Mahjiku › Mahjong variants › American vs Hong Kong
American and Hong Kong mahjong differ above all in how a hand is scored: American counts in points (card-assigned) (fixed point value per card pattern), Hong Kong in faan (番) (faan-counting). Beyond the scoring, the tile sets are different sizes (152 against 144), and they treat jokers differently. Both are played by 4 players, and the everyday consequence is that a hand worth a lot at one table can be worth very little at the other.
How American and Hong Kong mahjong differ — the tile set, the hand, and above all how each one is scored.
| American | Hong Kong | |
|---|---|---|
| Also called | American Mah Jongg | 廣東麻雀 / 香港麻雀 |
| Played in | United States | Hong Kong, Guangdong |
| Tiles | 152 | 144 |
| Flowers | 8 flowers — a distinct honor category; how many a hand needs is set by that year's card | 4 flowers + 4 seasons (8 bonus tiles) |
| Jokers | 8 jokers — wild only in groups of three or more (pungs/kongs/quints), never singly or in a pair | none |
| Hand size | 13 | 13 |
| Scored in | points (card-assigned) | faan (番) |
| Scoring system | fixed point value per card pattern | faan-counting |
| Learning curve | advanced | beginner |
American. American mahjong (NMJL rules) is a four-player game where legal hands are defined entirely by an officially published card that changes every year, played with 152 tiles including 8 wildcard jokers and preceded by the Charleston tile-passing ritual.
Hong Kong. Hong Kong (Cantonese) mahjong is the most widely played faan-scored variant: 144 tiles, four sets and a pair, hands counted in faan with house rules set per table.
Last updated: 2026-08-27.
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