The rules in 30 seconds
- 1
Draw
Tap the deck to draw 2 cards. No cards in your hand? Draw 5.
- 2
Play up to 3
Bank money, put down properties, or play action cards.
- 3
Keep 7
At the end of your turn, throw away cards over 7.
- 4
Win
Be the first player with 3 full sets.
The goal
Be the first to finish 3 full sets. A full set is every property of one color: 2 Brown cards, 3 Pink cards, 4 Railway cards and so on (the rent chart below lists every color). Any 3 full sets win, even two of the same color.
Getting ready
Everyone starts with 5 cards. SettleUp shuffles and deals for you, so there is nothing to set up: one player creates a room, shares the link, and deals once everyone is ready. A random player goes first, unless the host turns on Host goes first. With 6 players the game shuffles two decks together.
Your turn
- Draw 2 cards. If your hand is empty at the start of your turn, draw 5 instead.
- Play up to 3 cards. Each card is one move. Your turn ends by itself after the third, or tap End turn to stop early.
- Keep 7. If you have more than 7 cards when your turn ends, pick the extra cards to throw away.
Moving a wild card from one of your sets to another is free on your turn: it doesn’t use a move. Each turn has 90 seconds; when time runs out, the game draws for you if you haven’t drawn yet and ends your turn. The host can pick 30, 60 or 120 seconds, or no timer at all.
Three ways to play a card
Bank it
Money, action and rent cards can go in your bank, worth the amount in their top corner. Your bank is what you pay people with. Properties can’t go in the bank.
Put it down
Properties and wild cards go on the table in front of you, sorted by color. That’s how you build your sets.
Play it
Action and rent cards do something: take a property, ask for money, or charge rent. Played cards go to the discard pile.
Charging rent
Play a rent card that matches the color of one of your sets. A two-color rent card makes everyone pay you. A Rainbow Rent works for any of your sets, but only one player of your choice pays. How much they pay depends on how many cards that set has.
- Double Rent goes with a rent card and doubles the total. It uses 1 extra move.
- A House on a full set adds $3M to its rent, and a Hotel adds $4M more. They don’t go on Railway or Power Plant.
- Everyone answers at the same time: each player pays, or blocks with No Way!, on their own.
| Color | Cards in a full set | Rent for 1, 2, 3… cards | + House | + House + Hotel |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brown Street | 2 | $1M · $2M | $5M | $9M |
| Sky Blue Bay | 3 | $1M · $2M · $3M | $6M | $10M |
| Pink Palace | 3 | $1M · $2M · $4M | $7M | $11M |
| Orange Grove | 3 | $1M · $3M · $5M | $8M | $12M |
| Red Hill | 3 | $2M · $3M · $6M | $9M | $13M |
| Yellow Market | 3 | $2M · $4M · $6M | $9M | $13M |
| Green Park | 3 | $2M · $4M · $7M | $10M | $14M |
| Dark Blue Towers | 2 | $3M · $8M | $11M | $15M |
| Railway | 4 | $1M · $2M · $3M · $4M | — | — |
| Power Plant | 2 | $1M · $2M | — | — |
Paying people
When you owe money, you choose what to pay with: cards from your bank, loose properties, or the Houses and Hotels on your full sets (a Hotel goes before its House). You only have to break up a full set if that is not enough. Cards in your hand are never used and no change is given. If you still can’t pay it all, you give everything you have.
Properties you receive go straight onto your table, and a House or Hotel you receive goes in your bank.
Saying No Way!
Play No Way! to stop a card someone plays on you, like a rent card or Sneaky Steal. The player who asked can say No Way! back to cancel yours, and then it’s your turn to answer again. Answering with No Way! doesn’t use one of your moves.
Full sets are safe (almost)
Sneaky Steal and Swap It! can only take properties that are not in a full set. The one card that can take a full set is Take It All!, which takes the whole set with its House and Hotel. Rooms can soften it with house rules: Gentle Take It All! takes only 1 card, and No winning with Take It All! stops it from giving someone their third set.
Every card in the deck
One deck has 106 cards: 28 properties, 11 wild cards, 20 money cards, 13 rent cards and 34 action cards. Games with 6 players use two decks shuffled together, 212 cards in all, so there are twice as many of every card.
Action cards
Play them to take cards, ask for money or stop a move. You can also bank them as money.
Sneaky Steal
Take 1 property. Not from a full set.
Swap It!
Trade 1 property for 1 of theirs.
Take It All!
Take a whole full set!
No Way!
Stop a card played on you.
Pay Up!
1 player pays you $5M.
It’s My Birthday!
Everyone pays you $2M.
Double Rent
Play with Rent to double it.
House
+$3M rent on a full set.
Hotel
+$4M rent. Needs a House.
Lucky Draw
Take 2 more cards.
Rent cards
Ask for rent on one of your sets. You can also bank them as money.
Sky Blue / Brown
Everyone pays you rent.
Pink / Orange
Everyone pays you rent.
Red / Yellow
Everyone pays you rent.
Dark Blue / Green
Everyone pays you rent.
Railway / Power
Everyone pays you rent.
Any color
Pick 1 player to pay rent.
Wild cards
Properties that work as more than one color. Move them between your sets for free on your turn.
Sky Blue / Brown
Use as Sky Blue or Brown.
Sky Blue / Railway
Use as Sky Blue or Railway.
Pink / Orange
Use as Pink or Orange.
Red / Yellow
Use as Red or Yellow.
Dark Blue / Green
Use as Dark Blue or Green.
Green / Railway
Use as Green or Railway.
Railway / Power
Use as Railway or Power.
Any color
Use as any color. Worth $0.
Money
Goes straight in your bank, to pay what you owe.
Put it in your bank.
Put it in your bank.
Put it in your bank.
Put it in your bank.
Put it in your bank.
Put it in your bank.
The properties themselves are in the rent chart above: 28 cards in 10 colors.
Tips for your first games
- Bank before you build. Early on, put a card or two in your bank. When the first rent card comes your way, you pay with money instead of your properties.
- Save No Way! for big moments. Blocking a Take It All! or a big rent is worth far more than blocking a $2M birthday.
- Two-card sets finish fast. Brown, Dark Blue and Power Plant need only 2 cards, and a full Dark Blue set charges $8M rent.
- Watch the leader. Tap a player to see their table. If someone has 2 full sets, keep your Sneaky Steal or Swap It! for the property they need.
- Pay with what hurts least. You choose the cards you pay with, so give away cards that leave your best sets standing.
- Play Lucky Draw first. It uses a move, but the 2 new cards give you more choice for the moves you have left.
Ready for more? The strategy guide has 12 tips, with the numbers behind every card.
Questions people ask
Can I pay with cards from my hand?
No. You pay from the table: your bank, your properties, and Houses or Hotels on your full sets. Cards in your hand are never used, so a full bank protects your properties.
Do I get change if I overpay?
No. If you only have a $5M card for a $2M rent, the other player keeps all $5M. Pick what you pay with carefully.
What happens if I can’t pay everything I owe?
You give everything you can from your bank and properties, and the rest of the debt is forgotten. You only have to break up a full set if your other cards are not enough.
What happens when the deck runs out?
The used cards are shuffled into a new deck, and the game goes on.
Can Sneaky Steal or Swap It! take a card from a full set?
No. Full sets are safe from those two. Only Take It All! can take a full set, together with its House and Hotel.
Can I put a House or Hotel on Railway or Power Plant?
No. Houses and Hotels only go on full sets of the other colors. A Hotel needs a House on the set first.
Do two full sets of the same color count?
Yes. In SettleUp every full set counts, so two full Railway sets and one full Pink set is a win.
How long does a game take?
Most games take 15 to 30 minutes. Each turn has a 90-second timer unless the host picks another one or turns it off.
Ready to play?
Learn by doing: the Dealer shows you what to play, one move at a time. Or create a room and send the link to your friends.
Planning a group game? Read how to host a card game night.