What Is Go Fish?
Go Fish is one of the most beloved children’s card games of all time. The goal is to collect as many complete sets of four matching cards as possible — for example, all four 7s, or all four Queens. On your turn, you ask another player for a specific card. If they have it, they hand it over. If they don’t, they say ‘Go Fish!’ and you draw from the center pile instead. The player with the most complete sets at the end wins.
What You Need
- One standard deck of 52 playing cards
- Two to six players
- A flat table or floor to play on
Understanding What You’re Collecting
In a standard deck, there are 13 different ranks: Ace, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen, and King. Each rank appears four times — once in each suit (Spades, Hearts, Clubs, Diamonds). Your goal is to collect all four cards of the same rank. When you have all four, that’s called a book. For example, the 5 of Spades + 5 of Hearts + 5 of Clubs + 5 of Diamonds = one complete book of 5s.
Setting Up the Game
- Shuffle all 52 cards thoroughly.
- Deal cards one at a time to each player, face-down: if there are 2 or 3 players, deal 7 cards to each person. If there are 4 or more players, deal 5 cards to each person.
- Spread the remaining cards face-down in the center of the table, overlapping randomly. This is called the ‘ocean’ or ‘pond’ — the pile you fish from.
- Each player picks up their cards and fans them out so they can see them, but holds them so other players cannot see them.
Before Play Begins
Look through your hand. If you already have all four cards of the same rank right from the deal, lay them face-up in front of you as a completed book. This is rare but it happens. Keep checking — if you have three of a kind at the start, you’re already close.
How to Play — Step by Step
The youngest player goes first. Play then moves clockwise — the person to the left goes next, then the next person to the left, and so on.
- On your turn, choose any other player and ask them for a specific rank of card. You MUST already have at least one card of that rank in your hand to ask for it. For example, if you have the 9 of Hearts in your hand, you could say: ‘Do you have any 9s?’
- The player you asked must now check their hand. If they have ANY cards of that rank, they must give you ALL of them immediately. Hand them directly to you, face-down so other players don’t see.
- You add those cards to your hand. If you now have all four of that rank, lay the complete book face-up in front of you on the table and count it as one point.
- Here is the important part: if that player gave you cards, you get to ask AGAIN. You can ask the same player or a different player. Keep asking as long as players keep giving you cards.
- Eventually, you will ask someone for a card and they will say ‘Go Fish!’ This means they do not have any cards of the rank you asked for.
- When you hear ‘Go Fish!’ — reach into the ocean (the face-down pile in the center) and take one card off the top. Look at it without showing anyone.
- If the card you just picked up happens to be the rank you just asked for, show it to everyone and say ‘I fished what I wished!’ You get to take another turn immediately.
- If the card you picked up is NOT the rank you asked for, simply add it to your hand quietly. Your turn is now over. Play passes to the person on your left.
Completing a Book
Any time you have all four cards of the same rank — whether from asking or fishing — immediately lay them face-up in front of you. They are now scored and out of play for the rest of the game.
When Does the Game End?
The game ends when all 13 books have been completed and laid down — meaning all 52 cards have been matched up into sets of four. This happens when either the ocean runs completely dry OR when a player runs out of cards in their hand. If your hand is empty and the ocean still has cards, draw five new cards from the ocean and keep playing.
Winning
Count the number of complete books (sets of four) each player has in front of them. The player with the most books wins. If two players tie, the winner is whoever completed their last book most recently.
Tips for Younger Players
- Try to remember what cards other players have asked for on their turns — it tells you exactly what they’re collecting.
- When you go fishing and get a card, think about whether it connects to something already in your hand.
- Ask players who have been receiving cards — if someone keeps getting 3s handed to them, they probably need 3s.