UNO Spin was originally released in 2005. In 2025 the game was re-released. Both versions of the game are mostly the same except for the spaces on the spinner. This post will be based on the 2025 edition of the rules, but I will note any differences with the 2005 edition. There will be a different sections for the spinner for each version of the game.
Looking for specific UNO Spin rules? | Setup | Playing the Game | Card Meanings | 2025 Wheel | 2005 Wheel | Winning the Game | Scoring |
Setup
- Remove the top of the spinner to take the cards out of the storage tray. Return the spinner to the top of the tray. (This only applies to the 2025 version of the game.)
- In the 2025 version, the game just says to choose a player to be the dealer. In the 2005 edition the game has each player draw a card. The player that draws the highest number becomes the dealer. The dealer shuffles the cards and deals seven cards to each player. You can look at your own cards, but you shouldn’t show your cards to the other players.
- Place the rest of the cards in a facedown pile to create the Draw Pile. Turn over the top card from the Draw Pile to create the Discard Pile. If you reveal an Action Card (anything that isn’t a number card), ignore its effect and flip over another card. The 2005 edition of the game includes sections on the spinner to place the Draw and Discard Piles. Also if you draw an Action card, you will take the corresponding action (except for Wild Draw Four cards).
- Place the spinner where everyone can reach it.
- The player to the left of the dealer starts the game. Play moves clockwise/left to start the game.
How to Play UNO Spin
On each of your turns you will try to play a card from your hand to the Discard Pile. You can play a card to the Discard Pile if it matches one of the following criteria:
- Color
- Number
- Symbol
If you have a card that you can play, you can play it to the top of the Discard Pile. Should you have multiple cards that you can play, you can only choose one to play.
If you play an Action card or a card that features the spin symbol, you will take a special action. See the corresponding sections below for more details.
You can choose not to play a card if you don’t want to play it. In this case you will treat the rest of your turn like if you didn’t have a card that you could play.
After you play a card, your turn ends. Play passes to the next player in turn order. To start the game play passes in a clockwise direction.
Drawing a Card
If you are unable to play a card or choose not to play one, you will draw the top card from the Draw Pile. Look at the top card and see if you can play it. If you can play it, you can choose to play it immediately. Otherwise you add the card to your hand.
If the Draw Pile ever runs out of cards, you will shuffle the Discard Pile in order to create a new Draw Pile.
After you draw a card and potentially play it, your turn ends. Play passes to the next player in turn order.
Calling UNO
When you only have one card left in your hand, you must say “UNO” to alert the other players that you are close to winning the game.
If you fail to say UNO and another player catches you before the next player starts their turn, you have to draw two cards.
UNO Spin Card Meanings
Number Cards
Number cards have no special action. You can only play them if they match the color or number of the top card on the Discard Pile.
Draw Two
When you play a Draw Two card, the next player in turn order has to draw two cards. They also lose their turn.
You can play a Draw Two card on top of another Draw Two card, or a card that matches its’ color. If a Draw Two card is played against you, you can’t play your own Draw Two card to pass the punishment onto the next player.
Reverse
The Reverse card changes the turn order. If play was moving clockwise, it will now move counterclockwise. If play was moving counterclockwise, it will now move clockwise.
You can play a Reverse card on top of another Reverse card, or a card that matches its’ color.
Skip
Whenever you play a Skip card, the next player in turn order loses their turn.
You can play a Skip card on top of another Skip card, or a card that matches its’ color. If a Skip card is played against you, you can’t play your own Skip card in order to avoid being skipped.
Wild
The Wild card matches every other card so you can play it at any time. When you play the card, you will choose the color for the Discard Pile. The next player either has to play a card that matches the new color, or they will have to play their own Wild card.
Wild Draw Four
The Wild Draw Four card is wild, so it matches every other card. Unlike a normal Wild card though, you can only play the card if you do not have any other cards in your hand that match the color of the Discard Pile. Wild cards count as matches for the color.
When a player plays a Wild Draw Four, the next player in turn order has a choice to make.
First the player can accept that the card was played correctly. They will draw four cards, and lose their turn.
Otherwise they can choose to challenge. In this case the player who played the Wild Draw Four has to show their entire hand to the challenging player. The challenging player looks to see if there are any cards in the player’s hand that matches the color of the Discard Pile.
If there are no cards in the player’s hand that match the Discard Pile’s color, the player played the card correctly. The challenger now has to draw six cards and they lose their turn.
If the challenger finds one or more cards that match the Discard Pile’s color, the Wild Draw Four was played incorrectly. The player who played the Wild Draw Four has to draw the four cards instead of the challenger. The challenger also gets to still take their turn.
After the Wild Draw Four card is resolved, the player that played the card gets to choose the color for the Discard Pile.
Spin Cards
There are 20 cards (1-5 in all four colors) in the game that have a swirl pattern on them. These cards are played the same as normal number cards. You cannot match the Discard Pile by playing a Spin card on top of another Spin card unless it matches the number or color.
Whenever you play a Spin card, you have to spin the wheel. See the UNO Spin Wheel section below for the version of the game that you have.
In the 2005 edition of UNO Spin, the next player in turn order spins the wheel instead of the player that played the Spin card. They will spin the wheel instead of taking their normal turn.
UNO Spin 2025 Wheel
Each time you play a Spin Card, you have to spin the wheel. This is not optional. After spinning the wheel, you will take an action based on what icon the arrow points to.
Color Draw
When you spin one of the Color Draw spaces, you will look at the color of the space. The color of the space determines what color you need to draw. You will keep drawing cards from the Draw Pile until you get a card that matches the color you spun. When you draw a matching card, you will show it to the other players to verify that you drew the right colored card. You will then add that card and all of the other cards you drew to your hand.
Wild Color Draw
After you spin this symbol, you will pick a color. You will keep drawing cards from the Draw Pile until you draw one that matches the color you chose. You will show the matching card to the other players, to verify that you drew a matching card. Then add all of the cards you drew to your hand.
The rules do not specify whether Wild or Wild Draw Four cards match the color. Based on how UNO games usually handle these situations, I would say that Wild/Wild Draw Four cards do not count as matching the color.
Color Discard
When you spin the Color Discard symbol, you will pick one of the four colors. You will take all of the cards from your hand that match the color you chose. Place all of the matching cards on the bottom of the Discard Pile.
Swap Hands
Should you spin the Swap Hands symbol, choose another player. You will trade your hand for their hand.
2X
After the 2X symbol is spun, starting with the next player all of the players get to play two cards on their turn if they are able to. This continues until another player spins the wheel.
UNO Spin 2005 Wheel
You will spin the wheel each time the previous player plays a Spin card. The player that spins the wheel takes the corresponding action.
If the wheel makes you discard multiple cards, you get to choose the order in which you discard them. The next player in turn order has to play a card based on the last card you discard.
Almost UNO
If you spin the Almost UNO space, you get to discard cards from your hand until you only have two cards left in your hand.
Discard Number
After spinning the symbol, you choose a number. You will discard cards from your hand that match the number you chose. You can discard all of the matching cards, but you can also choose to keep some of them.
Discard Color
Choose a color. Discard all of the cards from your hand that match the color you chose. You can choose to keep some of the matching cards, if you want to keep them.
Draw Red
You will keep drawing cards until you either draw a red card or a Wild. Once you have drawn a matching card, you will add all of the cards you drew to your hand.
Draw Blue
Keep drawing cards until you draw a blue or Wild card. Add all of the cards you have drawn to your hand.
Show Hand
This symbol forces you to show your entire hand to the rest of the players. After everyone has seen your cards, play returns to normal.
War
All of the players choose the highest number card from their hand. At the same time all of the players reveal their chosen card. The player whose card is highest gets to discard their card. The rest of the players add their cards back to their hand.
If there is a tie, all of the tied players show their next highest card. The player with the highest card gets to discard all of the cards they revealed.
The next player in turn order after the player who got to discard a card(s), takes the next turn. Play proceeds in the current turn order.
UNO Spin
After the symbol is spun, all of the players race to say “UNO Spin”. The first player to say it gets to choose one card from their hand to discard. Play continues with the next player in turn order after the player that got to discard a card.
Trade Hands
When you spin this symbol, all of the players will trade their hands. Each player passes their hand to the player on their left. If you are passed a hand that only has one card, you have to say “UNO” or you have to draw two cards.
Winning UNO Spin
The game ends when one of the players play the last card from their hand. The player that plays their last card, wins UNO Spin.
The 2005 version of UNO Spin uses the scoring rules below to determine the winner.
Scoring in UNO Spin
If you would like to play multiple rounds, you can choose to keep score. The winner of each hand takes all of the cards left in the other players’ hands. If the last card forces a player to draw cards, they will draw the cards before they hand their cards to the winner of the hand. The winner scores points for all of the cards they collect as follows:
- Number cards – face value
- Draw Two, Reverse, Skip – 20 points each
- Wild, Wild Draw Four – 50 points each
You will then play another hand. The first player to reach 500 points, wins UNO Spin.
Components
- 14 Blue Cards (one each of 0-5, two each of 6-9)
- 5 Blue Spin Cards (one each of 1-5)
- 14 Green Cards (one each of 0-5, two each of 6-9)
- 5 Green Spin Cards (one each of 1-5)
- 14 Red Cards (one each of 0-5, two each of 6-9)
- 5 Red Spin Cards (one each of 1-5)
- 14 Yellow Cards (one each of 0-5, two each of 6-9)
- 5 Yellow Spin Cards (one each of 1-5)
- 8 Draw Two Cards (two of each color)
- 8 Reverse Cards (two of each color)
- 8 Skip Cards (two of each color)
- 8 Wild Cards (four have the Spin symbol)
- 4 Wild Draw Four Cards
- Wheel
- Instructions
Year: 2005 | Publisher: Mattel | Designer: Janice Ritter
Genres: Card, Family
Ages: 7+ | Number of Players: 2-10 | Length of Game: 20-60 minutes
Difficulty: Light | Strategy: Light | Luck: High
For more board and card game rules/how to plays, check out our complete alphabetical list of card and board game rules posts.