Shanghai Darts Rules: How to Play and Win Outright
Dart Meister
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Shanghai

Shanghai darts rules: how to play

Round one, you throw at the 1. Round two, the 2. And so on. Highest score at the end wins, unless somebody hits a single, a double and a triple of the same number in one turn, which ends the game on the spot.

It is the best game in darts for a group of mixed ability, which is the same reason bars default to Cricket. A beginner who gets lucky in round three genuinely can beat a good player, and everybody stays in it until the last dart.

Written and maintained by Timothy Moose, who builds Dart Meister. On the App Store since 2012. These are the commonly played rules, not sanctioned tournament rules; how we write these pages.

It spots a Shanghai for you

Dart Meister tracks the round number, the score and calls a Shanghai the instant it lands. Free for up to eight players.

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The rules, in order

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How Shanghai works, round by round

ROUND BY ROUND · SEVEN TARGETS · A SHANGHAI LANDS

The target moves up one number every round. Hit a single, a double and a triple of it in the same turn and the game ends there.

Strategy

There is less of it than in Cricket or 501, which is the point. What strategy there is, is about when to gamble.

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The unwritten rules

Shanghai is a social game, so most of the etiquette is about not slowing it down.

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Things worth knowing

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Common questions

What are the rules of Shanghai darts?

Round one you throw at the 1, round two at the 2, and so on. Only the round number scores, with singles, doubles and triples all counting. Highest total after the agreed number of rounds wins, unless someone hits a Shanghai.

What is a Shanghai in darts?

A single, a double and a triple of the round number, all in the same turn of three darts. It wins the game outright regardless of the score.

How many rounds is a game of Shanghai?

Seven is the standard short game, playing numbers 1 through 7. Twenty rounds is the full version. Agree it before the first dart.

Does anything score if you miss the round number?

No. Anything landing outside the round number scores nothing at all, however good the dart was.

Where these rules come from

Shanghai has no sanctioning body and no standard round count, so every room plays it slightly differently. Agree the rules before the first dart. For the games that do have official rules, the World Darts Federation and the American Darts Organization are where to look.

If your league does it differently, your league wins. Spotted something wrong? Tell us and we will fix it.

It spots the Shanghai before anyone else does

Pick a starting number, pick how many rounds, then throw. Single, double and triple in one turn and it calls the game there and then. No arguing about it after the fact.

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