Egypt · Trick-taking · Solo
Estimation: rules and how to play
استيميشن
Estimation is the thinking player's trick-taker, loved in Egypt and across the Arab world. Everyone plays alone. One player wins the call and names trump, then every player estimates exactly how many tricks they will take. Hitting your number, not taking the most, is what scores.
At a glance
- Players
- 4, each for themselves
- Deck
- 52 cards, ace high
- Goal
- Highest score after 18 rounds
- A game
- 18 rounds (or 12 or 6)
01
How to play in one minute
- Deal 13 cards each.
- The call: bid a number of tricks from 4 to 13 with a trump suit or no-trump, or pass. Passing is final.
- The estimates: every other player says how many tricks they will take, from 0 up to the caller's number. The total may not be exactly 13.
- The caller leads. Follow suit if you can; the highest trump wins, otherwise the highest card of the suit led.
- Take exactly your estimate to score 10 plus your number. Miss it and lose the difference.
02
The rules
The call
Starting on the dealer's right, bid a number of tricks with a trump suit or no-trump, or pass. A higher number wins; at the same number, no-trump beats spades, then hearts, diamonds and clubs. The auction ends when only the latest bidder is left, and that bid is the caller's estimate. If all four pass, the next dealer deals again.
The estimates
Going right from the caller, each other player says how many tricks they will take, from 0 (a dash) up to the caller's number. The last player may not make the total exactly 13, so somebody always misses. In an over round the estimates total more than 13; in an under round, less.
Scoring
- Exact: 10 plus your estimate. A dash that takes no tricks scores 25.
- The caller who is exact gets 10 more.
- Risk: when the estimates total 2 or more away from 13, every exact player gets 10 more.
- The only exact player in a round gets 10 more.
- A miss loses the difference between your estimate and your tricks, and the caller loses double.
- The last third of the game counts double, up to the last five rounds.
Dash Call
As your very first word in the auction, before trump is known, you may call zero tricks. At most two players a round can do it, and they leave the auction.
You estimate 3 and take 3 in a round where the estimates total 10: 13, plus 10 for risk, makes 23.
03
Tips from the table
- In an under round there are spare tricks: keep low cards to duck once you've reached your number.
- In an over round not everyone can make it, so take your tricks early before the others take them from you.
- A dash is strongest with low cards and no long suit. A single stray ace can sink it.
- The caller loses double on a miss: call on tricks you can count, not tricks you hope for.
Qahwa · قهوة
Play it in Qahwa
Switch the house rules before you deal:
- Double the last rounds
- Dash Call, with Jawaker or classic points
- With: 10 more for matching the caller's number
- 18, 12 or 6 rounds
04
Questions
What is a dash in Estimation?
Estimating zero tricks. Take none and you score 25 instead of 10; take even one and you miss.
Why can't the estimates add up to 13?
The last player to estimate may not make the total exactly 13, so at least one player in every round will miss. That pressure is the heart of the game.
Is Estimation played in teams?
No. Everyone plays for themselves, which makes reading the other three players the main skill.
Play it free: Estimation
Free on Android. iPhone coming soon.