Play JEOPARDY! | Rules | Set-Up My Account | Challenge a Friend

GOALS | MAIN ROUND RULES | THE DAILY DOUBLE
FINAL JEOPARDY! | CONTROLS | SCORING | STRATEGY

Game Goals

JEOPARDY!, America's favorite quiz show®, provides contestants with the clues, and you score points by correctly selecting the question. If you get it right, you earn points. If you get it wrong, you lose points. Select the correct responses to the Daily Double and Final JEOPARDY! to win even more points. Finish the game as quickly as possible for a time bonus!

JEOPARDY! Main Round Rules

The game begins by introducing the three categories. Each category will consist of five clues of increasing difficulty, with point values of $200, $400, $600, $800, and $1000. There are a total of 15 clues in the Main Round. Each column is a different category, and the category names are listed along the top.

IMPORTANT NOTE: All point values in the game display as dollar amounts in order to retain the style of the television quiz show. Please be aware that these dollar amounts are for scoring purposes only and do not constitute actual prizes. Tournament prizes are displayed on the competition selection page seen before the game begins and do not increase by the number of points players earn during the game.

To play the game, click on one of the dollar amounts in the clues located at the left side of the screen. A clue will then appear for the category listed above the clue you selected. After reading the clue, you will have two choices: Respond or Pass.

• If you click on Pass, you will score no points and must select another clue.
• If you click Respond, you will be given four "questions" to choose from. Click on the question you wish to select. If you select the correct question to match the clue given, the point value of that clue will be added to your score. If you select incorrectly, the point value of that clue will be subtracted from your score.

After selecting a clue, you will have 10 seconds to click either Respond or Pass. If you do not make a choice within 10 seconds, the game will Pass automatically. When you choose to Respond, you will have 15 seconds to make a choice. If you do not select one of the four responses before the timer runs out, you will be ruled incorrect, and the value of that clue will be subtracted from your score.

Each time you complete a clue by either responding or passing, the clue will be cleared on the JEOPARDY! board. You have a time limit of four minutes to clear the entire board. Once you have cleared all 15 clues, the main JEOPARDY! round ends, and you will receive a time bonus of $5 per second remaining. If your score is greater than zero at that point, you will advance to the Final JEOPARDY! round.

If you run out of time before clearing the whole board, you will not receive a time bonus. If your score is greater than $0, you will immediately advance to Final JEOPARDY! If your score is $0 or less, the game ends.

The Daily Double

Hidden somewhere in the main JEOPARDY! round is one Daily Double. When it appears, you will have the opportunity to wager up to the total amount of points that you have earned on the outcome of that clue. If you have less than $1,000 in points, then you may wager up to $1,000. You must wager at least $5, even if your score is less than that.

After selecting and submitting your wager, you will see a clue and four choices of questions for the category in which the Daily Double was located. You will have 15 seconds to make your choice. If you choose the correct response, the amount you wagered will be added to your score. If you respond incorrectly or you do not respond before the 15-second timer expires, you will lose the amount wagered.

A NOTE ABOUT FAIRNESS: The value of the Daily Double can vary depending on when it appears in the game. A player who has cleared half the board before reaching the Daily Double may have accumulated more points to wager than a player who finds it in the second clue. To make competitions between players fair, we have designed JEOPARDY! so that the Daily Double always appears at the same time (after the same number of clues have been cleared) for all the players in each tournament. If the first player in a tournament finds the Daily Double after the fourth clue, then all other players in that tournament will find it after the fourth clue. This ensures that all players will have the same scoring potential for that tournament. This holds true regardless of whether there are two players or 200 players in the tournament, and players who enter a particular tournament more than once will always find the Daily Double after the same number of clues have been cleared.

Final JEOPARDY!

If you complete the main JEOPARDY! round with a positive score (including your time bonus) then you advance to Final JEOPARDY! round. Final JEOPARDY! consists of a single clue in a new category. The category will be displayed on the screen and you may then wager an amount up to the total amount of points that you currently have. The minimum wager is $0.

After you have entered your wager, you will see the clue along with four choices of questions. You will have 30 seconds to make your choice. If you choose the correct response, the amount you wagered will be added to your score. If you respond incorrectly or you do not respond before the 30-second timer expires, you will lose the amount wagered.

Game Controls

The game controls are as follows:

• To select a dollar amount on the main board, use your mouse to left-click on a clue in one of the three columns on the left side of the screen. You may not select clues that have already been cleared.
• When prompted to Respond or Pass, make your selection using the left mouse button.
• When selecting a question to match a particular clue, left-click your choice.
• When making a wager for the Daily Double or Final JEOPARDY!, you may type the amount using the keyboard.
• You can make a maximum wager (the full amount of your score or $1,000, whichever is higher) during the Daily Double by clicking the "Bet Maximum" button. You can make a minimum wager by clicking the "Bet Minimum" button.
• You can make a maximum wager during Final JEOPARDY! by clicking the "Maximum Wager" button.

Game Scoring

• For each correct response during the main JEOPARDY! round, you receive an amount of points equal to the amount shown in the clue you selected: $200, $400, $600, $800, or $1,000.
• For each incorrect response, you lose an amount of points equal to the amount shown in the clue you selected.
• You do not gain or lose points if you pass on a clue.
• If you respond correctly to the Daily Double, then you will receive an amount equal to your wager. If you respond incorrectly, you will lose the amount you wagered.
• Clearing the board in less than four minutes will earn you a point bonus of $5 for each second remaining.
• If you respond correctly to Final JEOPARDY!, you will receive an amount equal to your wager. If you respond incorrectly, you will lose the amount you wagered.
• If your score is less than zero at the end of the game, you will receive a final score of zero.

Game Strategy

• You can wager up to $1,000 on the Daily Double, even if your score is less than that!
• You must have a positive score at the end of the main round to advance to Final JEOPARDY!
• Passing on difficult clues will prevent you from losing points by guessing incorrectly.
• Be sure to respond to each clue within 15 seconds, or you'll lose the points!