Do you know the difference between US and UK Bingo?
Bingo is a game that’s been popular for many decades, but did you know that it looks quite different depending on which side of the Atlantic it’s being played? While they share the same name, US and UK Bingo are quite distinct from each other even though they both have the same core concept.
In both games, the goal is to mark off as many numbers as possible, but the exact rules and gameplay vary between the two. So, before you head to the online Bingo rooms, here are the key differences between two of the biggest forms of Bingo out there.
- The ball count
The first and most obvious difference between these two Bingo variants is in the number of balls used during the game. In UK games, Bingo is played with a full complement of 90 balls whereas in the US they only use a total of 75 balls.
As you might expect that difference in numbers has an impact on elements like the overall pace of the game, the layout of their Bingo cards and the variety of potential winning patterns used.
Other online games change up their ball count further, with an in-between option like 80-ball or the streamlined gameplay of the 30-ball Speed Bingo.
- The Bingo card
The design of the US and UK Bingo cards look quite distinct from each other, even if the US version is more commonly associated with the game in popular culture.
Players in a UK game use a ticket with three rows and nine columns, with just five numbers printed in each row. This means that there are just 15 numbers present on the card, with plenty of empty squares present. In these games, there is only one winning pattern to aim for, which is being the first player to mark off a single line, two lines and the full house (aka all three lines).
On the other hand, a US Bingo card is set up as a 5×5 grid with a total of 25 squares. Only the central space is left empty, as a ‘free’ space, while the other squares each feature a number. With this filled card format games offer a greater variety of winning patterns to aim for, depending on the rules set out at the start of the game.
From marking off all four corners to complex shapes like an X or T pattern, 75-ball Bingo can change up the formula rather than just having players aim for a full house.
- Bingo lingo
If there’s only one thing you know about UK Bingo, it’s probably Bingo lingo. The distinct nicknames given to each of the 90 numbers create a very unique flavour to proceedings, as the caller will call the nickname and the number whenever they draw.
This is quite different to US Bingo games, where callers stick to simply calling out the number itself and its corresponding column on the Bingo card (from B to O).
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From their different gameplay pace to their different Bingo card layouts, it’s clear to see that there’s a lot separating US and UK Bingo. Still, players these days can find games of either format to play in online Bingo rooms.
