Free American mahjong practice
Learn the tiles, the Charleston and the jokers before game night.
Short drills for new players and anyone getting back into mahj. No sign-up, no app. Works on your phone or tablet.
A few of the 152 tiles
Bams, Craks and Dots, plus Winds, Dragons, Flowers and Jokers. See the whole set
Practice tools
Tile quiz
Name the tile, or find it. Rounds of 20 with a running streak.
Play →Daily Charleston
Everyone gets the same 13 tiles each day. Make your three passes and see how your hand shapes up.
Play today's →Charleston rules
Right, across, left. Step through every pass on a table diagram, then test yourself.
Learn the passes →Joker quiz
When can a joker be used, swapped or picked up? 16 table situations, each explained.
Take the quiz →How to play
The whole game in plain English, from building the wall to calling mahjong.
Read the guide →Printable cheat sheet
One page to keep beside your rack: pass order, joker rules and payouts.
Open and print →Mahjong solitaire New
The classic tile-matching game. A new daily board every day, plus quick games.
Play →Coming soon
Find a mahjong class or club
Lessons, open play and clubs near you, starting with the biggest US cities.
Painted mahjong mats
We're making table mats printed with our own textured, painterly art. Join the list to hear when they launch.
Guides
How to read the card
Sections, colours, X and C, and point values, explained without the jargon.
Read →Charleston strategy
What to keep, what to pass, and when a blind pass makes sense.
Read →Scoring and payouts
Who pays what on a discard, self-pick or jokerless win, with worked examples.
Read →Mahjong etiquette
Table manners and the house rules worth agreeing before you play.
Read →Host a mahjong night
A checklist for sets, seating, snacks, stakes and teaching beginners.
Read →Buying a mahjong set
What a complete American set includes, and the sets to avoid.
Read →American vs Chinese mahjong
How American, Hong Kong and Japanese Riichi mahjong differ.
Read →Mahjong glossary
Pung, kong, Soap, self-pick and 50 more terms in plain English.
Read →What is American mahjong?
American mahjong (often just "mahj") is a four-player tile game played with 152 tiles. It differs from Chinese and Hong Kong styles in three ways: it uses jokers, it starts with a tile exchange called the Charleston, and every winning hand must match one printed on that year's card from the National Mah Jongg League.
The card changes every April, so the hands change each year. The basics stay the same: the tiles, how the Charleston works and how jokers can be used. Those are what this site helps you practise.
Where should a beginner start?
- Learn the tiles, then take the tile quiz until you can name each one quickly.
- Learn the Charleston pass order: right, across, left, then left, across, right.
- Take the joker quiz. Joker rules catch out a lot of new players.
- Read how to play and keep the cheat sheet beside you at your first games.