1: Count the players. Make a small deck of that many cards: one ace, one jack, any others.Four players at least. It works with 16 or more.
2: Shuffle and deal one card to each player, face down.Start on the dealer's left. The dealer takes the last card.
3: Look at your card and keep it secret. It is your role.Ace: the Cop. Jack: the Robber. Any other card: a civilian.
4: Everyone looks around the table at everyone else.Nobody says what they hold.
5: The Robber winks at one other player, and tries to let nobody else see it.There are no turns to wait for.
6: The player who was winked at says: "The deal has been made."They do not say who winked.
7: The Cop turns up the ace, then names the player they think is the Robber.The ace proves who the Cop is.
8: The accused player shows their card. Not the Robber? The Cop guesses again.Guesses go on until the jack is found.
9: When the Robber is found the hand ends. Gather the cards, shuffle and deal again.A new deal hands out new roles.
Show all 41 rows (32 more)
Scoring a hand 8
1: The Cop finds the Robber: 2 points to the Cop.That guess ends the hand.
2: Each wrong guess costs the Cop 1 point.A total can drop below zero.
3: Each wrong guess gives the Robber 1 point.A Robber nobody suspects scores the most.
4: The Robber winks at the Cop by mistake: the Cop shows the ace and wins the hand at once.2 points to the Cop, and the Robber loses 2.
5: The rule page gives civilians no points in this version.Next hand any of them may hold the ace or the jack.
6: Play a set number of hands. The highest total wins.Agree on the number before the first deal.
7: Or play each hand as a game of its own and keep no totals.Some groups prefer it that way.
8: A worked hand (ours): at a table of six the Cop names two civilians, then the Robber.Cop: 2 less 1 less 1, so 0. Robber: 2.
The cards and the roles 6
1: One card per player and no more: nine players, nine cards.The rest of the deck is set aside.
2: On this sheet the ace is the Cop and the jack is the Robber.The civilians' cards can be anything else.
3: Other tables make the king the Cop and the ace the Robber.Wikipedia describes the game that way. Say which you use before the deal.
4: Never show or say your role while a hand is on.The Cop shows the ace after "The deal has been made", or at once if winked at.
5: The game is a card version of wink murder, a party game played without cards.There the wink puts a player out, and a detective looks for the winker.
6: It is not the outdoor game of the same name.That one has two groups, one stealing an object and one guarding it.
Elimination version, for a big group 9
1: With 8 players or more, deal more than one Cop and more than one Robber.4 to 7 players: 1 of each. 8 to 11: 2. 12 to 15: 3. 16 to 19: 4.
2: An ace is a Cop, a jack is a Robber, and every other card is a civilian.Still one card per player.
3: A civilian who is winked at says "I have been robbed" and is out of the game.Out means silent until the game ends.
4: A Cop who sees a wink points at that player and says they are making an arrest.The wink may be at the Cop or at anyone else.
5: A Robber who is arrested lays the jack face up, and the Cop lays the ace face up.Everyone still in the game sees both cards.
6: Wrong arrest: the accused may show their card to that Cop alone, and the Cop shows theirs.The rest of the table learns nothing.
7: A Cop who wrongly arrests two players is out of the game.So a Cop cannot point at everyone in turn.
8: A Robber winked at by another Robber says nothing, or risks a wink back.Silence tells the first Robber who the other one is.
9: Robbers win if every civilian is out first. Cops win by arresting every Robber.Civilians still in the game win with the Cops.
The Candyman version 9
1: Deal one jack, one king and any other cards, one card per player.Jack: the Candyman. King: the Hall Monitor. Everyone else: a Buyer.
2: One player gives a signal, and everyone starts looking around the table.Roles stay secret.
3: The Candyman winks at a player to sell candy.As many players as possible, before the Hall Monitor catches on.
4: A Buyer who is winked at says "Sold", shows their card and is out of the round.They must not give away who winked.
5: The Hall Monitor points at a suspect and says "Busted". The suspect shows their card.Not the Candyman? The card is turned back over and the round goes on.
6: The round ends when the Candyman is busted, or when only two players have not bought.Those two are the Candyman and the Hall Monitor.
7: Hall Monitor: 2 points for the right bust, and 1 point lost for each wrong one.Totals carry over from round to round.
8: Buyer: 1 point for buying candy, and 1 point for being busted by mistake.So every player can score in this version.
9: Candyman: 1 point for each sale, and 2 points lost if busted.After a set number of rounds, the highest total wins.
How this list was compiled: Written for this site on 2026-10-13, in our own words. Cops and Robbers is a folk party game played with a few cards from a regular deck, with no governing body. The standard game, the scoring, the elimination version with its chart of Cops and Robbers by head count and the Candyman version were checked on 2026-10-13 against the rule page at https://catsatcards.com/Games/CopsAndRobbers.html, which gives four players at least and up to 16 or more, a deck of one card per player with one ace for the Cop and one jack for the Robber, the deal from the dealer's left, the wink, the words The deal has been made, the Cop showing the ace and guessing, 2 points for the right guess, 1 point lost by the Cop and gained by the Robber for each wrong one, 2 points won and lost when the Robber winks at the Cop, and play for a set number of hands or hand by hand. It also says the game should not be confused with the outdoor children's game in which two groups try to steal or defend an object. The game behind it was read the same day in English Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, Wink murder: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wink_murder, which describes the wink that puts a player out and the detective, and a card version named Cops and Robbers in which the king is the cop and the ace the robber; Wikipedia gives that version with a forfeit for a wrong guess, which this page leaves out. Points on this page only keep score. The row marked ours is this site's own and is not official; its sum was worked from the scoring rows. Licence: own work
How it works
Cops and Robbers is a party card game for four or more players and a few cards from a regular deck. A secret Robber winks at somebody, and the Cop has to work out who. It is wink murder with cards.
Read the full guide
How to play the Cops and Robbers card game: one hand at a table of six
Six players, so six cards: an ace, a jack and four others. You turn up a corner of yours and see the jack. You catch the eye of the player across from you and wink. She announces that the deal has been made. The player on your left shows the ace, points at the wrong person, then at you. That is 1 point each.
More players, or points for everyone
Elimination version, for a big group deals extra Cops and Robbers by head count and plays until one side is out. The Candyman version scores every player, buyers included. The cards and the roles has the other set of cards some tables use.
Before you wink, find out who is watching you. A wink at the Cop hands them the hand.
Questions and answers
How do you play the Cops and Robbers card game?
Deal one card each from a small deck that holds one ace and one jack. The ace is the Cop and the jack is the Robber. The Robber secretly winks at a player, who announces it, and the Cop then guesses who winked.
How many players do you need for the Cops and Robbers card game?
At least four, by the rule page these sheets follow, and it works with 16 or more. Wikipedia says wink murder, the game behind it, is at its best with six players or more.
What cards do you need for Cops and Robbers?
As many cards as players: one ace, one jack and any others. Some tables use a king for the Cop and the ace for the Robber. The rest of the deck is not used.
What happens if the Robber winks at the Cop?
The Cop shows the ace at once and wins the hand. In the points game that is worth 2 points to the Cop and costs the Robber 2.
Is this the same as the Cops and Robbers chasing game?
No. That is an outdoor children's game in which one group tries to steal an object and another defends it. This is the table game, where the only move anyone makes is a wink.