What Is Old Maid?
Old Maid is a classic children’s matching card game with one very simple rule: match all your cards into pairs and don’t get stuck holding the one card that can never be matched — the Old Maid (the lone Queen). The player left holding her at the end loses.
What You Need
- A standard 52-card deck with one Queen removed (leaving 3 Queens — one of which can never be matched)
- 2 to 8 players
Setup
- Remove one Queen from the deck. It doesn’t matter which Queen — just make sure it’s only one.
- Shuffle the remaining 51 cards.
- Deal ALL cards out to players as evenly as possible. Some players may have one extra card — that’s fine.
Before Play Starts
Everyone looks at their own cards. Pull out and discard any pairs you already have (two 5s, two Kings, etc.). Place them face-down in a pile — they’re scored and out of the game. Keep looking until you have no more pairs.
How to Play — Step by Step
- The player to the left of the dealer goes first.
- Fan your cards face-down so only you can see the faces, but the person to your left can’t tell which card is which.
- The player to your LEFT reaches in and pulls out ONE card at random from your fanned hand.
- They look at the card they drew. If it pairs with a card in their hand, they discard the pair face-down.
- Play passes to the left — now they fan their cards for the next player to draw from.
- Continue until all players have paired up all their cards — except for the one person holding the Old Maid.
Getting Rid of Cards
Every time you receive a card that pairs with something in your hand, discard the pair immediately. You want to get your hand to zero as fast as possible.
Winning and Losing
Players who successfully discard all their cards are SAFE — they are out of the game (in a good way!). The game ends when only one player remains with the one unpaired Queen — the Old Maid. That player loses.
Tips
- Try to hide the Old Maid when fanning your hand — shuffle it among other cards and don’t make it obvious.
- Watch opponents’ reactions when they draw — if they grimace, they might have drawn the Old Maid.
- If you have the Old Maid, put it in the middle of your hand, not at the edge — edges are easier to spot.