Rules of Belote
Belote is played by four players in two teams of two: partners sit opposite each other. It uses a 32-card deck (7 to Ace in each suit). The goal is to score points by winning tricks and through the basic announcements.
The deal
The dealer deals clockwise in two passes: first 3 then 2 cards to each player (5 cards in hand), then turns the next card face-up in the middle of the table. This card offers the potential trump suit for the hand.
The two bidding rounds
Each player in turn decides to take or pass.
- First round: a player may take the suit of the turned-up card as trump. The player who takes receives that card.
- Second round: if everyone passed, each player may now name a different suit as trump (not the one already refused).
If no one takes in either round, the cards are redealt by the next player.
Once trump is set, the dealer completes the deal so every player holds 8 cards.
Card order and values
In trump, the order (strongest to weakest) and points are:
| Card | Points |
|---|---|
| Jack | 20 |
| 9 | 14 |
| Ace | 11 |
| 10 | 10 |
| King | 4 |
| Queen | 3 |
| 8 | 0 |
| 7 | 0 |
In non-trump suits the order is standard (Ace, 10, King, Queen, Jack, 9, 8, 7) and points are: Ace 11, 10 → 10, King 4, Queen 3, Jack 2, the rest 0.
Play and scoring
You play 8 tricks. You must follow the led suit; in trump you must overtrump when you can. The trick is won by the highest trump, or otherwise by the highest card of the led suit.
The card points total 152, plus 10 points for “last trick” to the team that wins the final trick — 162 points per deal.
Belote and rebelote
The player holding the King and Queen of trump says “belote” when playing the first of the two and “rebelote” when playing the second. This scores 20 points for their team.
Ready to practise? Play Belote online.