Calling a game
This page opens on the caller, ready for a standard 75-ball game. Before the first call, tell the room which pattern wins: a line in any direction, four corners, or a blackout (every square).
- Start: call first, then Call next, draws a number and shows it large, with its letter: B 12, N 38. The Space bar or the N key does the same, so a wireless keyboard can run the game from across the room.
- Auto-call draws a number every 5, 8, 12 or 20 seconds. Where the browser allows it, the screen stays on while auto-call runs. Pause it while you check a claim.
- Last calls shows the six most recent numbers, and the board below lights up every number called so far, row by row from B to O. Undo takes back a call made by mistake.
- Read calls aloud says each call as the letter, then the number, with a voice installed on your device, so it works offline and nothing is sent anywhere. Most computers, phones and tablets have one; if yours doesn’t, the option is greyed out and a note explains how to add one.
- Full screen fills a TV or projector with the current number, the recent calls and the board.
Say the letter before the number and repeat each call once: players scan the right column first, and a repeated call saves arguments later. If you run the game in a hall, check the speakers before people arrive.
How long a game lasts
We simulated 4,000 games for each row, using cards from this generator with a free center and numbers drawn in random order. A line counts in any row, column or diagonal. The first number is the median number of calls; the range covers 8 games in 10.
| Cards in play | First line | First blackout |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 42 (28–54) | 74 (70–75) |
| 10 | 26 (18–33) | 69 (65–72) |
| 25 | 22 (15–28) | 67 (63–69) |
| 50 | 19 (13–24) | 65 (61–68) |
| 100 | 16 (11–21) | 64 (60–66) |
So with 25 cards and auto-call at 8 seconds, expect the first line after about three minutes, and a blackout after about nine. If only rows and columns count (no diagonals), the first line with 25 cards comes after about 23 calls instead of 22. Ties happen more often than people expect: in another 3,000 simulated games per size, two or more cards completed their first line on the same call in about 1 game in 9 with 25 cards, and 1 in 6 with 100 cards. Decide before the game whether tied players share the prize or play one more call.
Checking a winner
For cards printed from this generator, type the card number from the bottom of the card into Check a winning card. The card is rebuilt from the card set code and settings on the Make cards tab, so enter the code printed on the cards there first, with the same free-space setting. The check marks every called number on the card and names the completed lines, or says the card has a blackout.
For other patterns, such as four corners or a postage stamp (a 2×2 block in a corner), look at the marked card the check shows. For cards from anywhere else, have the player read their numbers back and compare them with the board.
Don’t have cards yet? The Make cards tab prints up to 200 different ones as a PDF, and the bingo card generator remembers your settings between visits. For the British game with 90 numbers and three prizes, use the 90-ball ticket generator.
When you reload, this page goes back to the set-up described here, with the same card set code, so printing again gives the same cards. The number of cards, the paper size and, where this page doesn’t set them, cards per page and color are remembered from the generator. To keep an edited list, use Share result, or start from the bingo card generator, which remembers everything.