The best mahjong variant to learn is the one your friends play, since rules do not carry over cleanly. In the United States, social groups usually play American mahjong. Many families with Chinese heritage play Hong Kong or another regional style. If you are learning online or for strategy, many people choose Riichi. All three are worth your time.
Choose by your situation
| Your situation | Good first choice |
|---|---|
| Invited to a US mahj night | American |
| Learning with family, or you inherited a set | Hong Kong, or ask the family which style they know |
| You found mahjong through anime or video games | Riichi |
| You want a deep strategy game to play online | Riichi |
| You want the quickest route to a full game | Hong Kong |
| You want a calm game alone, with no rules to study | Mahjong Solitaire |
American mahjong
American mahjong has 152 tiles. Each year, you buy a card of winning hands from the National Mah Jongg League, and every hand you build must match it. Before play, you pass tiles to other players in the Charleston. Jokers add flexibility, and you can make sets of five or six.
What you might like: a strong social scene, a fresh set of hands every year, and a clear target once you pick a hand.
What might be hard: the card takes time to read, and the rules around jokers and exposures take some practice.
Hong Kong mahjong
Hong Kong mahjong has 144 tiles. You build four sets and a pair, and draw a replacement when a flower or season appears. Scoring uses faan, usually with a minimum to win. Rules vary by family and region, so expect house rules.
What you might like: quick games, simple rules, and a very lively pace.
What might be hard: the rules are not fully standard, so you may need to adjust to each table.
Riichi mahjong
Riichi is the main Japanese style. It has 136 tiles, and several rule sets use red fives as bonus tiles. A hand must contain at least one scoring pattern, called a yaku. You can declare riichi when your closed hand is one tile from winning. Rules like furiten reward careful attention.
What you might like: deep strategy, active online play, and clear published rule sets.
What might be hard: there are many patterns to learn, and scoring takes time.
Other styles
Mahjong has many regional forms. These are worth knowing about, even though this site does not yet teach them in depth:
- Mainland Chinese Official is a competition style with a long list of scoring patterns.
- Taiwanese mahjong uses longer hands of 16 tiles.
- Sichuan mahjong is fast and uses a smaller set without honors.
- Singaporean and Malaysian styles add extra tiles, including animal tiles.
If you meet one of these, ask a local group to teach you. The tile knowledge you build here will still help.
Does it matter if I learn the wrong one?
Not much. Tile names, sets, and the rhythm of draw and discard carry over. You would need to relearn what counts as a win and how scoring works, and you would need to unlearn some habits. Many people play more than one style.
Common mistakes when choosing
- Learning online first, then joining a group that plays differently. Ask before you start.
- Thinking Solitaire is practice for four-player mahjong. It helps you learn tile faces, and that is about all.
- Trying to learn two styles at once. Finish your first few games in one style before you add another.