Canadian Salad
A compendium trick-taking game played over six hands with rotating penalties. Avoid tricks, hearts, queens, the King of Spades, and the last trick to finish with the lowest score.
How to play
4 players play cutthroat over 6 hands using a standard 52-card deck (13 cards each).
No trump suit; players must follow the suit led if able.
Hand 1 (No Tricks): Avoid taking tricks (10 points per trick).
Hand 2 (No Hearts): Avoid capturing Hearts (10 points per Heart).
Hand 3 (No Queens): Avoid capturing Queens (25 points per Queen).
Hand 4 (No King of Spades): Avoid taking the King of Spades (100 points).
Hand 5 (No Last Trick): Avoid winning the 13th trick (100 points).
Hand 6 (The Salad): All five penalty categories are active at once!
The player with the lowest score after six rounds wins.
About Canadian Salad
Canadian Salad is an engaging cutthroat trick-taking game for four players using a standard 52-card deck. Over six progressive hands, players aim to avoid taking penalty tricks: Hand 1 penalizes all tricks (10 points each), Hand 2 penalizes Hearts (10 each), Hand 3 penalizes Queens (25 each), Hand 4 penalizes the King of Spades (100 points), Hand 5 penalizes the final trick (100 points), and Hand 6—the Salad—scores all previous penalties at once. Every player must follow suit if able. The player with the lowest total penalty score across all six hands wins.
Canadian Salad at a glance
| Players | 4 players |
|---|---|
| Type | Table game: play online with friends, or with bots in any seat |
| Family | Trick-taking |
| Bot levels | Easy, medium and hard |
| Turn timer (online) | 30 seconds |
| Cost | Free, no download |
Tips for Canadian Salad
- Discard high penalty cards like Queens and the King of Spades when you cannot follow suit in another lead.
- Keep low cards in reserve for the fifth and sixth hands so you avoid getting stuck winning the dangerous final trick.
- Lead low cards in suits where opponents are likely to hold Queens or Hearts to force them into winning their own penalties.
Questions about Canadian Salad
How many people can play Canadian Salad?
Canadian Salad is played by exactly 4 players. Real players and bots can share a table, so a game can always start even if you do not have enough people.
Can I play Canadian Salad against the computer?
Yes. Pick easy, medium or hard bots and start straight away. Bots only use what a player in their seat could see, so they cannot peek at your cards.
Can I play Canadian Salad online with friends?
Yes. Create a private room and share its code, or join a quick match. If someone drops out mid-game, a bot takes over their seat.
Games like Canadian Salad
Hearts
Avoid hearts and the Queen of Spades; low score wins.
4 playersPlayPitch
Classic American trick-taking game (Setback / High-Low-Jack). Bid for the contract and score High, Low, Jack, and Game.
4 playersPlayCucumber
Classic Nordic trick-taking game. Match or beat the highest card or play your lowest, and avoid winning the critical final trick.
2–6 playersPlay
More card games
See all trick-taking card games, or browse 4 player card games.