Ludo Learning Guide
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Beginner guide

How to Play Ludo: Rules and Setup

Ludo is a race game in which each player tries to move their tokens around a track and into their home area. Dice create uncertainty; players choose which token should use each roll.

There are several editions of Ludo. The instructions below describe common modern rules, not a universal rulebook for every board or app.

1. What you need

  • A Ludo board with a shared route and coloured home areas.
  • Usually two to four players, depending on the board.
  • Four tokens per player in that player's colour.
  • One standard six-sided die, unless the edition supplies a different method.

2. Set up the board

  1. Each player chooses a colour and places all four tokens in that colour's starting yard.
  2. Decide who takes the first turn. Some groups roll for the highest number; others use a simple agreed order.
  3. Before play starts, agree on any house rules, such as whether rolling a six grants another turn and how blockades work.

3. Bring a token onto the track

In a common ruleset, a token leaves its starting yard only after its owner rolls a six. The token is placed on that colour's entry square. If no token can legally enter and no token already on the track can move, the player usually passes unless the edition specifies another action.

Check your board's instructions: some editions allow different entry rolls, extra turns, or ways to move a token out. A digital version may enforce its own rules automatically.

4. Move around the route

On a turn, roll the die and move one eligible token forward by the number shown. Follow the track in the direction marked by the board; don't count the starting yard or home lane as ordinary spaces unless your edition's instructions say so. A move must be legal and fit the exact path available to that token.

5. Capture and safe spaces

In many editions, landing exactly on a square occupied by one opponent token sends that token back to its starting yard. Some squares are marked safe, where captures are not allowed. Rules for two tokens sharing a square, blockades, entry squares and safe zones vary, so check the specific board.

6. Reach home

After completing the circuit, a token enters its own coloured home lane. Many common rulesets require an exact die roll to reach the final home space. A token cannot usually continue beyond the end. If no token can use a roll legally, the turn ends.

7. Win the game

The usual objective is to move all four of your tokens into the home area first. Some groups choose to finish the current round so each player has the same number of turns; others stop as soon as someone wins. Agree on this before you start.

A quick example

Suppose you roll a four and have two tokens that can legally move. One token is close to a safe square; the other could approach an opponent. Count each move along the track, check the board's special squares, then choose the token whose position best fits your plan. A higher die roll is not automatically the best move.

Before your first turn

  • Confirm the entry roll and whether a six gives an extra turn.
  • Identify safe squares and your coloured home lane.
  • Ask whether two tokens may share or block a square.
  • Confirm whether the final home move needs an exact number.

For further reading, see Basic Rules & Gameplay, the guide to dice probability, and our frequently asked questions.