Rules · Strategy · Tips
How to Play Ludo — Rules, Strategy & Winning Tips
Ludo is a race game for 2 to 4 players. Each player has four tokens, and the goal is to move all four from your starting yard, around the board, and into your home column before anyone else. You move by rolling a single die, you need a 6 to release a token from the yard, and the first player to bring all four tokens home wins.
Ludo rules (the basics)
The board and tokens
The board is a cross shape. Each player picks a colour — usually red, green, yellow or blue — and starts with four tokens parked in their yard, the matching coloured corner. Around the outside runs a shared track every token travels. Each colour has its own coloured “home column” leading into the centre.
Rolling the dice
On your turn you roll one die. The number you roll is how many squares you may move one token. You can only move tokens already on the track, with one exception below.
Rolling a six
A six is the key roll. You need a 6 to move a token out of your yard and onto the track. A six also earns you an extra roll — take your move, then roll again. Roll three sixes in a row, though, and your turn ends with no move (a common rule variant that stops a player rolling forever).
Moving around the board
Tokens move clockwise around the shared track. You always start from your own coloured entry square and follow the track all the way around until you reach your home column.
Capturing opponents
Land a token exactly on a square occupied by a single opponent token, and you capture it — that token goes back to its yard and has to start over with a fresh six. This is the heart of the game: a well-timed capture can undo half an opponent’s progress.
Safe squares
Some squares are safe — the marked star squares around the track, and in many versions the coloured starting squares as well. A token sitting on a safe square cannot be captured. Two of your own tokens stacked on the same square also can’t be captured, and they form a block.
The home column and the exact roll
Once a token completes its lap, it turns into its own coloured home column. Tokens in the home column are safe from capture. To finish, a token must land on the final home square by an exact roll — if you overshoot, you can’t move that token and may have to play a different one.
How to win
Get all four of your tokens into the centre home. The first player to do it wins. In a 3- or 4-player game, you can keep playing for second and third place after the winner finishes, if your group likes.
Modes: vs computer and pass-and-play
You can practise the rules right now, free, in Naija Ludo.
- Versus computer — play solo against the computer to learn the board at your own pace.
- Pass-and-play — 2 to 4 players share one device and take turns.
No download and no account needed. Play a free game.
Winning strategy
Rules are easy; winning takes a little thought. A few habits that pay off:
Unlock your tokens early
Every six is a choice: release a new token, or advance one you already have. Early on, lean toward getting tokens onto the board. Four moving tokens give you far more options than one runner stuck out front.
Use safe squares
Treat star and starting squares as rest stops. When you’re about to pass through an opponent’s danger zone, try to end your move on a safe square so your token can’t be sent home.
Build blockades
Under the standard rules, two of your tokens on the same square form a block that opponents can’t pass or capture. Parking a block just ahead of a trailing opponent can stall them for several turns — one of the most underrated moves in ludo.
Stay ahead, but watch the gap
A rough rule of thumb: a token roughly 7 or more squares ahead of the nearest opponent is hard to catch, since the highest single roll is a 6. Keep your leaders spaced out so one unlucky roll can’t be punished.
Balance attack and defence
Chasing every capture leaves your own tokens exposed. Sometimes the better play is to bank progress toward home rather than swing for a capture you might miss. Read the board before you commit.
Common mistakes
- Rushing one token home while the other three sit in the yard.
- Ignoring safe squares and parking tokens in the open.
- Forgetting the exact-roll rule near home, then getting stuck.
- Wasting blocks by breaking up a pair too early.
- Capturing for the sake of it when defending your lead would win faster.
Play a free game now
The fastest way to learn ludo is to play a few rounds. Naija Ludo is free, runs in your browser, and lets you play versus the computer or pass-and-play with friends. Start a game. If you later want money play, third-party cash ludo apps are reviewed (18+) on the cash ludo page.
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