Mancala

How to play Mancala

Mancala is a family of seed-sowing games played across Africa, South Asia and the Middle East for centuries. This version follows Kalah, the most widely played rules: two rows of six pits, a store at each end, and four seeds in every pit to start.

You play the bottom row and your store is on the right. On your turn, pick up every seed in one of your pits and sow them one by one into the following pits, counter-clockwise. Play the computer on Easy, Medium or Hard, or choose A friend to take turns on one device.

• Players 1 or 2
• Mode Against the computer, or two players on one device
• Plays on Phone, tablet and desktop

Mancala rules (Kalah)

• Each side has six pits and a store on its right. Every pit starts with 4 seeds (3, 5 or 6 in Settings).
• Pick a non-empty pit on your side. Its seeds are sown one per pit counter-clockwise, into your own store but never your opponent's.
• If the last seed lands in your store, you take another turn.
• If the last seed lands in an empty pit on your side and the pit opposite holds seeds, both the last seed and the seeds opposite go to your store.
• When either side has no seeds left, the game ends. The seeds still on the other side go to that side's store.
• The player with more seeds in their store wins. Equal stores are a draw.

Controls

Click / tap a ringed pit

Sow its seeds

1 - 6

Sow from that pit, counted from the player's left

Arrows + Enter

Move between pits and sow

Esc or Skip

Finish the sowing animation at once

U

Undo your last move

N

Start a new game

Mancala questions