Spades vs Hearts: A Detailed Comparison for Card Game Enthusiasts

If you're currently looking for a trick-taking card game to play online or with friends, Hearts, and Spades are both very likely contenders.

At a glance, they can seem like the same game, only with different suits. In truth, there are a lot of similarities. So, once you understand one, learning the other is very simple. Nevertheless, there are noticeable differences between the two games. This quick guide will explain all.

The Basics of Hearts

Hearts is a trick-taking game that is played with a single deck of 52 cards and usually consists of four players. At the beginning of each hand, each player is dealt 13 cards.

Each hand consists of 13 tricks in which each player plays one card. If a player can play a card that is the same suit as the lead card, they must do this. If they cannot do this, they can play any of their cards from the other suits. Cards are ranked from Ace to 2 while a hand is played as follows:

• The player with the 2 of Clubs leads the first trick.
• Then going clockwise, players 2-4 must play a card.
• The player who lays the highest card in the lead suit (so clubs for trick one) takes the four cards from the trick.
• This same player then leads the next trick.
• At the end of the 13 tricks, the 52 cards will be spread out between the four players and can be turned over.

A player scores one point for each heart card that they hold at the end of the hand. The player holding the Queen of Spades receives 13 points, making a total of 26 points per hand.

Before starting, players must agree on a target score. Once one player surpasses it, the game is over. The winner is the person who has the lowest score at this time, meaning the objective is to avoid collecting the scoring cards.

How to Win at Hearts

Whether playing with a standard deck or a themed deck like Valentine's Hearts, the aim of the game is to avoid scoring points. However, it's not just about pushing one opponent towards the milestone score that you're playing to. You also need to ensure that your score remains below all other players.

So, to win at Hearts, you will want to;

• Focus on trying to get the person with the current highest score over the target score if you are currently the lowest-scoring player.
• Put some attention on trying to make the current lowest scorer pick up scoring cards until their score becomes higher than yours.
• Prioritize avoiding the Queen of Spades as the 13 points can shift the momentum greatly.

In addition to understanding the general rules of Hearts, it's important to know about Shooting the Moon. This is a term that means a player has collected all of the scoring cards (Ace to 2 of Hearts, plus the Queen of Spades). In this instance, the player that does this scores 0 points for the hand while all other players gain 26 points.

While it doesn't happen very often, it will transform the outcome of a game. As well as potentially trying to Shoot the Moon yourself, it's important to block other players from doing it. If they get close, it may be worth purposely taking a single scoring trick. After all, if you only take the final point, the failed shooter still receives 25.

Differences Between Spades and Hearts

Now that you have a better understanding of Hearts, it shouldn't take too long to understand Spades. Before comparing the differences, it is worth revisiting the similarities. Both games will;

• Use a standard deck of 52 cards.
• Include 4 players, although variants are available.
• Rank cards from Aces high down to 2s.

However, there are significant differences in play and scoring. The key issues are as follows:

Aim of the Game

In Hearts, the aim is to avoid points. In Spades, however, you want to score points, meaning the aim is to win tricks rather than lose them.

Teams

While both games are played with four players, Spades is often played in pairs, although solo options are available.

Trumps

There are no trumps in Hearts, so the trick is taken by whoever plays the highest lead card. For Spades, spades cards are considered trumps, thus overpowering the lead suit.

The Queen of Spades

In Spades, the Queen of Spades is a standard trumps card. There is no 13-point score for receiving it.

Scoring & Bidding

However, the main difference comes via scoring. In Hearts, points are scored when you receive a scoring card (hearts or the Queen of Spades), meaning some tricks are worth 0 points whereas others could be worth 1, 2, 3, 4, or even 13+.

Spades works a little differently. Each trick is worth 1 point. So, each hand has 13 points. But the actual scoring is subsequently attached to a bidding process that occurs before each hand.

After dealing the cards, each player will place a bid by predicting how many tricks they will win during the hand. So, each bid will be between 0 and 13. The final score is determined as follows;

• If a player reaches their bid, they receive 10 points for each trick. So if the bid was for 4 tricks, for example, they'll get 40 points.
• If a player fails to reach the bid, they lose 10 points for each trick that they fall short. If they bid for 8 and only get 2, for example, their hand score is -60.

Players also collect bags by surpassing the bid. So, if they bid for 5 tricks but score 7, they'll earn 2 bags. However, if a player collects 10 bags over the course of a game, they lose 100 points.

There are also additional scores for bids of 0 (nil bids) or double nil bids. You can learn more here.

Playing Hearts Like a Pro

As you can see, Spades and Hearts share some of the same mechanics, not least when dealing with individual tricks and hands. However, the scoring systems and aims of the game are vastly different, which will heavily influence your strategies.

To play Hearts like a pro, you should focus on the following six steps;

• Keep an eye on the scores of all three opponents at all times.
• Try to keep at least one low spade, so that you can avoid the Queen of Spades.
• Lead with the lowest-scoring cards you have.
• Play higher-ranked cards when the trick is a non-scoring trick.
• Be aware of other players trying to Shoot the Moon.
• Play regularly against AI opponents and take your time to develop your tactics.

Finally, while playing other card games and strategy games can help you develop the right mindset, we'd suggest avoiding Spades until you are comfortable with Hearts. It will help you avoid confusion. Besides, you'll learn Spades very quickly when the time is right.

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