Top 5 Strategies to Win at Canasta

Nowadays, you can find many Rummy game variants around the world. One of them is the Canasta card game. It was popular during the 1940s and was created in Montevideo by Segundo Santo and Alberto Serrato.

A Short History

They called it “Canasta” because it was short for basket (Canastillo in Spanish), where they kept their cards while playing in the restaurant.

A few years later, Josephine Artayeta de Viel introduced America to the game, from where it spread to Europe. Later, it became popular worldwide, with variants like Bolivia Canasta and Samba Canasta coming up later.

About The Game

Ideally, the Canasta card game is best played by a group of four players, who divide themselves into two teams of two players each. Alternatively, you can play this game with two to three players, though all of you will have to play individually.

This game requires two card decks with two Joker cards from each deck since about eleven cards are dealt to each player. The remaining cards form the draw and discard piles, as per existing Rummy game rules.

You should aim to make the maximum number of melds (card combinations) possible to win Canasta. As per the rules, you must meld cards into groups of three or more and seven each (known as a “Canasta”).

*Learn more about melds and other common terms used in Rummy.

We would recommend melding as many “Canastas” as possible. Players or teams that manage to score five thousand points win the game, as per the Canasta card game rules.

Your points are calculated based on the cards (melds) you have in your hand in the following manner:

Type of Cards/Card Melds	Points carried
Black Number Three cards & Number Four to Number Seven cards	Five points
Number Eight to King cards	Ten points
Number Two cards and Ace cards	Twenty points
Joker cards	Fifty points
Red Number Three cards	Hundred points
Canasta with Wild cards (cards randomly assigned as Joker cards)	Three hundred points
Natural Canasta	Five hundred points

But how can you score all these points? Let’s take a look at that below.

Strategy 1: Master the Art of Melding

Melding is an essential skill in Canasta. That’s because it determines the number of points you score. You need to master this skill as there are different types of melds, as per Canasta card game rules, such as:

i) Natural

ii) Mixed

iii) Wild

iv) “Canasta”

Natural melds refer to groups of three or more cards with the same rank. Mixed melds refer to groups of three or more cards that belong to the same rank and include wild cards.

For example, a group of: 

i) three Number Two cards form a natural meld

ii) two Number Three cards and a Joker form a mixed meld

On the other hand, Wild melds refer to groups of seven cards belonging to the same rank, divided into three wild and four natural cards. Finally, “Canasta” melds refer to a group of seven natural cards and no wild cards.

For example, a group of:

i) four Number Five cards, two Jokers and one Number Two Wild card form a wild meld

ii) seven Number Six cards form a “Canasta”

Now, during your turn, we recommend choosing higher-value cards like Joker cards, Red Number Three and non-Joker Wild Cards to form melds, as per the rules of the Canasta card game.

*Note: If the deck of cards doesn’t have a Joker, then you can randomly assign another card to act as a Joker card, even if it has some other value or number printed on it.

That’s because they carry many points and will help you maximize your score. You should also aim to make as many natural “Canasta” combinations as possible. That way, you can score five hundred points per meld quickly.

You should be careful of melding cards without gathering high-value cards first. To do so, you must strategically draw or discard cards during each turn in the game.

Strategy 2: Control the Discard Pile

You should learn to keep an eye on the cards discarded by your opponent team or opponents during Canasta. That’s because you can utilize the discarded cards to meld cards into high-point carrying melds.

If you wish to use the cards from the discard pile, you’ll have to “unfreeze” it. As per the Canasta card game rules, you will need to make an initial meld to utilise the cards from the discard pile.

However, you can use the topmost card from the discarded pile to form a natural three-card meld.

So you need to be strategic about the moment you choose to “unfreeze” the discard pile.

Alternatively, you can “freeze”  the discard deck to prevent your opponents from using cards from that deck easily.

To do that, you must utilize Number Two and Joker cards as Wild Cards since they act as stoppers. In other words, if you add Joker or Number Two cards to the discard pile, the pile is said to have been “frozen”.

However, you must consider that if you do that, you or your partner might not be able to use these cards yourself without melding the top discard card into a three-card meld.

That’s why you need to discard your wild cards strategically to ensure that you can capitalise on the discard pile and score against your opponents.

Strategy 3: Manage Your Wild Cards Wisely

You should follow the rules of the Canasta card game to make melds with the help of your wild cards. You can use these cards to lengthen your existing melds or replace low-value cards. 

So you should be strategic with regard to the number of wild cards you use, as you can use a maximum of three cards. Additionally, the number of wild cards cannot be more than the number of natural cards. 

If you do not wish to replace any cards, you can extend your melds. 

For example, if you have a group of three Number Two cards, you can extend this by adding two Joker cards and one Number Two Wild card to form a Wild meld. However, since you will have used three Wild cards, you will be unable to use them in other melds. 

So, a more economical use of these cards would be: using one Joker card or one Number Two Wild Card to form a four-card mixed meld.

Strategy 4: Track Opponents’ Hands

Observing your opponent’s teams or opponents is something vital to all Rummy game variants. That’s because the cards they discard give you an insight into their playing patterns and the melds they might be forming. 

*Play Rummy on our website today!

Apart from that, if or when your opponents discard fewer cards, that will indicate that they are about to “go out” or lay out all their cards on the table and end their game.

So, in such instances, you should consider freezing the discard deck, using wild cards and extending your melds to offset your opponents’ confidence.

Strategy 5: Timing Your Final Move

As with all Rummy variants, timing is everything. In other words, you should wait to accumulate a strong hand before you make a move. 

Apart from that, we recommend coordinating with your partner to decide which cards to discard or wild cards to use and so on. This way, you can capitalize on your melds to form high scores and win the game. 

Final Word

So, to wrap things up, you should remember to do the following to win the Canasta card game:

i) Become good at melding 

ii) Tactfully manage the discard pile

iii) Use your wild cards smartly

iv) Study your opponent’s discards

v) Time your moves 

We recommend playing practice games on our website to become better at this game and defeat opponents. Remember not to give up easily, and keep adapting to your opponent’s gameplay to stay on top. 

We wish you all the best!