The 2026 NMJL Card: What to Know

The National Mah Jongg League publishes a brand-new card every April. To sit down at a table, you need the current year's card — last year's hands expire when the new one comes out.

What changes each year

The specific hands change every year. The broad categories tend to return, but the exact number patterns and point values within them are refreshed annually. That's by design: it keeps the game fresh and gives experienced players something new to learn every spring.

What doesn't change

Almost everything else stays the same: the tiles, the Charleston, how Jokers work, calling and exposing, and the core rules. So your skills carry straight over from year to year — you're really just learning a new set of hands, not a new game.

Where to get the card

Order directly from the National Mah Jongg League. They offer a standard size and a large-print version, and the card is inexpensive — the one thing you can't play without.

How to learn the new card fast

The fastest way to get comfortable with a new card is to practice reading it — matching tiles to hands until it's second nature. Once you can read the shorthand, a new card takes minutes to learn, not weeks.