03 Apr
How to play High or Low cover image

How to Play High or Low: The Card Game

Okay, get ready for a simple yet wildly entertaining card game! High or Low ditches complicated rules and puts your gut instinct to the test. Looking for a quick game during a break, an easy option to play with kids, or a way to spice up those game nights? This is it!

One moment you’re calling out “Higher!” with confidence, the next you’re groaning as a wrong guess has you reaching for your drink. The tension, the laughter… High or Low is unpredictable fun in its purest form. Ready to try your luck?

Let’s get started!

Or if you’re looking for interesting alternative, check out this modern version of the game:

How to Play High or Low

Probably one of the simplest card games of all time, you simply ask whether the value of the next card being shown is higher or low. Here’s what it looks like:

The Setup

  • The Essentials: A standard deck of cards and your beverage (or betting chips) of choice.
  • Players: No limits here! High or Low works with just two people or a whole party crowd.

How to Play

  1. The Deal: Choose a dealer. They flip over the first card from the deck, placing it face-up.
  2. The Guessing Game: Starting with the player to the dealer’s left, take turns guessing if the next card will be higher or lower than the face-up card.
  3. The Reveal: The dealer flips the next card. Correct guesses continue on to the next player. Wrong guesses? Time to drink or toss in a chip!
  4. Repeat: The player who guessed correctly becomes the new “dealer” and flips the next card.

A Sample Round

  • Dealer flips a Ten.
  • Player 1 guesses “Lower” and is correct (a 7 is revealed).
A diagram showing a game of higher or lower where a seven was drawn after a ten.
  • The game continues in this way until the player gets one wrong, in which case the game moves onto the next player. If you’re competitive, you can count how many wins a person gets, and that’s how many points they get.

The Drinking/Betting Twist

  • Sips or Stakes: Instead of a single guess, each player antes a set amount to the pot (a sip of their drink, a poker chip, etc.) The pot goes to whoever correctly guesses if the next card is higher or lower.
  • Upping the Ante: Players can opt to increase their bet/sip on particularly risky guesses, making the game even more thrilling.

And if you’re running this game for a group (especially as a drinking party game), here’s a brilliant idea.

Get everyone working together against the dealer. The group must decide on whether they want to collectively vote for the next card to be higher or lower. If you the table wins, everyone wins. If table loses, everyone drinks.

Lots of fun, arguments, highs and low (excuse the pun) to be had there!

Strategy? Nah.

Complex rules? Nope.

High or Low is where luck, gut feelings, and a whole lot of laughs collide. Prepare to discover your inner card shark… or just get ready to drink with good company!