Old Maid is a card game that measures the skill of memorization, recognition, and pairing. The game is suitable for kids 4 years and above, and all family members can play together.
Old Maid can be played using a special deck of colorful cards designed specifically for the game, but the game can also be played with regular cards. Whether a specialized deck or regular deck of cards are used, the gameplay rules remain the same.
How do you play Old Maid with regular cards? When playing the card game Old Maid with regular cards, create the unpaired card by removing three Queens and leaving only one Queen or use a single Joker to become the Old Maid.
As per the rules to play Old Maid, the objective is to discard pairs to avoid getting stuck with the Old Maid. A player can only discard a pair of cards of the same number, include the same color as well to make the game a bit more challenging.
Old maid is a card game that does not require special cards, and can be played with regular cards. Answered below are frequently asked questions about playing Old Maid with a deck of playing cards.
How do you play Old Maid with a regular set of cards?
Assemble a deck of 52 regular cards, but two decks of cards can be used when 5 or more players are involved. Either remove three Queens from the deck to create the Odd card or add a Joker to become the Old Maid.
How many cards do you deal with Old Maid? The number of cards each player is dealt depends on the number of people playing the game. All the cards are dealt out, therefore some players may get an extra card compared to others if the cards don’t complete the round.
Gameplay
The dealer offers their hand to the player on the left to pick one card from the dealer’s hand and add it to their hand.
If the card makes a pair with one of the cards at hand, the player has to discard the pair before passing the play to the next player. Once their turn is over, they offer their hand to the player on their left side, who then repeat the same procedure.
A player should discard only pairs of the same rank, the color can be a factor if wanting to advance the level of gameplay.
Proceed in a clockwise direction until one player is left with a card that is not discardable. The player who remains with the Old Maid card becomes the loser, and all other players are the winner.
Rules for Old Maid with regular cards
- A regular deck of 52 cards is used, but two-deck can be used when 5 or more players are involved.
- Players should add a single Joker or remove three queens to create an Old Maid card that becomes the unpaired card throughout the game.
- Deal the cards in a circle face down. Each player is dealt one card as the dealer goes around until all the cards are dealt.
- Cards are matched with rank, color can be a factor for advanced levels.
- A player has to offer their hand to the player to the left, and not just pick from anyone, who has to choose one card from the hand.
- Cards can only be discarded in pairs.
- The game follows the clockwise direction until everyone runs out of cards and one player is left with the odd card, that player is the loser.

Old Maid With Regular Cards: Conclusion
Old Maid is a classic card game that provides hours of entertainment. Thought it is commonly played with a specialized deck of picture cards, it can be easy played with regular cards as well.
The biggest enemy in the Old Maid game is the odd card itself. Anytime one has the card, they should try to get rid of it.
Sometimes, players decide to reverse the rules and make the player with the Old Maid card the winner instead of being a loser. In this case, the card could be essential.