Mahjong Cheat Sheet (Printable Rules & Winning Hands)

If you’re learning Mahjong, you don’t need a 3,000-word rulebook every time you play.

You need something simple.

Clear.

Quick to glance at mid-game.

This printable Mahjong cheat sheet summarizes:

Winning hand structure
Meld types
Common scoring patterns
Variant differences
Beginner reminders

If you’d like a clean printable version you can download instantly, grab the free Mahjong quick reference sheet.

🀄 Free Printable Mahjong Cheat Sheet

Get the Free NMJL Mahjong Cheat Sheet — a printable beginner reference you can keep beside you while learning the rules, hand structure, and key American Mahjong reminders.

This free printable Mahjong cheat sheet includes:

✔ The 60-second NMJL card scan method
✔ Simple Charleston passing rules
✔ Beginner joker guidelines

Download the Free Cheat Sheet

Instant PDF • Printable • Beginner friendly

Mahjong Winning Hand Structure (All Variants)

Most Mahjong versions follow this structure:

✔ 4 Melds
✔ 1 Pair

A meld can be:

• Chow – 3 consecutive tiles in same suit
• Pung – 3 identical tiles
• Kong – 4 identical tiles

A pair is:

• 2 identical tiles

Example winning structure:

2–3–4 Bamboo
6–7–8 Dots
Red Dragon ×3
9 Characters ×3
East ×2

If you want detailed examples, see:
Mahjong Winning Hands Explained

🀄 Quick Tile Reference

Suits

Dots (1–9)
Bamboo (1–9)
Characters (1–9)

Honor Tiles

Winds: East, South, West, North
Dragons: Red, Green, White

Bonus Tiles (Chinese Style Only)

Flowers
Seasons

Not used in Riichi Mahjong.

Common Winning Hand Types (Quick List)

✔ All Chows (sequence-based hand)
✔ All Pungs (triplet hand)
✔ Half Flush (one suit + honors)
✔ Full Flush (one suit only)
✔ Seven Pairs
✔ Thirteen Orphans

For full explanations and scoring value, see:
Mahjong Winning Hands Guide

Hong Kong Minimum Fan Reminder

In Hong Kong Mahjong:

⚠ You must reach the minimum Fan (usually 3) to win.

Common easy Fan sources:

• Dragon Pung (1 Fan)
• Seat Wind Pung (1 Fan)
• Self-Draw (1 Fan)
• All Pungs (3 Fan+)

If your hand has 0 Fan, you cannot declare Mahjong.

Riichi Mahjong Yaku Reminder

In Japanese Riichi Mahjong:

⚠ You must have at least one Yaku to win.

Common beginner Yaku:

• Riichi
• Tanyao (no 1s, 9s, honors)
• Pinfu (all sequences)
• Yakuhai (dragon or seat wind pung)
• Tsumo (self-draw)

No Yaku = No Win.

Dora add value but do NOT count as Yaku.

American Mahjong Reminder

In American Mahjong:

• Winning hands must match the NMJL card
• Jokers allowed
• Fixed hand patterns

Structure is different from Chinese / HK / Riichi.

Defensive Reminders

✔ Watch discards
✔ Don’t chase Full Flush blindly
✔ Count visible tiles
✔ Late game = safer discards

For common beginner traps, see:
Common Mahjong Mistakes Beginners Make

📄 Printable Mahjong Cheat Sheet (Clean Version)

You can copy and print the section below:

MAHJONG QUICK REFERENCE

Winning Structure:
4 Melds + 1 Pair

Meld Types:
Chow = 3 consecutive same suit
Pung = 3 identical tiles
Kong = 4 identical tiles

Common Hands:
All Chows
All Pungs
Half Flush
Full Flush
Seven Pairs
Thirteen Orphans

Hong Kong Rule:
Minimum 3 Fan to win

Riichi Rule:
Must contain at least 1 Yaku

American Rule:
Must match NMJL card pattern

Reminder:
Dora ≠ Yaku
Flowers not used in Riichi
Watch discards carefully

Want a full step-by-step beginner guide?

If you’d like a more complete printable guide with visual examples, the NMJL Beginner Starter Kit expands on this cheat sheet and includes beginner practice hands.

It contains:

✔ A printable Mahjong quick reference sheet
✔ Visual examples of winning hands
✔ Beginner practice hands
✔ A Charleston decision flowchart for American Mahjong

👇 Preview the Guide – Click any image to zoom in and see exactly what’s inside the guide before downloading.