UNO Flip plays like regular UNO, but every card has two sides: you start on the Real World side, and whenever someone plays a Flip card the discard pile, the draw pile and everyone's hand turn over to the Upside Down side, where the penalties are much harsher. Play keeps flipping back and forth until someone plays their last card.
I've written this from Mattel's English instruction sheet for UNO FLIP, product HJP41, as of November 2026. That sheet is the Stranger Things themed version, which is why two of the wild cards carry names from the show. If your box uses different names for its wilds, the sheet inside your box wins. For the classic game this builds on, see my UNO rules and house rules; this page sticks to what's different.
Setup and turn order
UNO Flip is for 2 to 10 players, ages 7 and up, with 112 double-sided cards.
- Make sure every card faces the same way: all the Real World sides one way, all the Upside Down sides the other.
- Choose a dealer and shuffle.
- Deal 7 cards to each player. Hold them with the Real World side facing you, so your opponents see the Upside Down side.
- Put the rest of the deck Real World side facedown as the draw pile.
- Turn over the top card to start the discard pile. If it's an Action Card, ignore it and turn over the next one.
- The player to the left of the dealer goes first, and play runs clockwise.
On your turn, you play one card that matches the top of the discard pile by colour, number or symbol. If you can't, you draw one card, and if that card's playable you can play it straight away. You're also allowed to draw instead of playing, even when you've got a playable card.
A small rule that keeps the whole game working: when you add cards to your hand, keep them facing the same way as the rest. If you're on the Real World side, new cards go in with the Real World side towards you.
When you play your next-to-last card, you call UNO. If someone catches you before the next player starts their turn, you draw two. The first player to play their last card wins the round.
Real World and Upside Down cards side by side
| Card type | Real World side | Upside Down side |
|---|---|---|
| Draw | Draw One: next player draws one and misses their turn | Draw Five: next player draws five and misses their turn |
| Reverse | Direction of play reverses | Same as the Real World side |
| Skip | Skip: next player loses their turn | Skip Everyone: every other player loses a turn and play comes back to you |
| Flip | Everything flips to the Upside Down side | Everything flips back to the Real World side |
| Special wild | Wild Jim Hopper: the player with the most cards discards half (the larger half if it's an odd number) | Wild Eleven's Waffle: the player with the fewest cards draws until they get a card with a waffle icon |
| Drawing wild | Wild Draw 2: next player draws two and loses their turn, or challenges | Wild Draw Color: next player draws until they get the colour you call, and loses their turn |
All the wilds let the player who laid them down call the colour that continues play. The waffle icons only appear on some Upside Down cards, scattered at random.
How the Flip card works
When a Flip card is played, you turn over the discard pile first, so the card just played ends up at the bottom, then the draw pile, then everyone flips their hand. The new side stays in play until someone plays another Flip.
A Flip can only go on a matching colour or on another Flip. When the deck turns, the new top card of the discard pile might be an Action Card; you don't have to take that action. If the new top card is a wild, the player who played the Flip calls the colour.
Challenging the two drawing wilds
Both drawing wilds come with a condition, and both can be challenged. For both, wild cards in your hand count as a match.
Wild Draw 2 matches anything, but you can only play it if you hold no card matching the colour of the discard pile. The next player either draws two and loses their turn, or challenges and sees your hand:
Want AI doing the heavy lifting in your marketing?
I build the systems that handle the boring 80 percent, so you get your week back. Done properly, with the human kept in.
- If you had no card of that colour, the challenger draws 4 instead of 2 and loses their turn.
- If you did have a card of that colour, you draw 2 and the challenger draws nothing.
- Either way, you still choose the colour that continues play.
Wild Draw Color has the same colour condition, though holding a matching number or Action Card doesn't count against you. If the next player suspects you've played it illegally, they can challenge:
- If you're guilty, you draw until you get the chosen colour instead of them.
- If you're innocent, the challenger draws until they get the chosen colour, plus 2 more cards.
This is the card to respect. The sheet says the next player draws no matter how many cards it takes, so it's the harshest penalty in the game, and a failed challenge makes it worse.
Scoring to 500
Scoring is an optional way to play over several rounds. When a player wins a round, they score points for the cards left in their opponents' hands:
| Card | Points |
|---|---|
| Number cards (2 to 9, and 11) | Face value |
| Draw One | 10 |
| Draw Five, Skip, Reverse, Flip | 20 |
| Skip Everyone | 30 |
| Wild Jim Hopper, Wild Eleven's Waffle | 40 |
| Wild Draw Two | 50 |
| Wild Draw Color | 60 |
The catch: you score each card by the side the round ended on. The same card can be worth very different points depending on which face is up, so check the side before you count. Keep a running tally, and the first player to reach 500 points wins.
My verdict
I'd teach the Flip card and the Wild Draw Color challenge before anything else, because those are the two moments where a table full of regular UNO players will assume the old rules. I'd keep the first few rounds unscored, and skip the 500-point tally until everyone's comfortable reading both sides of a card at a glance. If it's just the two of you tonight, my card games for two has plenty more for a pair.
Frequently asked questions
How many cards do you deal in UNO Flip?
Seven each, held with the Real World side facing you. The rest of the deck becomes the draw pile, Real World side facedown.
Can you play Wild Draw 2 any time?
Only if you hold no card matching the colour of the discard pile; wild cards count as a match. The next player can challenge and see your hand.
What does the Flip card do?
It flips the discard pile, the draw pile and everyone's hands to the other side. The new side stays in play until someone plays another Flip.
How many points win in scoring play?
500. The round winner scores the cards left in opponents' hands, using the side the round ended on, and the first player to reach 500 points wins.
