How to Make UNO a Drinking Game: Drunk UNO Rules for Every Card

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UNO is already a game about making your friends suffer, so it takes very little to turn it into a drinking game. You play normal UNO, and every penalty in the game also comes with a sip. Here is how to make UNO a drinking game, with a drink rule for every card, the setup, optional house rules and how to keep it fun for everyone at the table.

UNO drinking game rules: the quick version

Play UNO by its normal rules. On top of the usual penalties, drink as follows:

What happens	Normal UNO rule	Drink
You can't play and draw a card	Draw one card	1 sip
You are hit by a Skip	Lose your turn	1 sip
You are hit by a Reverse	Direction changes	The player who would have gone next drinks 1 sip
You are hit by a Draw Two	Draw 2 cards, lose your turn	2 sips
A Wild card is played	Player picks the color	Everyone except the player drinks 1 sip
You are hit by a Wild Draw Four	Draw 4 cards, lose your turn	4 sips
You lose a Wild Draw Four challenge	Challenger draws 6, or the player draws 4	Whoever draws, drinks 1 sip per card drawn
You forget to say UNO and get caught	Draw 2 cards	2 sips
Someone wins the round	Round ends	Everyone else drinks 1 sip per card left in hand, up to 5

A "sip" means a small sip. With this many penalties, a full drink per card would end the night early.

How to set up drunk UNO

1. Choose a dealer and shuffle the deck.
2. Deal 7 cards to each player.
3. Put the rest of the deck face down in the middle as the draw pile.
4. Flip the top card to start the discard pile. Under the current Mattel rules, if it's an action card, ignore it and flip the next card.
5. Read the drink table out loud once and agree on any house rules before the first card is played.
6. The player to the dealer's left goes first, and play moves clockwise.

How to play UNO as a drinking game, step by step

1. Match the top card. On your turn, play one card that matches the top discard by color, number or symbol, or play a Wild.
2. Can't play? Draw and drink. If you can't play, draw one card and take a sip. If the card you drew can be played, you may play it straight away.
3. Action cards hit the next player. Skips, Reverses, Draw Twos and Wild Draw Fours make the next player drink, as in the table above.
4. Say UNO. When you're down to one card, say "UNO." If someone catches you before the next player starts their turn, draw 2 cards and drink 2 sips.
5. Win the round. The first player to play their last card wins. Everyone else counts their cards and drinks one sip per card, capped at five sips.
6. Deal again. Play three rounds for a short game or five for a full evening, and pass the deal to the left each round.

Card-by-card drink rules explained

Skip

In normal UNO, the next player loses their turn. In drunk UNO, they also drink one sip.

Reverse

The direction of play changes. The player who was about to take their turn drinks one sip. With two players, a Reverse acts like a Skip.

Draw Two

The next player draws two cards, loses their turn and drinks two sips. The official rules don't allow stacking Draw Twos, but many groups do; see the house rules below.

Wild

The player who plays a Wild picks the next color, and everyone else drinks one sip. It's the only card that makes the whole table drink.

Wild Draw Four and the challenge

Under the official rules, you can only play a Wild Draw Four if you have no card matching the color on the discard pile. The next player can accept it (draw 4, lose their turn, drink 4) or challenge you. If you played it legally, the challenger draws 6 and drinks 6. If you played it illegally, you draw 4 and drink 4 instead. Challenging is a real gamble, which is what makes it fun after a couple of rounds.

Wild Shuffle Hands and customizable Wilds

Current UNO decks include one Wild Shuffle Hands card, which gathers every hand, shuffles them and deals them back out, plus three blank Wilds you can write rules on in pencil. In drunk UNO, the Shuffle Hands card is a good "everyone drinks" moment, and the blank cards are perfect for your own drink rules, such as "Waterfall" or "Pick a drinking buddy for the rest of the round."

House rules for a wilder game

Pick one or two of these, announce them before the first deal and stick to them for the whole game.

• Stacking: if you're hit with a Draw Two, you may play your own Draw Two to pass it on. The next player draws the total and drinks the total, so cap it at 6 sips.
• Color of your drink: each player claims a color at the start. Whenever play switches to your color, take a sip.
• Same number, same drink: if you play the same number on the same number (a red 7 on a blue 7), everyone else drinks one sip.
• Drinking buddy: the round winner picks a buddy who drinks every time the winner does in the next round.
• 7-0 rule: play a 7 and swap hands with any player; play a 0 and everyone passes their hand in the direction of play. It's a common house rule, and part of the official rules in UNO Show ’em No Mercy.

Playing drunk UNO safely

• Use sips, not shots, and cap end-of-round penalties at five sips.
• Anyone can play with a non-alcoholic drink; the game works the same.
• Keep water on the table and snacks within reach.
• Stop after a set number of rounds rather than playing until someone runs out of drink.
• Only play with adults of legal drinking age, and arrange rides home before the first deal.

Drunk UNO vs other drinking card games

Drunk UNO is easier to learn than most drinking card games, because almost everyone already knows how to play UNO. If your group prefers a standard deck, try Kings or Circle of Death. For a version of UNO built around challenges instead of drinks, see our UNO Dare rules, and for the base game, our complete UNO rules.

UNO drinking game FAQ

How do you make UNO a drinking game?

Play UNO normally and add a sip to every penalty: one sip when you draw, one when you're skipped, two for a Draw Two, four for a Wild Draw Four, and one per card left in your hand when someone wins.

How many people can play drunk UNO?

Two to ten, the same as regular UNO. Four to six is the most fun, because the drinks go around the table quickly.

Can you stack Draw Twos in drunk UNO?

Not under the official rules, but many groups allow it as a house rule. If you do, cap the total so one unlucky player doesn't drink eight sips at once.

Can you play the UNO drinking game without alcohol?

Yes. Use soda, juice or sparkling water, or swap sips for small dares. The penalties and the strategy stay the same.