Skip-Bo card games, where fun is in order from 1 to 12

We're Skip-Bo, the sequencing card game from the makers of UNO. Empty your stockpile before anyone else, build the center piles in order, and keep a wild SKIP-BO card ready for the moment the whole table gets stuck on a 7.

Skip-Bo Classic Card Game · $17.99 · 4.8 (40,625 ratings)

Skip-Bo Deluxe Card Game Tin

We ask the table for one thing: order

Every game of Skip-Bo starts the same way. Each player gets a face-down stockpile, five cards in hand, and an empty middle where up to four build piles will grow. A pile only opens with a 1. It only climbs one number at a time. It closes at 12, and then it shuffles back into the draw deck so the game never runs dry.

That one rule — play in order — is why our card game works for a seven-year-old and a seventy-year-old at the same table. Little players practice counting. Older players learn to hold back the 9 their neighbor needs. Everyone watches the wild SKIP-BO cards, because one of those can jump any gap.

We keep the deck simple on purpose: numbers you can read without relying on color, 162 cards in the classic box, and rules short enough to teach in the time it takes to shuffle.

Read the full rules

Pick your deck

Thirteen ways to bring Skip-Bo home — from the classic deck and Deluxe tin to Junior, Mod, Express and the family game night sets we share with UNO, DOS and Phase 10.

Classic decks 3Junior, Mod & Express 3Game night bundles 7

Game night bundles, already shuffled together

Most families who play Skip-Bo also own an UNO deck somewhere in the house. Our bundles put those favorites in one order: the 3-game tin with UNO, DOS and Skip-Bo, the Phase 10 pairing for long tournament nights, and combo packs for families who want a spare deck for the second table.

They make easy gifts for birthdays, teacher thank-yous and Christmas mornings, and they settle the age-old debate of which card game to play first. Answer: all of them, in order.

See the bundles
UNO, Skip-Bo & DOS 3-Game Tin
Skip-Bo cards fanned from 5 to 12 — Fun is in order!

How a hand of Skip-Bo goes

  1. 111

    Deal the stockpiles

    30 cards each for two to four players, 20 each for five or six. Flip the top card face up.

  2. 222

    Draw to five

    Start every turn by refilling your hand to five cards from the draw pile.

  3. SBSKIP
    BO

    Build in order

    Play 1, then 2, then 3 onto the center piles. A wild SKIP-BO card can be any number.

  4. 444

    Discard to end

    Lay one card on one of your four discard piles. Next player's turn.

Setup, wild cards and scoring to 500 →

Straight from family tables

4.8 out of 5 from 40,625 ratings on the classic deck

Whole family will enjoy - easy to learn
This card game is a great pick for family game nights with all ages involved. Rules are simple enough for kids to pick up quickly but still fun for adults. Cards feel durable and have held up well through repeated shuffling and play. Games move at a good pace without dragging on too long. A classic that never gets old no matter how many times we play.
Jack · September 17, 2026 · Skip-Bo Classic Card Game
Fun game for kids
Fun game and easy for younger kids. I got this for my son when he was 5.
kylie · June 10, 2026 · Skip-Bo Junior Card Game
So much fun!
We have played this so many times! It is a great family game to sit down and play. We have easily gotten our money's value from this game with how much replay value you get from this game. Its a fairly short game that you can play several matches in an evening. Another bonus is that it is super easy to learn so anyone can play.
SMG · October 10, 2026 · Skip-Bo Deluxe Card Game Tin
Easy to store
We needed some card games to play with granddaughters. This set of 3 games was just the right one for us. Love that all three fit in ONE tin! Easy to store.
Susan Signor · September 27, 2026 · UNO, Skip-Bo & DOS 3-Game Tin
Game is great and cute tin is useful.
Started playing this game and now addicted to it. The tin keeps everything together neatly and in one place. On our second deck of cards but of course use the tin.
FL Sue · September 29, 2026 · Skip-Bo Card Game in Storage Tin
So Much Family Fun
This is such a fun game to pull out on the weekends when the family rolls around for game night. It’s easy enough for everyone to enjoy, but just competitive enough to produce a little friendly frustration when somebody plays exactly the card you were waiting for. LOL! Phase 10 and Skip-Bo together give us plenty of variety and plenty of opportunities for a little good-natured family rivalry. Lots of laughs, a few dramatic sighs, and always requests for “just one more game!”
Seblin · October 9, 2026 · Phase 10 + Skip-Bo Card Game Pack

Skip-Bo, the family card game built on sequence

Why families keep a Skip-Bo deck in the drawer

Good family card games share a few traits: they are easy to learn, they play in under an hour, and they stay fun for the youngest and the oldest player at the table. Skip-Bo checks every box. The rules fit on one sheet, a round lasts twenty to forty minutes, and the only skill you need to start is counting to 12.

Unlike games that lean on luck alone, our game rewards a little planning. You decide when to play from your hand, when to dig into your discard piles, and when to hold a card back so the next player cannot use it. That mix of chance and choice is why Skip-Bo has stayed on family game night lists for decades.

Skip-Bo versus UNO and Phase 10

We come from the same Mattel game family as UNO and Phase 10, and the three play very differently. UNO is about matching colors and numbers and dumping your hand fast. Phase 10 is a rummy-style card game with ten phases to complete. Skip-Bo is a sequencing race: every card has to land in the right order, and your real goal is the stockpile, not the hand.

If your group loves UNO, Skip-Bo is a natural next card game — a bit calmer, a bit more strategic, and just as easy to set up. Our game night bundles pair them so you can play both in one evening.

Choosing the right Skip-Bo set

Start with the classic deck if you simply want to play. Pick the storage tin if the cards travel. Choose the Deluxe tin if your family keeps score to 500 and needs the scorepad and pencil. Skip-Bo Junior suits ages 5 and up with numbers that stop at 10, while Mod and Express are fast variations for players who already know the classic rules.

For gifts, the 3-game tin with UNO and DOS or the combo packs give a whole collection of card games in one box — a little set that covers every age around the board-game shelf.

Questions we hear at the table

How do you play the card game Skip-Bo?

Each player gets a stockpile and five cards in hand. Play cards in ascending order from 1 to 12 onto up to four shared build piles, using your stockpile, hand and discard piles. End each turn by discarding one card. The first player to empty their stockpile wins the hand.

Is Skip-Bo like UNO?

We share a maker and a love of quick turns, but the goals differ. UNO is about matching color or number to empty your hand. Skip-Bo is about building piles in numerical order to empty your stockpile, which makes it more of a planning game.

Why is it called Skip-Bo?

Our name points to the wild SKIP-BO cards in the deck — the cards that let you skip past a missing number. The game itself grew out of the traditional card game Spite and Malice.

Can you play Skip-Bo with regular playing cards?

Yes, with a workaround. Two standard 52-card decks can stand in: aces are 1, jacks 11, queens 12 and kings act as wild cards. Our full guide covers the conversion step by step.

How many cards are in a Skip-Bo deck?

The classic Skip-Bo deck has 162 cards: twelve sets of cards numbered 1 to 12 and 18 wild SKIP-BO cards.

What ages is Skip-Bo for?

The classic game is recommended for ages 7 and up with 2 to 6 players. Skip-Bo Junior is designed for ages 5 and up with 2 to 4 players.