Liar's UNO: How to Play This Twist on the Classic Game

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Game expert Ashton Wu goes over Liar's UNO’s unique rules & provides strategies to help you win

Co-authored by Ashton Wu and Elaine Heredia, BA

Last Updated: May 22, 2026 Fact Checked

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Setup

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Gameplay Rules

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Scoring & Winning

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Pro Gameplay Tips

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More Ways to Play UNO

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If you're getting tired of classic UNO, and you have a good poker face, Liar's UNO might be the card game you're looking for! It plays exactly like the original game, only with a few twists. The biggest change is that you can play new liar’s cards and lie about their true face value. The other players then have to decide whether to accept your claim or call your bluff! Ready to get started? This article will teach you the setup, gameplay rules, and scoring and winning strategies for Liar's UNO. We also spoke to a game expert to bring you exclusive UNO tips that may help you leave your opponents in the dust. Let's go!

How do you play Liar's UNO?

Game expert Ashton Wu says in Liar’s UNO, some cards are liar’s cards, which you place face down and claim what they are. You can say what it truthfully is or lie and say it’s a different card. If a player challenges you and you lied, take the card and draw a new one. If you told the truth, the challenger draws a card.

Section 1 of 5:

Setting Up Liar's UNO

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Choose someone to be the dealer for the first round. Next, have them shuffle all 112 cards in the deck together and pass out 7 cards to each player. Don't show the cards in your hand to anyone!^{[1]
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Meet the wikiHow Expert

Ashton Wu is a game expert who reviews board games. He has a successful YouTube channel, Shelfside, and consults with gaming companies to build high-quality gaming products.
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Stack the remaining cards facedown and flip over the top card. The facedown stack is the draw pile. The top card that the dealer flipped over and laid next to the draw pile is the beginning of the discard pile.^{[2]
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- Note: If the top card is an Action card, flip the next card in the draw pile over it until you reveal a numbered card. It can be a traditional numbered card or a Liar's card.

Section 2 of 5:

Playing Liar's UNO

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Play a normal card that matches the discard pile's color or number. On your turn, see if you have any normal numbered cards (0-9) in your hand that match the color or the number of the card on top of the discard pile. If so, play that card face-up on top of it and end your turn. If not, draw one card from the draw pile. If your new card matches the one on top of the discard pile, you can play it. Otherwise, your turn ends here.^{[3]
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- For example, if the top card in the discard pile is a red 5, you can play a red card or a blue, yellow, or green card with a value of 5.
- You can also play an Action card that matches the top card's color, or a Wild card.
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Play a liar's card facedown and bluff your opponents. For every normal UNO numbered card in the deck, you'll find a matching liar's card. These cards have black numbers with white borders, whereas normal cards have white numbers with black borders. If you have a liar's card in your hand on your turn, Wu says to lay it facedown on the discard pile and verbally state the color and number to your opponents.^{[4]
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Expert Source

Ashton Wu
Game Expert

Expert Interview} The twist is that you can truthfully say what the card is, or lie and say it's a totally different card! Then your opponents must decide to either call your bluff or let it slide.^{[5]
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- Pro tip: Make sure your lie sounds plausible. For example, if the top card on the discard pile is a green 1, say your liar's card is a green 2 or a blue 1. Don't say it's a red 5 or a yellow Skip, since neither of those cards is playable on a green 1.
- Warning: Avoid playing a normal card facedown and trying to pass it off as a liar's card. If you do and someone challenges you, you'll have to take it back and draw 6 cards as a penalty!
Anytime a player lays down a liar's card, the other players have an opportunity to challenge them. If they're challenged, they must flip the liar's card over to reveal its true face. If the player told the truth and put down the liar's card they said they did, the challenger must draw a card as a penalty. If the player lied and put down a different card than they said they did, they must take the card back and draw a card.^{[6]
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Follow special rules when playing a 7 or a 0 of any color or type. Liar's UNO has special rules that apply whenever you play a normal card or a liar's card numbered 7 or 0. When you play a 7, you must choose another player and swap hands with them. When you play a 0, all players must pass their hand to the next player in order of play.^{[7]
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- For example, if you're playing clockwise, give your hand to the player on your left, and receive your new hand from the player on your right.
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Play an Action card and lie or tell the truth about its action. All Action cards (except the Wild Liar's Challenge card) are liar's cards. To play one, make sure it matches the color of the card on top of the discard pile. Then lay it facedown in the discard pile on your turn. Verbally declare what it is (e.g., a yellow Skip card or a red Draw 2 card), or lie about it and say it's something totally different. The other players can either accept that you're telling the truth and follow the Action card's instructions or challenge your claim.^{[8]
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- If you're challenged and were telling the truth, the challenger must draw a card. If you're challenged and caught lying, you must take the card back and draw an additional card from the draw pile.
- Here's a list of the Action cards you'll find in Liar's UNO:
  - Draw 2: When you play this card, the player to your left must draw 2 cards before they begin their turn.
  - Skip: This card skips the turn of the next player.
  - Reverse: This card reverses the order of play. If you were playing clockwise, a Reverse card will change the order to counterclockwise. This means the person to your right will go next.
  - Wild Draw 4: This card matches any color and any number. When you play it, you get to choose the color the next player has to play on. The next player must also draw 4 cards and add them to their hand before they can start their turn.
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Play the Wild Liar's Challenge card if you have it. The Wild Liar's Challenge card is a special Action card unique to Liar's UNO! You can play it on top of any other card in the discard pile. When you do, declare a color. Next, have the other players choose a card from their hand and lay it facedown in front of them. They must declare what it is, and their claim must match the color you chose. Randomly select someone to challenge, and make them flip their card to reveal the face. Here's what to do next:^{[9]
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- If they lied about the card, they must put the card back in their hand and draw another card from the draw pile. Then, you can choose another player to reveal their card. If they're also lying, you can keep choosing players until you choose someone who's telling the truth, or you make it through all the players.
- If they were telling the truth, your turn ends. All the other unchallenged players may slide their cards under the Wild Liar's Challenge card in the discard pile. Play continues as normal with the next player in order.
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Say "UNO!" when you've discarded all your cards except one. When you've played all the cards in your hand except one, you must say "UNO!" out loud. If you discard your second-to-last card, and one of the other players calls out the name of the game before you do, draw 2 cards as a penalty.^{[10]
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- Pro tip: Wu suggests keeping your hand size discreet and not taking too long on your turn. He says these tips will help you prevent another player from calling "UNO!" on your turn before you do!^{[11]
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Section 3 of 5:

Scoring & Winning Liar's UNO

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Win the round by being the first to play all the cards in your hand. When you play your last UNO card before anyone else, you win the round! But there's a catch: if you play a liar's card, are challenged, and are caught lying, you must draw 2 cards. If you're challenged and are found to be telling the truth, victory is yours!^{[12]
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- This rule makes winning Liar's UNO more uncertain—and exciting!
Add up the values of the cards that the losers of the round didn't get a chance to play. Then, add the total to the winner's overall score for the game.^{[13]
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The more rounds you win, the more points you'll be able to add to your total score. As soon as you reach 500 points, you win Liar's UNO!^{[14]
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Section 4 of 5:

Tips for Playing Liar's UNO Like a Pro

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Lie when you know a card hasn’t been played in the discard pile. Wu recommends lying when you desperately need to get rid of a card and you know that the card isn’t in the discard pile. However, he says this can be tricky because it’s always possible someone has the card in their hand!^{[15]
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Ashton Wu
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- Ultimately, Wu says to decide whether to lie or tell the truth depending on your friend group's tendency to challenge and accuse each other of lying.^{[16]
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Tell the truth when you want your opponent to draw more cards. You don't have to lie when you play a liar's card! In fact, Wu says it’s a good idea to tell the truth every once in a while, just in case people challenge you.^{[17]
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Ashton Wu
Game Expert

Expert Interview} That way, you increase the number of cards one of your opponents is holding, without having to draw more yourself!
- Wu says he likes to tell the truth around 30% to 65% of the time.^{[18]
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- On the other hand, if you don't have a card that matches the top card on the discard pile, you may want to risk playing a liar's card to chip away at your hand.
- For example, if there's a blue Skip on top of the discard pile, and you have a blue 4 liar's card, play it and declare that it's a blue 4. Then, if someone challenges you, they'll have to draw a card.
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Choose to challenge a player based on how many cards you're holding. Think carefully before you challenge someone who just played a liar's card. If you're down to just one or two cards in your hand, the risk might be too great. After all, if you're wrong and they're telling the truth, you'll have to draw a card from the draw pile as a penalty.
- On the other hand, if the person who played the liar's card is getting dangerously close to winning, challenging them and exposing their lie will force them to take back that card. They'll have to add a card from the draw pile to their hand, too!
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Change the color being played to throw your opponents off their game. Wu advises changing the color of the top card on the discard pile by playing the same number, but in a different color. This color switch may force the other players to draw more cards because they don't have that color. Also, Wu says it makes the others think you might not have any cards left in the previous color (hence why you decided to change it).^{[19]
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Ashton Wu
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- Remember, keep your opponents guessing!