Mancala rules: how to play the seed-sowing game
Mancala is not one game but a large family of games, played in Africa and Asia for many centuries. In all of them you pick up the seeds from one pit and drop them one by one into the pits that follow. This is called sowing.
These rules describe the version most people play at home: 6 pits a side, 4 seeds in each, and a store at each end. Oware, one of the best-known African versions, is described under Variants.
- Players
- 2
- Playing time
- 10-20 min
- Age
- 6+
- What you need
- A board with two rows of six pits and a store at each end, and 48 seeds, stones or beads
Updated: 2 November 2026
The aim of the game
The aim is to collect more seeds in your store than your opponent. Seeds reach your store when you sow them there or when you capture them.
The board and setup
Put the board between you, with a long side facing each player. The row of six pits nearer to you is yours. Your store is the big pit at the end on your right. The store at the other end belongs to your opponent.
Put 4 seeds in each of the 12 pits. That makes 48 seeds in all. Both stores start empty.
Draw lots to see who goes first. Then take turns. In the next game, the other player starts.
Your turn: sowing
- Choose one of the pits in your row that has seeds in it. You can never pick up seeds from your opponent's row.
- Take all the seeds out of that pit.
- Moving anticlockwise, drop one seed into each pit in turn. Start with the very next pit.
- When you reach your store, drop a seed into it too. Then carry on into your opponent's row.
- Skip your opponent's store. Never put a seed in it.
Where the last seed falls decides what happens next. It can give you another turn or a capture, or simply end your turn.
A pit with 13 seeds or more takes you all the way round the board. The pit you emptied gets a seed like any other pit.
Another turn
If your last seed lands in your own store, you take another turn straight away. There is no limit. If the next sowing also ends in your store, you go again.
Only the last seed counts. Passing through your store on the way does not give you another turn.
Capturing
If your last seed lands in an empty pit in your own row, look at the pit directly opposite it in your opponent's row.
- If that pit has seeds, you capture. Take all its seeds and your last seed, and put them in your store.
- If that pit is empty, nothing is captured. Your last seed stays where it fell.
Either way, your turn ends. A capture never gives you another turn.
In every other case your turn simply ends. That is when your last seed lands in a pit that already has seeds, or in any pit in your opponent's row.
Example: your last seed lands in your empty third pit, counting from your left. Opposite it, your opponent's pit holds 5 seeds. You put all 6 seeds in your store.
End of the game
The game ends as soon as all six pits in one row are empty. It does not matter whose row it is or whose move emptied it. It ends even if your last seed landed in your store.
The player whose row is not empty then takes all the seeds still in it and puts them in their own store.
Count the seeds in both stores. The player with more seeds wins. With 48 seeds, 25 is always enough to win. If you both have 24, the game is a draw.
Variants
Capturing with an empty pit opposite
Say your last seed lands in an empty pit in your row, and the pit opposite is empty too. You still put that last seed in your store. Then your turn ends.
The swap rule
Going first is a small advantage. To balance it, the second player may swap sides instead of making a first move. This choice comes once the first player's opening turn is over, including any extra turns it earned. The second player takes over the position as it stands. The first player then moves next, from the other side.
Oware
Oware, also called wari or awari, is played across West Africa and the Caribbean and at tournaments around the world. It uses the same board and 4 seeds per pit. The stores hold only captured seeds.
- You never sow into a store, yours or your opponent's.
- With 12 seeds or more, skip the pit you emptied as you go round.
- You capture only in your opponent's row. Your last seed must bring that pit to exactly 2 or 3 seeds.
- If it does, also check the pit before it. If that one holds 2 or 3 seeds, capture it too. Keep going back until a pit holds any other number or you reach your own row.
- A move that would capture every seed in your opponent's row captures nothing. The seeds stay where they are.
- There are no extra turns.
- If your opponent's row is empty, you must make a move that gives them seeds. If none can, take all the seeds in your row. The game then ends.
The first player to capture 25 seeds wins. At 24 each, it is a draw. If the same moves keep repeating, you may agree to stop. Each player then takes the seeds in their own row.
Frequent questions
How many seeds go in each pit?
Four in each of the 12 small pits, so 48 seeds in all. The stores start empty. For a shorter first game you can start with 3 seeds per pit. For a longer game, try 5 or 6.
Do you put a seed in your opponent's store?
No. When you sow past your opponent's store, you skip it. Your seeds go only into the 12 pits and your own store.
When do you get another turn?
When your last seed lands in your own store. You can chain several turns this way. A capture does not give you another turn.
What if the pit across from your empty pit is empty too?
In the basic rules you capture nothing, and your last seed stays in your pit. Some players still put that one seed in their store. See the variant "Capturing with an empty pit opposite".
What if your last seed lands in an empty pit on your opponent's side?
Nothing happens. You capture only from an empty pit in your own row. Your turn ends.
Who gets the seeds left on the board at the end?
The player whose row they are in. They go into that player's store before you count. Some families give them to the player who ran out of seeds, or leave them out of the count. These are house rules, so agree on them before you play.
Does the game end at once when a row is empty?
Yes, in the basic rules it ends straight away. Some players, and many online versions, play on until the player whose turn it is has no seeds to move. Agree on this before you start.
What happens with 13 seeds or more in one pit?
You sow all the way round the board, skipping your opponent's store. The pit you emptied gets a seed like any other. With exactly 13 seeds, the last one lands in that pit, which was empty. The pit opposite always holds at least the seed you just sowed there, so you always capture.
Who goes first?
There is no fixed rule. Draw lots for the first game, then take turns to start. Going first is a small edge. The swap rule under Variants evens it out.
Is mancala one game or many?
Many. Mancala is a family of hundreds of sowing games from Africa, Asia and beyond. The game sold as mancala in many shops is the home version described here. Oware and bao are other well-known members.
How do you win at mancala?
First look for a pit whose last seed lands exactly in your store: that gives you another turn. Watch your opponent's empty pits. Do not leave a pit with many seeds opposite one they can reach. Keeping seeds in your row near the end also helps, because they will count for you.
Can you play without a board?
Yes. Use a 12-egg box for the pits and two bowls for the stores. Beans, buttons or small pebbles work as seeds. You need 48 of them.
Log your plays
Save the plays of every game you play. See who wins most often and what you play the most.