This Year's Mah Jongg Card

The 2026 National Mah Jongg League card has been in play since April 1, 2026, and runs through March 31, 2027. If you play the American game, this is the card every table is on right now. Here is where to get the official one, which version to pick, and how to settle into a new card once it arrives. For what the card is and how it works in general, start with the card.

Where to buy it

You buy the card straight from the National Mah Jongg League. As of 2026 the prices are about $14 for the standard card, $15 for the large-print card, and $35 for the mega card, with shipping included. That is the only official source, and the money funds the League that sets the standard every year, so there is no reason to buy it anywhere else.

We do not print the card or its hands here. The hands are the League's to publish, and reading your own copy at the table is part of the game. What we can do is help you choose a version and learn it faster.

Standard, large-print, or mega?

The standard card is the small, foldable one most players carry. The large-print card is the same hands in bigger type, which is easy on the eyes and worth the extra dollar for a lot of people. The mega card is a larger format that spreads everything out with more room to read. They all list the same year's hands, so pick by how you like to read, not by content.

How to approach a new card

A new card every spring is the ritual the American game turns on, and the relearning is half the fun. A few things make it go smoother.

Read the whole card first. Before your first game of the season, go through every section once. The hands are grouped into named sections, and you will find some that suit how you like to play, and some you will happily skip. Knowing the shape of the card is more than half of it.

Stay flexible early. Do not marry a hand on the first tile. Let the Charleston and your first few draws tell you what you are actually collecting, then commit. The players who win most are the ones who keep two hands open the longest.

Mind the jokers and the point values. Jokers can carry a group but never a single or a pair, so the card's pairs are where you are exposed. And the harder hands pay more, but a modest hand you can actually finish beats a brilliant one you cannot.

Keep the card in front of you. Use it every hand, out loud if you are learning with friends, until you stop needing to look. By midsummer the card you struggled with in April will feel like an old friend, right up until next year's arrives.