins, and if both sides cross 500 on the same hand the higher score wins. Many tables also end the game when a side falls to minus 200, which is the default here.
Cutthroat spades
With three or four players each for themselves, every player is their own side and the scoring is the same. With three players each is dealt seventeen cards (one card is taken out of the deck), so a hand is seventeen tricks.
House rules the app can play
10 for 200: a side that bids 10 or more and makes it scores double. Boston: a side that bids every trick and takes them all (13, or 17 in three-handed cutthroat) wins the game on the spot. Board: each side must bid at least a minimum, often 4, with nil bids exempt. The bag limit, the bag penalty, the nil value, blind nil, the target and the losing score are all settings.
What Score All does with these rules
Bids and tricks, scored for you
Enter each player's bid, then the tricks they took once the hand is played. A side that makes its bid scores 10 a trick bid plus 1 for every overtrick (a bag); a side that falls short loses 10 a trick bid. The app checks that the tricks add up to the hand before it scores it.
Bags counted on the sheet
Each side's bag count sits beside its total. When the count reaches your limit (10 by default, 5 in the quick preset) the penalty comes off and the count starts again, so nobody has to dig back through old hands to count them.
Nil and blind nil
Pick Nil or Blind nil as a player's bid. Zero tricks wins the nil value (100, or 200 blind); one trick or more loses it. In partners you choose whether a failed nil bidder's tricks count toward the partner's bid or only as bags.
Partners, cutthroat and house rules
Play two teams of two, or everyone for themselves with three or four players. The target, the losing score, the nil value, the bag limit and penalty, 10 for 200, Boston and a minimum bid are all settings when you start the game.
A score sheet the whole table can see
The sheet shows every hand, the running totals and the dealer for the next hand. Tap an earlier hand to fix a mistake and every total after it updates. Share the live link, or put the standings on a TV or a stream overlay. The phone keeps scoring without a signal and syncs when it is back online.
Spades scoring FAQ
How do you score spades?
Make your bid and you score 10 a trick bid plus 1 for each bag. Miss it and you lose 10 a trick bid. Every 10 bags costs 100. Nil is worth 100 and blind nil 200, won or lost.
What happens when you get 10 bags in spades?
You lose 100 points and your bag count drops by ten. Any bags beyond ten carry over toward the next penalty.
What is a set in spades?
Taking fewer tricks than your side bid. The side loses 10 points for every trick it bid.
What is 10 for 200 in spades?
A house rule where a side that bids 10 or more tricks and makes it scores double: 200 for a bid of 10. Only a made bid doubles: a side that misses a bid of 10 or more loses the usual 10 a trick bid.
Is there a free spades score keeper app?
Yes. Score All keeps spades score for free in the browser on any phone: bids, tricks, bags, nil and blind nil, with the standings on a link the whole table can open. There is nothing to download.
Can I fix a hand I entered wrong?
Yes. Tap the hand on the score sheet, correct the bid or the tricks, and every total and bag count after it is worked out again.
Does it work for cutthroat spades?
Yes. Choose three or four players, each for themselves. With three players a hand is seventeen tricks, and the app checks that the tricks add up to that.