Backgammon
NEWWorks on both desktop and mobile. Tap or click to play.
About This Game
Play Backgammon free online against the computer. Roll the dice, race your checkers home, and bear them off before your opponent.
How to play Backgammon
Objective: Move all 15 of your white checkers into your home board (points 1 through 6) and bear them all off before the black AI bears off its 15.
You play white; the AI plays black. Your light discs always travel from higher-numbered points toward point 1. Tap Roll to throw two dice, then tap one of your white points. Legal destinations light up green; tap one to move a checker. Each point shows its number at the top and the checker count on the disc in its center.
The two dice are two separate moves: split them between checkers or move one checker twice. A double gives four moves of that number instead of two. If a roll has no legal move, the message tells you and your turn passes automatically after about a second. You can also press End Turn to forfeit any dice you cannot or will not use.
Landing on a point holding exactly one enemy checker (a blot) sends it to the bar, the strip between the rows. You cannot land on a point held by two or more black checkers. If one of your checkers is on the bar, you must bring it in first: tap the highlighted bar, then a destination. Your re-entry point equals 25 minus the die, so a 1 enters on point 24 and a 6 on point 19.
Once all 15 checkers are in your home board (points 1 to 6) with none on the bar, a green Bear Off button appears. A die matching a point's number bears a checker off that point, and a die larger than your highest occupied point bears one off that top point. Bear off all 15 to win; if the AI reaches 15 first, you lose.
Tips and strategy
Never leave a blot
The AI gives hitting a lone white checker a large scoring bonus, second only to bearing a checker off, so it actively hunts blots. Whenever possible, stack two checkers on the same point. A checker sent to the bar loses its progress and must re-enter from point 24 downward.
Punish the greedy AI
The black AI is greedy: it picks one die at a time, favoring whichever checker advances furthest, and only lightly avoids creating new blots. It regularly leaves single black discs exposed. Watch for a lone black checker, then land on it to send it to the bar and cost the AI a re-entry.
Spread across your home
A high die only bears off from your highest occupied point when nothing sits above it. If you pile everything onto point 6, large rolls get wasted. Spread checkers across points 1 through 6 so more dice bear one off.
Cash in doubles
A double gives four moves rather than two, your biggest single-turn gain. Plan a route that uses all four, because unused dice are lost when you End Turn or run out of legal moves.
The history of Backgammon
Backgammon descends from some of the oldest board games known. Ancient race-game boards from the Near East and the Roman world used dice and two sets of pieces racing in opposite directions, the idea you play here. The doubling cube of modern club play came much later; this version keeps the pure race to bear off all fifteen checkers first.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a doubling cube or gammon scoring?
No. This is a single game with no doubling cube and no gammon bonus. You win the moment your off count reaches 15, and lose if the AI's reaches 15 first. The scoreboard at the top tracks both.
Why did my turn pass without me moving?
The dice you rolled had no legal move. The message reports the roll and that the turn passes, then hands play to the AI after a short pause. This happens most often when your entry points are blocked with a checker on the bar.
How do I get a checker off the bar?
You must re-enter first. Tap the highlighted bar strip, then a green destination. Your entry point equals 25 minus the die, so a 6 enters on point 19. If both entry points are blocked, the turn passes.
Can I move a white checker to a higher number?
No. White always moves toward point 1; the only destinations shown are lower-numbered points, plus bearing off from home. Black moves the opposite way, up toward point 24.