Mahjong vs. Rummikub
Comparing 2 standards across 17 specifications. 17 key differences identified.
Mahjong is a 4-player tile-matching game originating in China, played with 136 or 144 tiles across Suits (Dots, Bamboo, Characters) and Honors (Winds and Dragons). The objective is to build a winning 14-tile hand composed of four melds (Chows/sequences or Pungs/triplets) and one pair, with official Japanese Riichi rules requiring at least one valid Yaku (scoring condition).
Rummikub is a tile-based game combining elements of Rummy and Mahjong, played with 106 tiles (numbers 1–13 in four colors plus two Jokers). Players must achieve an initial meld threshold of 30 points before being permitted to manipulate, split, and rearrange all existing tiles on the board to form valid Groups and Runs.
Specification Comparison Table
17 Parameters| Parameter / Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Standard Tile Count
|
136 (Riichi) or 144 (Chinese with Flowers) tiles | — |
|
Suit Tiles (Dots, Bams, Craks)
|
108 tiles (4 of each 1–9) | — |
|
Wind Honor Tiles (E, S, W, N)
|
16 tiles (4 of each wind) | — |
|
Dragon Honor Tiles (G, R, W)
|
12 tiles (4 Green, Red, White) | — |
|
Bonus Flower & Season Tiles
|
8 tiles (Chinese / American sets) | — |
|
Starting Hand Size
|
13 tiles (Dealer starts with 14) | — |
|
Winning Hand Structure
|
4 Melds + 1 Pair 14 tiles total | — |
|
Riichi Tile Dimensions
|
26 × 19 × 16 to 28 × 21 × 16.5 mm (compact) | — |
|
Chinese Large Tile Size
|
34 × 25 × 19 to 38 × 28 × 21 mm (heavy) | — |
|
Total Tiles in Set
|
— | 106 tiles |
|
Number Tiles (1–13)
|
— | 104 tiles (two sets of 4 colors: Black, Blue, Red, Yellow) |
|
Joker Tiles
|
— | 2 wild tiles |
|
Starting Rack Size
|
— | 14 tiles per player |
|
Initial Meld Threshold
|
— | 30 points minimum (own tiles only) |
|
Turn Time Limit
|
— | 1 minute (tournament standard) |
|
Minimum Meld Size
|
— | 3 tiles (Group or Run) |
|
Standard Tile Dimensions
|
— | 27 × 38 × 5 mm (standard plastic tile) |