The best hand in cribbage
The best possible cribbage hand is 29 points: three fives and the jack of one suit in hand, with the fourth five turned as the starter in that same suit. It pays eight fifteens for 16, six pairs for 12 and his nobs for the jack, and it comes up about once in 216,580 hands. No hand can score 30, and the totals 19, 25, 26 and 27 cannot be made at all.
How 29 is made
Hold 5♠ 5♥ 5♦ and J♣, and cut the 5♣. Every five pairs with every other five, and the jack matches the starter suit. Nothing else in the deck combines that densely, which is why the maximum sits at 29 rather than somewhere higher.
| Combination | Count | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Fifteens (each five with the jack, and each trio of fives) | 8 | 16 |
| Pairs among the four fives | 6 | 12 |
| His nobs (jack matching the starter suit) | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 15 | 29 |
The four fives make four ways of reaching fifteen with the jack and four more as trios of fives, giving eight fifteens. Four cards of one rank contain six distinct pairs, which is the same arithmetic that makes four of a kind worth 12 anywhere else in the game. The jack adds the single point for his nobs, and there is nothing left to score.
Hands worth knowing by sight
| Hand + starter | Score | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 5-5-5-J + 5 (jack matches cut suit) | 29 | The perfect hand: 8 fifteens, 6 pairs, his nobs. About 1 in 216,580 |
| 5-5-5-5 + any ten-card | 28 | 8 fifteens and 6 pairs, no nobs possible |
| 4-4-5-5 + 6 | 24 | Quadruple run of three plus four fifteens |
| 4-5-6-6 + 5 | 24 | Two double runs woven together |
| 7-7-8-8 + 9 | 24 | Quadruple run pattern in the middle ranks |
| 4-5-5-6 + 9 | 14 | The classic double run of three: 8 for the runs and pair, 6 in fifteens |
| 2-4-6-8 + 10 | 0 | A "nineteen": five cards, not a single point |
How do you get 29 points in crib?
- Hold three fives and the jack of one suit, then have the fourth five cut as the starter in that same suit. That pays eight fifteens (16), six pairs (12) and his nobs for the jack (1). It is the highest hand the game allows, at roughly 1 in 216,580 deals.
What is the highest score you can get in one cribbage hand?
- Twenty-nine, and only from three fives plus the jack of the starter suit with the fourth five cut. Twenty-eight is the same hand without the matching jack. No hand can reach 30, and the totals 19, 25, 26 and 27 cannot be made at all, which is why "nineteen" is the traditional way of announcing a hand worth nothing.
How rare is a 29 hand in cribbage?
- The odds are 1 in 216,580 dealt hands once the discard is played correctly. Most regular players go years between 29s; the American Cribbage Congress keeps a registry of verified ones.
What is the best hand you can be dealt before the cut?
- Three fives and a jack. On its own it is worth 14: four fifteens for 8 and three pairs for 6. A ten-card cut lifts it to 20, or 21 if that card is the jack’s own suit, and cutting the fourth five makes 28, or 29 when the jack matches the starter suit. It is the one hand where the cut is genuinely worth watching.