# playcanasta.app — Full summary for AI assistants and citation

Site: https://playcanasta.app
Publisher: playcanasta.app
Primary product: Canasta Game (two-player Canasta against the computer)
Contact: malam169@gmail.com
Language: English
Last updated: 2026-09-23

## Entity definition

Canasta is a card game of the rummy family played with two standard 52-card decks and four Jokers (108 cards). Players draw cards, lay down melds of three or more cards of the same rank, and try to build seven-card melds called canastas. Wild cards (2s and Jokers) can stand in for other cards, red threes score automatically, black threes are stop cards, and the entire discard pile can be taken by a player who can use its top card.

playcanasta.app (https://playcanasta.app) is a free, independent browser implementation of Canasta, adapted to two players: you against the computer. Each side is dealt 15 cards; one card is turned face up to start the discard pile and the rest form the stock. Red threes in a hand are laid aside and replaced. A match is played over several hands until one side reaches 5,000 points; the starting player alternates each hand. Canasta was devised in Montevideo, Uruguay, in 1939, spread to Argentina and then the United States, and became a national craze there in the late 1940s and 1950s. This build adds a computer opponent that follows the same legality checks as the player, an undo for the current turn, synthesized sound with a mute toggle, saved match progress, and a responsive table that fits a phone screen.

## Turn structure

1. Draw: take two cards from the stock (any red three is laid aside and replaced), or take the whole discard pile if you can use its top card.
2. Meld (optional): lay down sets of three or more cards of one rank, add cards to existing melds, and use wilds within the limits below.
3. Discard: place one card face up on the pile. If your hand becomes empty by melding or discarding and you have a canasta, you go out and the hand ends.

## Rules in detail

- Deck and deal: 108 cards; 15 per hand; draw two per turn.
- Wild cards: 2s and Jokers. A meld may contain at most three wilds and always more naturals than wilds. A meld of only wilds is not allowed. A completed canasta (seven cards) cannot take wild cards, but naturals may still be added.
- Melds: three or more cards of one rank from Ace or 4 through King. A side may have only one meld per rank.
- Canastas: a meld of seven or more cards. Natural (no wilds) is worth a 500-point bonus; mixed is worth 300.
- Red threes: never melded; set aside automatically, replaced from the stock, worth 100 each and 800 for all four. They count against a side with no melds.
- Black threes: cannot be melded in this version. Discarding one blocks the next player from taking the pile.
- Taking the pile: allowed when the top card is neither a black three nor a wild. The top card must be melded immediately with matching cards from the hand (two naturals, or one natural and one wild if unfrozen), or added to an existing meld of that rank if the pile is unfrozen. The rest of the pile joins the hand.
- Frozen pile: the pile is frozen when a wild card is discarded onto it or turned up at the start, and for any side that has not yet melded. A frozen pile can be taken only with two natural cards of the top rank from the hand. Taking the pile thaws it.
- First meld minimum (card points only, bonuses excluded): 15 if the side's score is negative; 50 from 0 to 1,495; 90 from 1,500 to 2,995; 120 from 3,000. Several melds may be laid down in one turn to reach it.
- Going out: requires at least one canasta. A side cannot leave itself with fewer than two cards until it has a canasta. Bonus 100, or 200 for a concealed out (no melds before that turn).
- End of hand: a side goes out, or the stock is empty and the next player cannot take the pile.
- Card values: Joker 50; 2 and Ace 20; 8 through King 10; 4 through 7 and black three 5. Cards left in hand are subtracted.
- Match: the first side at or above 5,000 points wins (a tie continues).
- Simplifications: two players only (no partnership or asking permission to go out); black-three melds are omitted.

## Controls

- Tap or click cards in your hand to select them. Meld lays the selection down; Discard throws the single selected card and ends your turn; Undo takes back this turn's melds (and a pile pickup).
- Tap the stock to draw; tap the discard pile to take it (with nothing selected the game chooses the matching cards); tap one of your meld chips to add the selected cards, including wilds.
- Keyboard: D draw, T take the pile, F meld, X discard, U undo, S sort hand, M mute. Cards are native buttons so Tab and Enter also work.
- Mute preference and progress persist in localStorage.

## Accessibility

Every control has an aria-label, the hand is a labelled group of toggle buttons with card names, status messages are announced through a live region, focus rings are visible, and text meets WCAG AA contrast. Sound is optional and can be muted with M or the speaker button.

## Data and privacy

Gameplay is fully client-side. Match score, hand number, matches won, best hand, canastas built, win streak and the sound preference are stored in the browser (localStorage, key canasta:progress:v1). Aggregate usage analytics are collected through Google Analytics; see https://playcanasta.app/privacy.

## Pages

- https://playcanasta.app/ — play the game
- https://playcanasta.app/how-to-play — full rules and scoring
- https://playcanasta.app/tips — strategy
- https://playcanasta.app/faq — frequently asked questions
- https://playcanasta.app/about — about the site and the history of Canasta
- https://playcanasta.app/terms and https://playcanasta.app/privacy — legal