15 Best 2 Player Card Games To Play Together

We wanted to make sure you had all the best 2 player card games at your fingertips. Check out the variety of difficulty levels we found!

Easy Card Games for Two – These are 2 player card games that ANYONE can play, even kids!
Popular 2 Player Card Games – You might need some previous card playing skills for these 2 player card games. But with instructions and a little quality time with your sweetie, you’ll be a pro in no time!
Fun 2 player Card Games for Two – Got a little time on your hands? These fun 2 player card games will be your favorites.
Adult Card Games – These two-player card games are for adult eyes only!
Even More, Two-Player Card Games – These are not the most well-known card games, but they are SO fun. You may need to read and possibly re-read the directions before playing though. But figuring out a new card game is half the fun, right?

Ready to dive in?! We sure are! And remember, to help you with your game-playing experience, just click on the name of the game for instructions on how to play each one!

EASY 2 PLAYER CARD GAMES

Slapjack – Slapjack, also known as Slaps, is a simple standard-deck card game, generally played among children. It can often be a child’s first introduction to playing cards. The game is also sometimes known as Heart Attack.
War – War is typically played by 2 people, because of its simplicity, children play it often. Playing to see which component has the highest card to win the “war” is as easy as it gets!
52 Card Pickup – This is a children’s card game, using a standard deck of 52 playing cards, that is usually played as a practical joke by having them clean up all the cards out of the deck.
Crazy Eights – is a shedding-type card game for two to seven players. The object of the game is to be the first to get rid of all the player’s cards in a discard pile by matching the number or suit to the current card in the discard pile. Super fun for kids too!
Spoons – Don’t be left without a spoon! Arrange the spoons in a small circle in the center of the table and deal four cards to each player. Each player tries to make four of a kind.
Go Fish – Go Fish (or simply fish) is a simple card game. It is usually played by two to five players and can amuse the smallest of children! Or, grab this child-friendly version.
GOLF {4 cards} – A fun card game for 2-6 players where you try to get your best (lowest) golf score over the course of nine deals. Testing your memory skills while playing with all cards face down!

POPULAR 2 PLAYER CARD GAMES

Alright, did we whet your appetite for more? Let’s move on to these popular 2 player card games. They got their fame for nothing! They’re fast, fun, and full of strategy! And if you’re really ready to up your card game, why not try playing cards for date night? Try out this super fun card game date night we created! Or, spice things up with this sexy couples card game!

8 Card GOLF – A card game for 2-6 players with 8 cards in play where you try to get your best (lowest) golf score over the course of nine deals.
9 Card GOLF – A fun card game for 2-6 players where you try to get your best (lowest) golf score over the course of nine deals with 9 cards in play.
6 Card GOLF – A fun card game for 2-6 players where you try to get your best (lowest) golf score over the course of nine deals while playing with 6 cards.
Egyptian Ratscrew is – Extremely fast-paced game for 2 or more players! An object is to take as many cards as possible for the win!
Spit – This wild and crazy game is all about speed and quickness. It helps develop counting and sequencing skills too. How fast are you?
Gin Rummy – This card game is a two-handed form of the card game rummy in which players are dealt ten cards each and attempt to produce a hand in which the point value of unmatched cards adds up to ten or less.
Double Solitaire – A fun game you usually play by yourself. BUT double up and add a fun twist! The object of the game is to use up all your cards by re-ordering the deck by suit and rank through a series of moves. {Also commonly known as Patience… since it CAN take a lot of time.} The perfect way to kill time!
Spider Solitaire – Most commonly known as a single-player game, but can have a difficulty level that can stump two! See if you can win together and get all the cards put back in their deck!
Speed – Very similar to and sometimes known as Spit, test your skills to see who is the fastest when putting your cards in sequencing orders!
Black Jack – With the exception of poker this game is the most popular out there. Can be played with many players but works great with 2. Try your hand at 21!

FUN 2 PLAYER CARD GAMES

You haven’t lived until you’ve tried these games! These fun 2 player card games are what we like to call “oldies but goodies”. They’re classics! When it comes to card games for you two players, these are by FAR the most fun!

Canasta – Using a combination of 3 card decks you want to meld cards and SCORE points to be the winner!
Hand & Foot – Hand and foot is a card game played between 2 and 6 players, keep in mind each of you needs one deck per player to play this game. Get rid of the cards in your hand and your foot (second hand) to win this fun game!
Santa/66/Schnapsen -This exciting game is a two-player trick-taking game! Played with a reduced deck to hit a certain number of points! Will the winner be you?
Cribbage or Crib – Played with 2-6 people (not 5) and it may seem intimidating at first, but the basic game is very easy to learn. If you have a cribbage board (or pen and paper) and a deck of cards, you’re ready!
5 Card Cribbage – A similar version to regular played 6 card cribbage if you want a little twist on the normal game!
Pinochle – Known as an old-person game (but totally fun with the right crowd!) this game is all about strategy and smarts! For 2-4 players and can last all night if you get addicted like me!

ADULT 2 PLAYER CARD GAMES

Alright, ladies and gents, it’s time to put the kiddos to bed. These adult card games are for YOUR EYES ONLY! And let’s be real, if you’re looking for 2 player card games, what’s more fun than a card game that spices things up?! Obviously, you won’t be busting any of these games out at your next dinner party, but make no mistake, you will want to SAVE THESE IDEAS FOR LATER! Do you catch my drift?

Strip Poker – Adding a twist to the fun card game of Poker above can lead to some entertainment for the night! Our own super cute version of Strip Poker, complete with inviting, cheat sheets, and poker chips!
Marriage – Matching game played with 3 decks of cards. Using the Kings and Queens (marriages) you collect lots of points to win!
Hola – This game is super fun and easy once you have read and played through it once or twice. Best played with 4 players!
Sexy Cards Trail – Four easy card games turned into sexy adult card games. Yes! You read that right. If you love playing cards then you’ll definitely want to make this for your spouse. Set it up to find when they come home!
BUILD A CARD TOWER!!! And HERE is a how-to! Building one IS HARDER THAN YOU THINK! This would be such a fun date night challenge.

MORE QUICK, EASY & POPULAR 2 PLAYER CARD GAMES

Old Maid

Old Maid is a classic card game to play with two people. The aim of the game is to be the player that doesn’t end up with the Old Maid (the one queen in the deck of cards without a pair). You can play the game either with an Old Maid deck or a standard 52-card deck, but you’ll need to remove one queen from the deck before you start playing. There’s also an online version available to download on the App Store or Google Play. Check out the full set of rules here.

Bingo

Inspired by the classic game of the same name, bingo is all about being the first player to turn all your cards face down. In this card game for two players, you’ll need to use two standard decks of 52 cards. One player must be the “caller” who will say the card values out loud, which the players will need to match in order to complete their “bingo” hand.

Whist

Introduction of Whist

This is a two-player version of Scandinavian Whist, also recognized as Norwegian Whist. We should state it differs quite a lot from the most popular 2 player card game called German Whist. What makes it unique is the rule that each player plays 2 cards to each trick.

Game Cards

A standard 52-card pack is needed. The cards are ranked from high to low A-K-Q-J-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2.

Dealing in the game

Turn to deal alternates. The dealer shuffles, and the non-dealer cuts. 26 cards are dealt to each player, one at a time starting with the dealer’s opponent and alternating. In the beginning, each player is dealt 8 cards face down on the table in a 4×2 rectangle, after another 8 cards face up on top of the face-down ones, then a hand of 10 cards follows. This means that each player has 10 cards that only they can see (in the hand), there are 16 cards down that can’t be seen by any of the players and then 16 more face-up cards that can see by both players.

Whist Bidding

To start with – the non-dealer bids “high” or “low”. If high, it’s then called a high game and the dealer has no say. However if low, the dealer should bid “high” or “low”. If the dealer defines it as high, it’s a high game. If both say low, it’s a low game. In a high game the goal is winning tricks, and in a low game the contrary- avoiding winning tricks.

Gameplay

When the game is low- the non-dealer leads to the first trick. In the case of a high game, the first lead is by the player who did not bid high. Therefore the only case where the dealer leads first is when the non-dealer bids high. Each trick includes 4 cards, 2 from each player. At your turn, you can play a card from your hand or one of the cards in your face-up layout. Right after a card from the layout is played, if this uncovers a face-down card, the latter is immediately turned face-up, before any other cards are played by either player. Any card can be led. The rest of the 3 cards played should possibly follow the suit. So if the leader’s opponent has any cards of the same suit as the led card, either in hand or face-up on the table, he is obliged to play the card. Then the leader is obliged to play a second card, also following suit to the card led if possible, and in the end, the opponent plays a second card, also possibly following suit to the original lead. The four-card trick is won by the highest card of the suit led and the player who wins the trick leads to the next.