Nertz (also called Pounce, Nerts or Racing Demon) is a fast card race. Every player has their own deck and races to empty a 15-card Nertz pile while building shared Ace-to-King piles in the middle of the table.

Is Nertz free to play online?

Yes. Nertz! at nertz.app is free and runs in your browser with no download. Play the computer at five levels or share a room code with family and friends.

How do you score in Nertz?

Cards you play to the middle score for you: Ace through 9 are worth 1 point, 10 through King are worth 5. Cards left in your Nertz pile count against you the same way. Capturing a pile with its King is +10, and going out (Nertz) is +50.

How many people can play Nertz?

Nertz! supports 2 to 32 players at one table — online with friends, or against up to 31 computer players.

Can I track my Nertz stats?

Yes. Sign in and every match is saved: win-rate, Nertz-call and capture trends over time, a recent-match log, and full match history with final scores for the whole table.

How a round works, start to finish

Rules & scoring 2 min readLast updated October 3, 2026

The countdown, the race, and the two ways a round ends: somebody calls Nertz, or the table goes quiet for 25 seconds.

The countdown

Every round opens with a short countdown. Cards are dealt, the countdown runs, and then the table is live. There are no turns and no waiting: everyone plays at the same time, as fast as they can.

The race

Build the middle: Aces start piles, and everyone adds to the same piles up to the King.
Work your own four piles, stacking down in alternating colours, to free the cards you need.
Flip your hand three cards at a time and play from the top.
Push cards onto your Nertz pile whenever you can.

The two ways a round ends

1Somebody empties their Nertz pile. Nertz is called automatically, the round ends on the spot, and the caller scores the 50 point Nertz bonus.
2Or nobody can move for 25 seconds. The table is declared stuck, the round ends, and every player is scored on what is on the table. The summary says "The table got stuck!" when this happens.

Good to know

A stuck table is normal at the end of a round, when the cards left simply do not fit. It is a safety net, not a penalty.

After the round

A summary opens with each player's round score: middle points, Kings captured, the Nertz bonus, and points lost to cards still left in a Nertz pile.
Round scores are added to the match totals shown at the top of the table.
The host deals the next round, or you can start a rematch or leave.

Common problems

The round ended while I was still playing.

Somebody reached an empty Nertz pile first. That ends the round for everyone, which is the point of the race.

I could not move and it felt unfair.

Try moving cards between your own piles to uncover a play, and flip your hand. If truly nothing can be played by anyone, the 25 second stall ends the round and scores what is on the table.

The countdown felt much slower than my friends' tables.

Each table has its own countdown, and solo tables on gentler levels give everybody a little more breathing room.

Was this helpful?

Call Nertz and end the round 2 minNertz is called for you the moment your Nertz pile is empty. Here is what that does to the round, the bonus and everyone else.Rules & scoring How scoring works, and why you lost points 2 minEvery way points change in Nertz!: middle cards, King captures, the Nertz bonus and the cards left in your Nertz pile, with a worked example.Rules & scoring Build the middle and capture Kings 2 minAces start the shared piles, anyone can add to them, and playing the King to finish a run captures the pile for 10 bonus points.Rules & scoring Use your four piles and flip your hand 2 minHow to stack your four work piles, move cards between them, and use the three card flip when you are stuck.Rules & scoring

Where to go next

Still need help?

Tell us what happened and a person will read it. You will get a reference number, and the reply comes back in the same thread. If you would rather write from your own mailbox, support@nertz.app reaches the same place.

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