Last Updated on August 20, 2025 by The Official Game Rules Team

In Coloretto, players draw and collect colorful cards to score points. Each player aims to focus on a few colors, as only three colors can score positive points at the end of the game—any additional colors count as negative points. The more cards of a chosen color a player collects, the higher the points. The player with the most points after the designated number of rounds wins.

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How to Play Coloretto

Overview

Players: 3–5
Ages: 8+

63 Color Cards (9 cards in each of 7 colors)
10 “+2” Cards
1 “Last Round” Card
3 Jokers
5 Row Cards
5 Summary Cards
13 Blank Cards

Note: Blank cards are not used in Coloretto.

Setup

Place one Row Card per player in the center of the table. Return any extra Row Cards to the box.
Each player takes one Summary Card for reference; remaining Summary Cards go back in the box.
For 3-player games, remove all cards of one color.
Each player draws one card of a different color to start their play area.
Set aside the “Last Round” card temporarily.
Shuffle the remaining cards face down to form the draw supply.
Draw 15 cards from the supply and stack them face down. Place the “Last Round” card on top of this stack. Then place the remaining supply cards on top.
Determine a starting player randomly.

Game Play

Players take turns in clockwise order, choosing one of two actions:

A. Draw and Place a Card

Draw the top card from the supply and place it face up next to any Row Card.
A Row Card may hold a maximum of 3 cards. Once a Row Card has 3 cards, no more cards can be added to it.
If all Row Cards have 3 cards, the player cannot choose this action and must take a Row instead.

B. Take a Card Row

Take any Row Card along with all cards next to it and place them in your play area.
Organize the cards by color.
If you take a Joker, set it aside; its color will be decided at the end of the game.
Only Row Cards with at least one card can be taken.
Once a player takes a Row Card, they skip the remainder of that round and resume in the next round.

End of Round

A round ends when all players have taken a Row Card.
Return the Row Cards to the center and start a new round with the player who took the last Row in the previous round.

End of Game and Scoring

The game ends when the “Last Round” card is drawn.
Players assign each Joker to a color.
Count the number of cards for each color in your play area. Each player selects three colors to score positive points; all other colors count as negative points.
“+2” cards add 2 points each.

Points by number of cards per color:

Cards	Points
1	1
2	3
3	6
4	10
5	15
6	21
+2 card	2

Example:
Andreas has: 1 Joker, 1 +2 card, 6 green, 4 yellow, 3 red, 2 blue.

Max points for green (6 cards) = 21
Assign Joker to yellow = 15
+2 card = 2
Red = 6
Blue counts as negative = -3
Total = 41 points

The player with the highest total score after four rounds wins.

Coloretto FAQ

How many Row Cards can be in play at once?

There is one Row Card per player in each round. Each Row Card can hold up to 3 cards. Once it has 3 cards, no additional cards can be added.

When can I take a Row Card?

You may take a Row Card only if it has at least one card next to it. After taking a Row Card, you skip the rest of that round and resume play in the next round.

How do Jokers work?

Jokers are not assigned to a color until the end of the game. You may assign each Joker to any color in your play area to maximize points.

How are negative points calculated?

At the end of the game, players choose 3 colors to score positive points. All other colors in their play area count as negative points. The point value for each color is determined by the number of cards collected in that color.

What happens when the “Last Round” card is drawn?

Drawing the “Last Round” card signals that the current round is the final round. After drawing it, the next card is drawn and placed as usual. End-of-game scoring happens after this round.

How do +2 cards work?

Each +2 card adds 2 points to your total score, regardless of the color it is placed with.

What if all Row Cards are full?

If all Row Cards have 3 cards next to them, players cannot draw a card and must take a Row Card instead.

How do I handle fewer players (like 3 players)?

For 3-player games, remove all cards of one color from the deck before starting. This keeps the game balanced.