How to Play American Mahjong – A Complete Guide

How different is American Mahjong from Chinese Mahjong?

At first glance, American Mahjong might look completely unfamiliar to my Chinese parents. With candy-pink and pastel tiles, or sometimes nautical-themed designs, and accessories like bold table mats, acrylic racks, travel bags, and matching cases—it’s a full-on fashion statement: I’m a modern woman, and I play Mahjong! It’s certainly a visual makeover from the traditional, heritage-style Chinese sets.

But the real difference lies in how it’s played. Of all the global variants, American Mahjong is probably the furthest from its Chinese roots. Since Mahjong first arrived in the U.S. in the 1920s, American players gradually developed their own version of the game, refining the rules to create something unique.

Here are our small summaries of differences:

• Tiles:
  American Mahjong uses the largest tile set of all Mahjong styles — 152 tiles in total. In addition to the standard suits and honor tiles, there are 8 flower tiles and 8 joker tiles. Unlike Chinese Mahjong’s bonus tiles (like flowers, seasons) or Japanese Riichi’s red dora tiles, American Mahjong doesn’t rely on special bonus tiles for extra points. Instead, jokers play a central role as wildcards.

• Sets or Melds:
  American Mahjong rarely uses sequences (chows), which are common in Chinese and Japanese styles. Instead, the focus is on multiples — hands built with pairs, pungs (three of a kind), kongs (four of a kind), quints, and even sextets (five or six of a kind). While there are only four of each tile in a standard suit, jokers allow players to build beyond that — acting as wildcards that can represent any tile in a set (though not in pairs).

• Tile exchange rule:
  A unique and playful feature of American Mahjong is the Charleston — a tile exchange ritual that happens at the start of each game. Players pass tiles to one another in a structured rotation, often with optional passes added. We think it adds a fun, social energy to the game, and it may have even inspired similar British practices like “Goulash” hands.

• Winning hands:
  One of the biggest differences lies in how players win. Since 1937, the National Mah Jongg League (NMJL) has published an official card each year, listing all valid winning hands. To win, players must match one of these hands exactly. This changes the game from open-ended strategy (as in Chinese Mahjong) to a more rule-bound, memory-driven puzzle. However, one big advantage of American Mahjong is that each winning hand has a fixed score, which removes the need for point calculations and settling among players — a common hassle in Chinese or Japanese Mahjong. That said, it’s worth noting there are now several great apps that make scoring much easier for other styles too, taking the pain out of point tracking and helping games run more smoothly.

How to Play American Mahjong guide

At first glance, American Mahjong shares its roots with traditional Chinese Mahjong — familiar suits, tiles, and gameplay flow. But once you dig in, it quickly reveals a character all its own: faster-paced, card-driven, and infused with a uniquely American flair. Governed by the National Mah Jongg League (NMJL) since 1937, American Mahjong has evolved into a distinct game with unique strategy, rules, and rituals.

Suits and Tiles:
American Mahjong retains the classic three suits:

• Dots (Circles)
• Bamboo (Bams)
• Characters (Craks)

Each suit runs from 1 to 9, and the familiar Honor Tiles (East, South, West, North, and the three Dragons: Red, Green, White) remain in the game. However, American Mahjong adds flower tiles (usually 8 in a set) and — more significantly — 8 Joker tiles, a feature not found in most other variants, that makes the total tiles to 152. Jokers serve as wild cards and play a major role in forming difficult hands.

Hand structure and Melds:
American Mahjong does not follow the traditional “four sets and a pair” format. Instead, players must build one of the specific hands listed on the annual NMJL card, published each spring. These hands can include:

• Pairs (2 identical tiles)
• Pungs (3 of a kind)
• Kongs (4 of a kind)
• Quints (5 of a kind)
• Sextets (6 of a kind)
• Certain consecutive runs and number patterns

Many hands require Jokers to complete, as it would otherwise be impossible to collect, for example, five identical tiles when only four exist in the set.

Because the valid winning hands change every year, players must memorize or refer to the current NMJL card throughout the game — a central and defining feature of American Mahjong.

The Exciting Charleston:
One of the most unique aspects of American Mahjong is the Charleston, a tile-passing ritual performed before the game begins. Over several rounds, players exchange unwanted tiles with their neighbors, introducing early strategy and social interaction before any tile is even drawn. This exchange sets American Mahjong apart, adding unpredictability and a touch of diplomacy to the start of every game.

Game Setup and Play:
The setup will feel familiar to anyone who has played other Mahjong variants: players sit at the cardinal positions (East, South, West, North), build walls of tiles, and take turns drawing and discarding. However, there are no chows (sequences), and players can only claim discards to complete exposed sets listed in the current NMJL card — unless going for a closed hand, in which case certain rules apply. Play continues until a player matches one of the official winning hands and declares “Mahjong.”

Key Differences: Scoring System and strategy

In American Mahjong, scoring is simple: each hand has a fixed point value printed on the card. There’s no need to calculate fu or han, as in Japanese Riichi, or tally complicated fan systems like in Chinese Mahjong. This makes it easy to compare hands and settle scores, especially in casual or social play.

However, the challenge lies elsewhere — in memorizing the current year’s hand patterns, adapting your tile selection early on, and managing risk as you build toward a specific combination. The presence of Jokers adds flexibility but also invites careful tracking: once a Joker is exposed, others will take note.

Special Characteristics and Style:
American Mahjong leans toward pattern recognition, memory, and flexible thinking, often feeling more like a tile-based puzzle game than a free-form strategy game. Because all valid hands are pre-defined, it’s less about building your own creative melds and more about quickly identifying the most achievable pattern from the card.Hands like “2025 in 1s and 5s,” “Consecutive Run,” or “13579 Odd Number” patterns change year by year, keeping even veteran players on their toes.

In Essence

American Mahjong is a modern twist on an ancient game — reshaped by American innovation and social culture. While it shares the visual DNA of Chinese Mahjong, its emphasis on pre-set hands, wildcard strategy, and ritualized tile exchanges gives it a character all its own. It’s less about complexity in scoring, and more about knowing your card, playing your hand, and enjoying the lively, often competitive spirit of the table.

Where to play American Mahjong in London

We first learned to play Mahjong ourselves not long ago, and quickly noticed how hard it is to find commercial or private groups in London for American Mahjong. A few players have reached out to us — mostly Americans who learned the game back home and now live in London — and they’ve shared how tough it’s been to organise regular games here. Most players in the UK play Chinese Mahjong (Hong Kong or British variants) or Japanese Riichi.

We had a great afternoon trying American Mahjong — it wasn’t difficult for us to learn and adapt. But we have to say: it’s quite different from the other styles. The annual scoring card updates add an extra layer of commitment that can make it harder to build a regular group around.

As much as we’d love to support all Mahjong styles, we’re currently looking to offer regular American Mahjong workshops on our Saturdays. However, most of the demand for American Mahjong comes from private hire requests. So we’re happy to offer private lessons in American Mahjong for you either at your home or at our Aldgate center. We will keep an eye on how it goes, perhaps we would offer the all 3 styles of Mahjong (Chinese, Japanese, American) at our Just Play sessions soon, so you and your friends can come to use to play American Mahjong regularly.

On a side note, if you already know how to play the American style, we encourage you to try Chinese Mahjong too. While the fundamentals are different, our Newbie Workshops will get you started, and once you’re in, our growing community ensures you’ll always find a welcoming seat at the table for a relaxed Saturday afternoon game in London.