# Types of Mahjong: Taiwanese, Hong Kong, Riichi & American

- Canonical page: <https://tileleague.com/library/types-of-mahjong>
- Language: English (`en`)
- Purpose: Compare Taiwanese, Hong Kong Old Style, Japanese riichi and American mahjong: hand sizes, scoring, flowers, jokers and how to choose your first table.
- Content updated: 2026-10-26
- Maintained by: Mahjong Club, published by Orion Designs LLC
- Maps: [Learn Taiwanese mahjong](https://tileleague.com/topics/learn.md) · [Complete content map](https://tileleague.com/sitemap.md)
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Learn to play

## Types of mahjong compared

Four traditions, familiar tiles, and very different ways to win.

[By Mahjong Club](https://tileleague.com/about.md) Updated 26 October 2026 8 min read

### One family of games. Different table agreements.

Taiwanese, Hong Kong, Japanese riichi and American mahjong are all multiplayer tile games. Their biggest differences are the size and shape of a winning hand, what makes that hand eligible to win, and how points are paid. Learning one gives you a useful foundation for another, but it does not make the rules interchangeable.

This comparison describes the usual four-player forms. “Hong Kong” means Old Style here; “American” means play using the National Mah Jongg League card. Taiwanese tables vary substantially, and our playable example is the fixed December 2024 LRC version. These are useful starting points, not a claim that every family or club follows one universal rulebook.

[Looking for the tile-matching puzzle? Start with mahjong versus solitaire.](https://tileleague.com/library/mahjong-vs-solitaire.md)

### Compare the essentials.

On a small screen, swipe the table sideways to compare all four columns.

*Four-player mahjong at a glance*

| Style | Between turns → winning hand | Usual winning structure | Key distinction |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Taiwanese | 16 → 17 | Five sets + a pair | An extra set; table-specific scoring |
| Hong Kong Old Style | 13 → 14 | Four sets + a pair | Fan patterns and an agreed minimum |
| Japanese riichi | 13 → 14 | Four sets + a pair, or special hands | At least one yaku; riichi and furiten |
| American (NMJL) | 13 → 14 | A pattern on the current annual card | Charleston exchanges and eight jokers |

These are structural counts, including exposed sets. In Taiwanese, Hong Kong and riichi, a declared kong uses four physical tiles but occupies one set; its replacement draw preserves the hand structure. Flowers kept separately do not count toward 14 or 17. American card hands count all 14 tiles literally, including any flowers, jokers and four-tile groups the pattern requires.

### Taiwanese: room for one more set.

The familiar draw-and-discard rhythm works toward five sets and a pair: 17 structural tiles to win. Flowers are revealed and replaced. That larger hand gives you more groups to organise, so sorting tiles by suit and keeping incomplete sequences together is a helpful first habit.

Do not bring a generic Taiwanese scoring chart to an LRC table and expect the totals to match. Many Taiwanese tables count tai. Mahjong Club uses the December 2024 LRC points schedule, with its own awards and settlement rules. A scoring vocabulary is part of the table agreement, not merely a different word for the same arithmetic.

[See a complete LRC scoring example.](https://tileleague.com/library/lrc-taiwanese-scoring.md)

### Hong Kong Old Style: agree on the fan.

The usual shape is four sets and a pair. Patterns earn fan (also written faan), but a completed shape may still fall short of the table’s minimum. Three fan is common, not universal. Ask which patterns count, whether flowers contribute to the minimum, and which special hands are recognised before the first deal.

Payment is another separate agreement. Victoria Mahjong Club publishes both a classical schedule, where all players pay on a discard win, and a modern schedule, where only the discarder pays. Two people can both say “Hong Kong rules” and mean different settlements. Compare the payout table as well as the hand-value chart.

[Compare the club’s published HKOS references.](https://victoriamahjongclub.com/resources)

### Riichi: a complete shape needs a yaku.

Japanese riichi usually has four sets and a pair, with recognised exceptions such as seven pairs and thirteen orphans. A win needs at least one yaku: a qualifying pattern or condition. Dora add value but are not a yaku. A hand full of bonus tiles can therefore still be unable to win.

Riichi is a declaration available to an eligible concealed ready hand, followed by restricted play. Furiten can prevent winning on a discard while still allowing a self-draw. Learn those restrictions before copying a call from another variant. Standard four-player riichi uses 136 tiles, without flowers or jokers; scoring uses han and fu, with limit hands.

[EMA’s 2025 riichi rulebook: winning conditions and scoring.](https://riichi.uk/Riichi-rules-2025-EN.pdf)

### American: read the card, then build the hand.

In NMJL play, the annual card defines the winning patterns and their values. You collect 14 tiles matching a listed hand, rather than applying the usual four-sets-and-a-pair formula. Read the card’s colours, number restrictions and concealed or exposed designation together. A neat-looking group is not automatically a legal meld.

The 152-tile set includes eight flowers and eight jokers. Flowers can be part of the winning pattern rather than set aside for replacement. Jokers substitute in groups of three or more identical tiles, never singles or pairs. The Charleston exchanges tiles before ordinary play, giving you an early opportunity to reshape your hand.

[Find the current card from the National Mah Jongg League.](https://www.nationalmahjonggleague.org/) [Read AMJA’s independent American rules guide.](https://guide.americanmahjonggassociation.com/)

### Which style should you learn first?

Choose the people you want to play with, then their rules. A familiar weekly table is a stronger reason to learn a style than a claim that one version is objectively easiest. Open the situation closest to yours.

**I want to join friends or family.**

Ask for the style, the scoring sheet or card, and any house rules. Learn their tile names too: knowing what a call means matters more than using one supposedly correct English spelling.

**I am interested in Japanese mahjong.**

Start directly with riichi instruction. Prioritise a few attainable yaku, the difference between an open and concealed hand, and furiten. A Taiwanese scoring lesson will not teach those contracts.

**My group uses an annual card.**

Confirm the card publisher and year. Learn to read one section, then practise the Charleston and joker restrictions. A generic Chinese mahjong cheat sheet cannot replace that card.

**I want a guided first game here.**

Mahjong Club’s browser table teaches its LRC Taiwanese game. Create an account, choose First Game Lesson, then practise before inviting friends. Hong Kong, riichi and American rules in this comparison are references, not selectable game modes here.

### Four questions before the first deal.

1. Which exact rules, edition or annual card are we using?
2. What makes a hand eligible to win, beyond its shape?
3. How are flowers, jokers and declared kongs handled?
4. Who pays after a discard win or self-draw, and how much?

You do not need to memorise four traditions before playing one. Pick a table, learn its ordinary turn, and keep its reference nearby. When you move to another style, treat the familiar tiles as a head start and the rules as a fresh agreement.

[Recognise the tiles](https://tileleague.com/library/mahjong-tiles.md) · [Look up a table term](https://tileleague.com/library/mahjong-terms.md)

[Create an account and learn at the table](https://tileleague.com/play/sign-in?returnTo=%2Fplay%2Flesson)

### Sources and scope

This is a comparison of named rule families, not a tournament rulebook. The Taiwanese description follows Mahjong Club’s versioned LRC December 2024 rules and linked scoring guide. Hong Kong sources illustrate particular published rules; they do not override a club’s own agreement.

- [Hong Kong Old Style rules hosted by Tabletopia](https://c.tabletopia.com/games/old-hong-kong-mahjong/rules/mahjong-rules/en)
- [Victoria Mahjong Club: HKOS guides and alternative payment tables](https://victoriamahjongclub.com/resources)
- [European Mahjong Association: Riichi Rules, 2025 edition (UK mirror)](https://riichi.uk/Riichi-rules-2025-EN.pdf)
- [National Mah Jongg League: annual card and official publications](https://www.nationalmahjonggleague.org/)
- [AMJA: reading the NMJL card](https://guide.americanmahjonggassociation.com/about-american-mah-jongg/nmjl-card/)
- [AMJA: tile inventory and flowers](https://guide.americanmahjonggassociation.com/about-american-mah-jongg/mah-jongg-tiles/)
- [AMJA: joker restrictions](https://guide.americanmahjonggassociation.com/how-to-play-american-mah-jongg/jokers-and-joker-exchange/)
- [AMJA: the Charleston](https://guide.americanmahjonggassociation.com/how-to-play-american-mah-jongg/the-charleston/)

AMJA publishes an independent explanatory guide and is not affiliated with the NMJL. The current NMJL card and official rulings govern NMJL play. This article does not reproduce the card’s copyrighted hand list.

### Keep reading

- [Mahjong tiles explained: a visual guide](https://tileleague.com/library/mahjong-tiles.md): Learn to play · 8 min read
- [Mahjong terms: English, Cantonese & Mandarin](https://tileleague.com/library/mahjong-terms.md): Learn to play · 9 min read