Spades bidding guide
Good bidding wins more games than clever play. Your aim is to bid exactly what your side can take: too high and you are set, too low and you collect bags.
Step 1: count your high cards
| Card | Count as |
|---|---|
| Ace of any suit | 1 trick (less if you have 6 or more cards in that suit) |
| King with at least one other card in the suit | about 1 trick (½ if the king is alone) |
| Queen with two or more cards in the suit | ¼–½ trick, mostly in spades |
| A♠, K♠ (with one more spade), Q♠ (with two more) | 1 trick each |
Count: A♠ and K♠ = 2, A♥ = 1, K♦ with three cards = about 1. Bid 4.
Step 2: long spades and short suits
- Each spade beyond your third is worth close to a trick, because the others will run out of spades.
- A void (no cards in a suit) or singleton (one card) lets you trump early, if you have spades to spare.
Step 3: listen to the table
- If your partner has bid high, don’t stretch: your side’s contract is shared.
- If the four bids add up to 11 or fewer, there will be bags. Bidding one more can be safer than taking bags.
- If the total is 13 or more, every trick will be fought for. Be careful with your marginal cards.
When to bid nil
Consider nil when you have no aces, no high spades (nothing above the 10♠ is safest), few spades, and your high cards in other suits are well guarded by low cards. Read the nil strategy page for more.
Practice
In our game the computer marks a suggested bid with a highlighted button, and Hint explains it. Try bidding first, then compare.
Questions
How do you count tricks in spades?
Count about one trick for each ace, one for a king with at least one other card in its suit, and one for each high spade. Add tricks for spades beyond the third, and for short suits you can trump.
Should I bid low or high?
It is usually better to bid a little low than to be set, because being set costs 10 points per trick bid. But every extra trick is a bag, so don’t underbid by much.
What if my partner bids nil?
Bid a little more than your hand alone is worth, because you will play to protect your partner and may have to win tricks with low cards.