Bid Whist overview
From offline to online
Welcome to Bid-Whist.com, where you’ll find players from all over the world ready to play this modern variation of the classic English game.
Bid Whist combines the strategy and gameplay of classic Whist with the added excitement of bidding. Whether or not you make your bid will depend on how well you navigate the subtle ins and outs of Whist, familiar to anyone who’s played Whist face-to-face.
It’s a modern twist on a classic game, enjoyed by people through the decades (and even Sherlock Holmes played Whist!). Our platform unites you with other Whist enthusiasts and offers an unparalleled game experience.
We’re sure you’ll enjoy your time here at Bid-Whist.com!
Bid Whist variants
Bid Whist doesn’t have a lot of formal variations—it’s Whist with bidding, after all—but its players have made the game their own, all the same.
Because Bid Whist is so entrenched within the culture of those who play the game, all sorts of interesting twists and traditions can be found around the Whist table.
Cutthroat Whist removes the bidding process and often has players acting alone instead of on teams. Sometimes people play without using trump, and other times, they play with the Jokers or Twos acting as “super trump.”
Perhaps more than most card games, Bid Whist is likely to have any number of house rules. Make sure you know what you’re getting into before the game starts!
How to play Bid Whist
Introduction
Bid Whist is not a difficult game to learn. If you have any experience with other trick-taking games, like Rummy or Pinochle, then you should get the hang of Bid Whist after a hand or two.
Once you’re comfortable with the rules, you can participate in the fun banter and trash-talking that make Bid Whist such a unique card game to play.
Card distribution and scoring
The first dealer is usually decided at random, or someone—like maybe the game’s host—can volunteer. Many game groups have their own unique way of choosing the first dealer, like choosing cards from the deck and selecting the holder of the highest-ranked card as the dealer.
After the first hand, players take turns as the dealer, trading clockwise around the table.
Each player receives 12 cards. The remaining 6 cards go into a pile in front of the dealer face-down to form the Kitty.
The team that wins the bid is the only team that can score points during a hand. Successfully taking at least the number of books earns points based on the bid amount:
- bidding 5 books earns 1 point
- bidding 6 books earns 2 points
- bidding 7 books earns 3 points
- bidding 8 books earns 4 points
- bidding 9 books earns 5 points
- bidding 10 to 12 tricks earns the maximum of 6 points
A bid of 4 tricks is worth 0 points. It’s allowed, but because it’s fairly easy to make, it’s only used to cover for a team.
If the bidding team fails to meet their bid, they lose the same number of points they would have gained.
Bid Whist is unique in that the defending team can never earn points, but when they prevent the bidders from making their contract, the bidders take the point loss. The game continues until one team reaches the winning score, usually 7 or 10 points, depending on what players agree on before the game begins.
Turn structure
In a turn of Bid Whist, one player starts by leading a card. The play then continues clockwise.
Players must follow the same suit as the lead card if they can, otherwise they may play trump or throw off.
Once all four cards are played, the highest card in the lead suit wins the book (usually called a trick in other games)
Winning the game
After every hand, each team totals the books they’ve won.
If the bidding team bid 4 books and made it, it earns no points (it’s just to avoid a penalty). A made bid of 5 books earns 1 point, 6 earns 2, 7 earns 3, and so on.
If the bidding team makes or exceeds their bid, they get those points added to their score. But if they fail to meet the bid, they lose that same number of points—it gets subtracted from their score instead.
Most Bid Whist games are played to 7 or 10 points, but any predetermined number of points is fine.
History of Bid Whist
Origin of Bid Whist
Bid Whist traces its origins to the British card game Whist, which itself may have originated in Turkey. Once it made its way across the ocean, Whist was adopted by enslaved people across the American South as a way to socialize and pass the time in the barracks at night.
There, the people adapted the game to make it more entertaining, adding the bidding elements that the game includes now. It also began developing the trash-talking traditions many people associate with the game today.
After the Civil War, many formerly-enslaved people took positions with the railroads as porters and other jobs, and as they made their ways across the continent, they brought Bid Whist with them.
Bid Whist remains especially popular in communities with large African-American populations.
Bid Whist Popularity
Today, Bid Whist remains popular throughout the American South and in urban areas like Detroit and Chicago where large African-American communities continue playing. But some scholars of the game, like writer Lamont Jones, have noticed that newer generations are not as familiar with Bid Whist as their parents and grandparents. That led him to write the book The Gist of Bid Whist: The Culturally-Rich Card Game From Black America. In the book, Jones traces the origins of Bid Whist and catalogues its appearances and mentions within books, speeches, and movies.
Thanks to the Internet, and platforms like Bid-Whist.com, the game is enjoying broadening attention across cultures and across the world. We’re glad to be a part of such an important piece of cultural history, and we thank you for keeping Bid Whist alive here at Bid-Whist.com!
Glossary of Terms
Bid
The promise you make to win a certain number of books (usually called tricks in other games).
Whist
When no one bids, the game defaults to Whist, where there’s no trump suit. In some ways it lacks the flair of making a bid, but there’s an element that makes the occasional Whist surprising and exciting.
Books
The piles of cards won during play. Players usually alternate them—between horizontal and vertical—to show how many they’ve won.
Kitty
A small stash of face-down cards in the middle of the table. The high bidder is allowed to incorporate these cards into their hand.
Trump Suit
The suit that beats all others. A trump card of any type is ranked hired than all the cards of the other suits.
No Trump
A bid with no trump suit at all. Every card plays by its rank. It’s a small touch of chaos that make Bid Whist so popular with its fans.
Uptown
A bid where the cards are ranked in the traditional order. Ace reigns supreme, of course!
Downtown
The opposite of an Uptown bid. If you go Downtown, the deuce is the strongest card. Be sure you’re keeping track of your Uptown or Downtown bids!
Partner
The player across the table from you. You’re a team. Playing in a way that highlights your partner’s strengths and covers for their weaknesses is the key to being successful in Bid Whist.
Lead
The first card played in a round. Players are compelled to follow suit if they can.
Cut
When you run out of the suit that was led, you can slap down a trump card instead. Boom! You just hijacked the book. Well done!
Set
When a team fails to make their bid. Often followed by some pretty brutal taunting and trash-talking.
Sandbagging
Underbidding on purpose, then winning way more books than you said you would. It’s risky, but can be a great strategy when it pays off.
Boston
A clean sweep! Your team wins all 13 books. Also often followed by brutal taunting and trash-talking!
Throw Off
Can’t follow suit and don’t want to trump? Play a low, useless card to get rid of the junk. That ensures you don’t get in your partner’s way when you’re winning the book.
Overtrick
Winning more books than you bid.
Undertrick
Missing your bid by winning fewer books than you thought you could.
Reneging
Playing the wrong suit when you could have followed suit. A violation of etiquette and rules that could get a player kicked out of the game!
Table Talk
Sneaky hints or “accidental” signals to your partner. Against the rules, strictly speaking, though in some circles, doing it well is practically an art form!
Popular games
Best card games in the United Stated
Americans love a lot of card games, but some games get more attention than others. Here are the Top Ten most popular card games in the United States.
Rummy Online
Rummy and its variants have been popular across the United States for decades. Because its rules are so similar to the rules of other melding games, Rummy is often the gateway game that leads to players learning others. Among its many variants, Gin Rummy is probably the most popular.
Crazy Eights online
One of the easiest games to learn, Crazy Eights is among the first card games played by kinds, and usually their first using “real” playing cards. Adults continue to play it years later because it’s low pressure, fun, and the perfect throw-back game after a couple of drinks.
Euchre Online
Euchre is most popular in the American Midwest, likely thanks to European immigrants who brought the game with them when they came to work in the United States’ manufacturing centers. It continues to be popular today, especially with college students who appreciate the game’s fast pace and team-centric strategy.
Spades Online
If you can play Rummy, you can play Spades, a trick-taking game with a neat little twist. Spades are always trump! Played in teams of two, Spades is especially popular through the American South, as well as in back alley gambling establishments.
Blackjack Online
Every player can win if they get closer to 21 than the dealer (without going over, of course) because Blackjack is one of the few games where players don’t compete against each other. Blackjack is a popular casino game because it’s so easy to learn, but skilled players can still find a way to make money on Blackjack more often than most casino games.
Hearts Online
A joy to play if you have friends who don’t mind a bit of cutthroat competition. In Hearts, you actively try to force your opponents to take cards they don’t want. Unless you can take them all, of course! Hearts is a fun blend of strategy and instinct that’s best when you don’t take it too seriously.
Pinochle Online
It’s a game of melding, trick-taking, bidding, and teamwork, played with a unique 48-card deck. Pinochle doesn’t have the popularity of many other card games, but its fans are passionate and always looking for a game. Veteran players have started clubs to prepare the next generation of fans!
Bridge Online
New Bridge requires strategy, memory, and teamwork to be successful. Popular with older players who cherish the social elements of the game as well as the mental stimulation, many young people have started learning how to play as a counter-revolution against the fast-paced, digital modern world. text here.
Poker online
Poker, a part of the fabric of America since the Wild West, has become a truly widespread American game thanks to casinos and reality TV. Poker is a unique mix of skill, psychology, and knowing when to bluff. A true game of strategy and nerve! Just don’t bet the house on pocket Kings! block text here.
Uno online
Thanks to its simple rules, easy to read cards, and physicality, UNO is one of the first card game America kids learn. For anyone who’s been handed a “Draw Four” card, UNO is one of those formative games that becomes embedded in your childhood. Them parents share it with their kids and a new generation of UNO players steps to the table.
Thank you for joining us on this exciting tour through the best card games. We hope you found valuable games and tips to enhance your gameplay experience. Stay tuned for more updates and keep enjoying the fun and strategy at your fingertips!