Mahjiku › Mahjong variants › Chinese Official vs Riichi
How Chinese Official and Riichi mahjong differ — the tile set, the hand, and above all how each one is scored.
| Chinese Official | Riichi | |
|---|---|---|
| Also called | 国标麻将 | 麻雀 / リーチ麻雀 |
| Played in | China (competition circuit), international (WMO events) | Japan, international competitive scene |
| Tiles | 144 | 136 |
| Flowers | 4 flowers + 4 seasons (8 bonus tiles) | none — flower and season tiles are omitted from standard riichi sets |
| Jokers | none | none |
| Hand size | 13 | 13 |
| Scored in | points (the "81 patterns") | han + fu |
| Scoring system | cumulative fan-counting against a standardized 81-pattern list | han-fu scoring against a point table |
| Learning curve | advanced | advanced |
Chinese Official. Chinese Official (国标麻将 / MCR) is the standardized competition ruleset created in 1998, built around 81 fixed scoring patterns and an 8-point minimum to win — designed to replace regional house rules with one standard.
Riichi. Riichi (Japanese) mahjong is the modern competitive ruleset centered on the riichi declaration, mandatory yaku, and han/fu scoring — 136 tiles, four players, no flowers in play.
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