Carrom is a game of pure skill: no cards, no dice, nothing random except how the pieces scatter after the break. It's governed internationally by the International Carrom Federation (ICF), and its rules are what tournaments use. Casual games often change them, especially around the queen, fouls and scoring. This guide follows the official rules and points out where home games usually differ, so you can agree the rules before the first strike.
Key Takeaways
- You keep striking as long as you pocket one of your own pieces.
- After pocketing the queen you must cover it with one of your pieces in the same or next stroke, or it goes back to the centre.
- Pocketing the striker is a foul that costs you a piece (a "due").
- The board winner scores 1 point per opponent piece left, plus 3 for a covered queen. Games go to 25 points or 8 boards.
- Most good carrom comes down to aiming cut shots and leaving the board awkward for your opponent.
The Board and Pieces
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Board | Square plywood board with a playing surface of about 74 cm per side, a pocket in each corner and raised wooden edges (cushions) |
| Carrom men | 9 white and 9 black flat round pieces |
| Queen | 1 red piece, worth 3 points when covered |
| Striker | A larger, heavier disc that you flick to hit the other pieces |
| Baselines | Two parallel lines on each player's side. The striker is placed between them. |
| Arrows | Diagonal lines running from each corner towards the centre |
| Powder | Fine powder sprinkled on the surface so pieces slide smoothly |
Setup, the Toss and the Break
Arrange the pieces
The queen goes in the centre circle. Six pieces surround it in a ring, then twelve more form an outer ring, with colours alternating in the standard pattern.
The toss
The winner of the toss chooses whether to break first or which side to sit on. Under official rules, the player who breaks plays white.
Placing the striker
The striker must sit between your two baselines, touching both. At each end it must either fully cover the red circle or not touch it at all.
The break
Strike the centre formation to scatter the pieces. Official rules usually allow up to three attempts to break the formation.
Taking turns
If you pocket one of your own pieces, you strike again. If you don't, or you foul, the turn passes to your opponent.
Singles and doubles
In singles, two players sit opposite each other. In doubles, four players sit on all four sides and partners sit opposite each other, sharing a colour. Turns go round the table in order.
The Queen and the Cover Rule
The red queen is where most casual and official rules part ways. Under official rules:
- You can only pocket the queen after pocketing at least one of your own pieces, and before pocketing your last one. Pocket it too early and it goes back to the centre.
- You must cover it. Once you pocket the queen, you have to pocket one of your own pieces in the same stroke or the next one.
- If you miss the cover, the queen comes out of the pocket and goes back to the centre circle.
- You can't finish before the queen is gone. Pocketing your last piece while the queen is still on the board loses you the board.
Fouls and Dues
A foul usually ends your turn and costs you a piece. The returned piece is called a due, and your opponent places it in the centre circle.
| Foul | Penalty |
|---|---|
| Pocketing the striker | Turn ends; return one of your pocketed pieces. If you have none yet, you owe one. |
| Pocketing the striker along with your own piece | Your piece comes back out, plus one more as a due |
| Striker or a piece leaving the board | Foul. A piece that leaves the board is placed back in the centre. |
| Striker placed incorrectly or hand crossing the arrows | Foul, with a due |
| Pocketing an opponent's piece | Not a foul, but the piece counts for them and your turn ends if you pocketed none of your own |
| Pocketing your opponent's last piece | Under official rules you lose the board |
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A board ends when one player pockets all nine of their pieces (with the queen already gone). A game is a series of boards.
Only the winner of each board scores. Say you finish your nine pieces while your opponent still has four on the board, and you covered the queen: you score 4 + 3 = 7 points. Under official rules the queen's 3 points stop counting once your total reaches 22, so late in a game only pieces matter. The first player to 25, or the leader after 8 boards, wins.
The Shots Every Player Should Learn
| Shot | How it works | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Straight | Striker hits the piece head-on and drives it straight into the pocket | When the piece sits on a clear line to a pocket |
| Cut | Striker clips the side of the piece to send it off at an angle | Most of the time. It's the most important shot in carrom. |
| Rebound | Striker bounces off a cushion before hitting the piece | Pieces behind your baseline, or blocked from a direct line |
| Thumb | Flicking with the thumb instead of a finger | Pieces in awkward positions, especially near your own pockets |
| Double | One strike pockets two pieces | Two of your pieces lined up near pockets |
How to aim a cut shot
Draw the line from the pocket
Imagine a line from the pocket through the centre of the piece and out the other side.
Find the contact point
The striker must hit the piece where that line leaves it, on the side facing away from the pocket.
Aim at the "ghost striker"
Picture the striker touching the piece at that contact point. Aim the centre of your striker at the centre of that imagined striker, not at the piece itself.
Strike smoothly, not hard
Thin cuts need less force than you'd think. Too much power makes the piece rattle in the pocket jaws or sends the striker in after it.
Strategy Beyond Pocketing
- Break for position, not just power. A controlled break that pockets one piece and keeps the turn beats a huge break that scatters everything for your opponent.
- Plan two shots ahead. Choose the shot that pockets a piece and leaves the striker or another piece set up for the next one.
- Leave the board awkward. If you have no good shot, nudge your own piece to the lip of a pocket and leave your opponent's pieces against the cushions.
- Use your pieces as blockers. Your pieces sitting in front of a pocket block your opponent's route to it.
- Watch the striker's path. Many fouls happen when the striker follows the piece into the pocket. On close shots, strike softly or hit slightly off-centre.
- Count before you finish. Near the end, check how many opponent pieces are left and whether the queen is covered. A cautious finish can be worth more points than a fast one.
Practice routine for beginners
Practise this
- Ten straight shots into each corner from your baseline
- Cut shots at increasing angles, one pocket at a time
- Rebounds off the cushion to reach pieces behind your baseline
- Soft touch: pocketing a piece sitting at the lip without the striker following
Avoid this
- Hitting every shot hard "to be safe"
- Going for the queen with no cover shot lined up
- Too much powder, which makes pieces slide unpredictably
- Moving your body instead of just your finger when striking
