Mancala

How to play mancala online

1. Open Mode and choose “Vs computer” or “2 players” (two people on one device).
2. In “Vs computer”, pick a Computer level (Easy, Medium or Hard) and Who starts. These two selects are hidden in 2-player mode.
3. Pick Seeds per pit from 3, 4, 5 or 6. The default is 4, which gives 48 seeds in play.
4. Choose a Capture rule and an End of game option.
5. Click New game to start.
6. On your turn, click or tap a pit on your side. The pits you can use are highlighted.
7. Watch the seeds move. Click or tap anywhere on the board to skip the animation.
8. If you are stuck, click Hint to show a suggested pit in green. Click Undo to go back to your previous move.

You can also play with the keyboard. Press Arrow Left or Right to move the highlight along your pits, then Enter or Space to sow. Or press the digits 1 to 6 to sow the pit at that position, counted from the left of the screen. The shortcut N starts a new game, U or Ctrl+Z undoes, H asks for a hint, F goes fullscreen, and Esc closes the result box. Keyboard shortcuts work once the game has focus, so click on the board or press Tab to move into it.

Mancala game rules: the simple board game rules

On your turn, you pick up every seed from one of your six pits and drop one seed into each following place, moving counter-clockwise. The player with more seeds in their store when the game ends wins. Each player owns the row nearest them and the store on their right. Sowing moves left to right along your row, into your store, then right to left along the opponent’s row, and back to your row. You skip the opponent’s store.

How to play mancala?

Start with 4 seeds in every pit. If you sow your third pit, the four seeds land in pit 4, pit 5, pit 6 and then your store. Because the last seed lands in your store, you get an extra turn and move again. The board then reads 4 4 0 5 5 5 on your row, and your store holds 1.

Longer sowings follow the same path. Sowing 9 seeds from your sixth pit drops them into your store, then all six opponent pits, then your first two pits. The seed that would go into the opponent’s store is skipped, so their store stays at 5.

What are the mancala capture rules?

If your last seed lands in an empty pit on your own side, you capture it. You take that seed plus all seeds in the opposite pit and put them in your store. The game has two capture settings. In “Capture: always” (the default), the capture happens even when the opposite pit is empty. Then only your single seed goes to your store. In “Capture: opposite not empty”, the capture happens only when the opposite pit holds at least one seed. Otherwise, your seed stays in the pit where it landed. A long sowing of 13 or more seeds goes all the way round the board and passes the pit you started from; that pit is empty because you picked it up, so a last seed landing there can capture.

With “always” and 5 seeds opposite, you capture 6 seeds and your store goes to 6. With “opposite not empty” and 0 seeds opposite, nothing is captured and the seed stays in pit 2.

What are the mancala avalanche rules?

Avalanche is a different way to play mancala: when your last seed lands in a pit that already holds seeds, you pick all of them up and keep sowing from there, and your turn ends only when a seed lands in an empty pit (or in your store, which gives another turn). This game does not use avalanche rules. It plays the Kalah rules above, where every turn is a single sowing.

What are the mancala ending rules?

The game ends as soon as all six pits on one side are empty, even if the last move also gave an extra turn. Every seed still on the other side goes to the store of the player who owns that side. In the “End: show leftover move” setting (the default), the board shows the position first and the status line says how many seeds go to each store. After about one second, the seeds move. The “End: skip leftover move” setting does this at once.

What are the mancala winning rules?

The winner is the player with more seeds in their store. Equal stores are a draw. In one game, a final score of 38 to 10 means the player with 38 seeds wins.

Mancala strategy and tips

Before you sow, count where each seed will land. A pit with exactly the right number of seeds to end in your store gives you an extra turn. Watch the empty pits on your side, since a last seed landing there can capture the seeds opposite. Look at the seeds on your side as well, because when one side empties, the other side’s seeds go to their owner’s store. With 4 seeds per pit, sowing your third pit on the first move ends in your store and gives you an extra turn straight away. Use Hint to check your idea, and try Medium or Hard once you feel comfortable with the rules.

Frequently asked questions

Is mancala free, and do I need to sign up?

Yes, it is free, and there is no sign-up and no account. The game runs in your browser, and nothing is sent to a server.

Can I play mancala on a phone?

Yes. Tap a pit on your side to sow it. Tapping the board during the animation skips it.

Is my mancala game saved?

Yes, but only in this browser. The game is saved after every move, along with your toolbar choices and your win, loss and draw record. Reloading the page restores it. Clearing your site data removes everything.

How many marbles or seeds do I need for mancala?

With the default of 4 seeds per pit, you need 48 (24 for each player). For 3, 5 or 6 seeds per pit, you need 36, 60 or 72.

Mancala meaning: what does the word mean?

The word mancala comes from the Arabic verb naqala, “to move”. It names a whole family of sowing games played with pits and seeds; this page plays Kalah, the version most people know from the board game.

Is there a mancala rules PDF, printable sheet or video?

Not on this page. The complete rules are in the “Mancala game rules” section above, and the game itself shows every sowing seed by seed, so you can watch each rule happen on the board.

Can I play mancala against another person online?

No. The 2-player mode lets two people play on the same device. Players do not play against each other over the internet.

Does the computer cheat on Hard?

No. Hard sees the same board you do. It searches several moves ahead, within a limit of about 150,000 positions or 0.6 seconds per move.

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