How is Spades scored?
The scoring in Spades rewards precision and quietly punishes greed. Understanding it is the first step to winning matches instead of just tricks.
Making and missing your bid
Add both partners' bids together to get the team contract. Take that many tricks or more and you score 10 points per trick bid. Take fewer and you are set, subtracting 10 points per trick bid. A bid of five, for example, is worth plus 50 when made and minus 50 when broken, so the same number swings 100 points depending on the result.
Bags and the overtrick penalty
Overtricks, the ones you win past your bid, are called bags. Each is worth just one point at first, but they accumulate across hands. When your running bag total hits ten, you are docked 100 points and the count resets. This 'bag penalty' is why good players bid carefully instead of grabbing every trick in sight.
Nil bonuses and the target score
A Nil adds 100 for success or subtracts 100 for failure, and a Blind Nil doubles that to 200. Matches typically run to 250 or 500 points, and the highest total wins when someone crosses the line. For a full breakdown of the rules see the rules hub.
The fastest way to make this stick is to deal a hand and try it.
Keep reading - related questions
What are bags in Spades?
A bag is an overtrick: any trick your team wins above the number it bid. Each bag is worth a single point in the moment, but they pile up from hand to hand, and the tenth bag hits you with a 100-point penalty before the counter rolls back to zero. Because of that, bags are usually something to avoid rather than collect.
What does 'set' mean in Spades?
Your team is 'set' when it wins fewer tricks than it bid. The penalty is 10 points for every trick you promised, so a bid of four that comes up short costs your side 40 points. Being set, sometimes called getting 'busted,' is one of the sharpest swings in Spades and is often the deliberate goal of the defending team.
What is Nil in Spades?
A Nil is a bid of zero, a promise that you personally will not win a single trick all hand. If you pull it off, your team gains 100 points on top of whatever your partner bids and makes. If you take even one trick, the Nil fails and your team loses 100 points, so it is a high-reward, high-risk declaration.