Guide
How to Play Ludo
Ludo is a race of luck and timing. Roll a 6 to enter the board, move clockwise around the 52-square track, capture rivals, and bring all four tokens home by exact count.
Play LudoThe objective
Bring all four tokens home first
Ludo is a race game. Every player owns four tokens that start in a corner yard. The tokens travel clockwise around a shared 52-square track, turn into a private home column, and finish in the centre. You win when all four of your tokens are home before anyone else's.
Between the first roll and the win, the game is a series of small decisions: which token to move, when to stop on a safe square, and when a capture is worth the risk. The die decides how far you move; you decide everything else.
The game is free, runs in the browser, and needs no account. Open the board when you want to play; use this guide for the rules, the safe squares, and the habits that win more games.
The board
Four yards, one shared track, four home columns
The board is a cross with a 6×6 yard in each corner: Red at top-left, Green at top-right, Yellow at bottom-right, and Blue at bottom-left. The 52 track squares run clockwise around the cross. Each colour has a start square, and eight squares — the four start squares and the four stars eight steps past each start — are safe.
You always play Red. With one bot you face Yellow across the board; with two you also face Green; with three, Blue joins. Every die roll is a fresh random number for you and for the bots alike.
Controls
Tap, click, or use the keyboard
Every method plays the same game. Pick whichever fits the device in your hand.
Mouse & touch
Tap Roll, then tap a token
Click or tap the Roll button. Tokens that can legally move pulse with a white ring — tap one to move it. When only one move is legal, the game plays it for you.
Keyboard
R to roll, 1–4 to move
Press R (or Space/Enter with the game focused) to roll, then the number key of the token you want. N starts a new game instantly, and you can Tab to any control and press Enter.
Sound & stats
M to mute
Press M or use the speaker button to mute the synthesized sound effects; your choice is remembered. The Stats button shows wins, streaks, captures, and best times saved on this device.
The loop
Four steps from yard to victory
Rolling, choosing a token, and reading the danger behind it is the whole game.
- 1
Pick your opponents
You play Red against one, two, or three computer players. Each colour has four tokens waiting in its corner yard. The whole game is played on the classic cross-shaped board with a shared 52-square outer track.
- 2
Roll a 6 to start
Press Roll (or R). A token can only leave the yard on a 6, and it lands on your coloured start square. A 6 also earns another roll, but three sixes in a row forfeit the turn.
- 3
Race around the board
Move any one token by the number rolled, clockwise around the track. Land exactly on an opponent token to capture it and send it back to its yard, unless it is standing on a safe square. Captures earn an extra roll.
- 4
Get all four tokens home
After a full lap, tokens turn into their own coloured home column. You need the exact number to reach the centre. The first player to bring all four tokens home wins.
Rules
Every rule that decides a move
The track and the yards
The outer track has 52 squares. Every colour starts from its own start square and travels 50 squares further before turning into its private five-square home column and then the centre — 56 steps from the start square in total.
Leaving the yard
A token can only enter play on a roll of 6, moving onto its start square. If you have no token on the board and roll anything else, the turn passes.
Extra rolls
You roll again after a 6, after capturing an opponent, and after bringing a token home. Three sixes in a row forfeit the turn without moving.
Capturing and safe squares
Landing on a square holding an opponent token sends that token back to its yard. Eight squares are safe — the four start squares and the four star squares eight steps past each start — and tokens there cannot be captured. Home-column squares are private and always safe.
Sharing squares
Your own tokens may share a square. There are no blocks or doubled walls in this version, so a lone token is exactly as vulnerable as a stack.
Getting home
A token must reach the centre by exact count. If a roll is too big for a token it cannot move; if no token can move, the turn passes. The game ends as soon as one player has all four tokens home.
Opponents
One, two, or three bots
The only setting is how many computer players you face. Pick it under the board; stats are kept separately for each.
- 01 · 2 players
1 bot — a head-to-head race
You (Red) face Yellow across the board. Fewer opponents means fewer captures and a quicker, more tactical race.
- 02 · 3 players
2 bots — a three-way game
Red, Green, and Yellow take turns. Tokens meet more often, so safe squares and timing matter more.
- 03 · 4 players
3 bots — the full four-player board
All four colours play. Expect frequent captures, longer games, and the highest reward for careful token care. Stats are saved separately for each setting.
Common mistakes
Why leads get lost
Sprinting one token
Moving the same token every turn feels fast, but one capture erases the whole lead. Spread risk across two or three tokens.
Ending a move just ahead of an opponent
Landing one to six squares in front of an opposing token invites a capture on the very next roll. Check what sits behind your destination square first.
Ignoring safe squares
Start squares and stars are free protection. A token that steps onto one can wait out a dangerous stretch of the board.
Forgetting the exact-roll rule
Tokens stuck a few squares from home can sit for many turns waiting for the perfect number. Keep another token in play so your rolls are never wasted.
- Bring a second token out on a 6 when you can — a wider choice of moves is the strongest advantage in Ludo.
- Park on safe squares (start squares and stars) when an opponent token sits one to six squares behind you.
- Capture whenever it is safe to: it sets an opponent back many turns and gives you an extra roll.
- Do not run a single token far ahead alone; advanced tokens are the biggest loss when captured.
- Save exact-count moves for the home stretch: bring tokens to within six squares of home and wait for the right roll.
- A token in your home column can never be captured, so racing tokens into the column is often safer than waiting outside it.
- Watch the die: after a 6 you roll again, so plan the follow-up move before you commit the first.
Where you can play
Same game on phone and desktop
ludoclassic.app runs in any modern browser with no app to install. Progress stays on the device you played on.
On a phone or tablet
The board scales to fit the screen with the Roll button right below it. Tap Roll, then tap a pulsing token. No download or install is needed.
On a desktop or laptop
Use the mouse, or play entirely from the keyboard: R to roll, 1–4 to choose a token, N for a new game, M to mute.
Offline and saved progress
Wins, streaks, and best times are stored in your browser only. Clearing site data or switching browsers starts a fresh record.
Still stuck on a rule? Read the Ludo FAQ or jump in and play.
Play Ludo free