Rules for Garbage

Garbage (also known as Trash or Ten) is a simple card game for 2 or more players. It is particularly popular with children but works well for all ages. The goal is to be the first player to arrange all your cards in the correct order from Ace to 10.

The game mixes luck with straightforward decisions, and each round gets shorter as the winner needs fewer cards. The first player to fill their last remaining position with an Ace or a Jack wins the game.

For 2 players, use one standard 52-card deck (without jokers). For more players, add extra decks to avoid running out of cards:

• 3-4 players: 2 decks shuffled together
• 5-6 players: 3 decks shuffled together
• 7+ players: add more decks as needed

Shuffle the cards well and deal each player 10 face-down cards. Arrange them in two rows of 5 in front of each player. Players may not look at their cards. Place the remaining deck face down in the center as the draw pile.

The 10 cards in front of each player represent positions for Ace through 10:

• Top row (left to right): Ace, 2, 3, 4, 5
• Bottom row (left to right): 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

During the game, players try to get the correct card face up in each position. Jacks are wild and can go in any position. Queens and Kings end your turn immediately.

The first player draws the top card from the draw pile:

• If it is a number from Ace to 10, place it face up in its correct position (Ace top left, 2 next to it, and so on)
• The card that was there is turned over and placed in its own correct position if possible
• This continues until the player draws a card that cannot be placed

A card cannot be placed if:

• It is a Queen or King
• The position already has the correct card face up
• It is a number beyond the player's current layout (for example, a 10 when the player only has 8 positions left)

The unplayable card is placed face up beside the draw pile, starting the discard pile. The turn then passes to the next player.

Jacks are wild cards with a special role:

• A Jack can be placed in any open position (one that still has a face-down card)
• If you later draw the correct card for a position that holds a Jack, you can swap it out
• The displaced Jack can then move to another open position
• This gives you more flexibility when filling out your layout

Example: You have a Jack in the 3 position. When you draw a 3, you replace the Jack with it and move the Jack to, say, the 7 position that is still open.

On their turn, each player can draw from either:

• The top card of the draw pile (unknown)
• The top card of the discard pile (visible)

If the top card of the discard pile fits an open position in their layout, players will generally take it. They then keep placing cards until they draw one that cannot be placed, which goes on the discard pile to end their turn.

Play continues clockwise around the table.

A round ends when one player has all their cards face up in the correct order. That player wins the round and starts the next round with one fewer card:

• After the first win: 9 cards (Ace to 9, the 10 position is gone)
• After the second win: 8 cards (Ace to 8)
• And so on...

The winner of each round starts the next one. Cards are shuffled and redealt between rounds.

The game continues until one player has reduced their layout to a single card. That player wins the game by filling their last position with an Ace or a Jack.

This progression means the game gradually gets harder to catch up in, though everyone has a chance as long as they are still playing.

There are several popular ways to vary the game:

• Shorter game: Agree in advance that the winner is the first to get down to, say, 6 cards
• Time limit: Play for a set time or a fixed number of rounds; the player with the fewest cards at the end wins
• Rotating start: The first player rotates clockwise each round rather than always starting with the previous winner
• Different wild cards: Use Kings as wild cards instead of Jacks, or add Jokers to the deck
• All face cards wild: Make all face cards wild for a more forgiving game
• Bonus chance: In a two-player game, the losing player gets 3 free draws after the winner finishes to try to complete their layout
• Flip chance: After a round ends, losers flip their remaining face-down cards. If any happen to be in the correct positions, those players also reduce their layout by one card

Garbage is mostly a luck-based game, but there are a few choices worth thinking about:

• Always consider taking from the discard pile if the card fits your layout
• Place Jacks in positions you are having trouble filling
• Keep track of which cards have been discarded to get a sense of what is still available
• In later rounds with fewer positions, wild cards matter more
• Pay attention to how close your opponents are to finishing
• Keep the game moving at a comfortable pace for everyone

Garbage works well as a family game or as a warm-up before more complex card games.