How to Count Fu in Riichi Mahjong | The Order to Learn It and 3 Worked Examples

Fu are bonus points for how hard a hand is to build

A riichi mahjong score is decided by two numbers: han and fu. Han come from yaku and dora and move the score a lot. Fu are bonus points for how hard the hand was to build, for example holding triplets, waiting on a narrow wait or winning by ron with a closed hand. At the same han, more fu means more points.

You only need to count fu for hands up to about 4 han. Mangan, haneman and anything else from 5 han up are scored regardless of fu, so you do not need to count them. Put the other way, the hands you win most often, such as riichi, pinfu, tanyao and one dora, are exactly the ones where fu change the score.

Five steps for counting fu

1. 1

   Start with the 20 base fu

   Every winning hand gets 20 fu to start with. This is called futei (base fu). You add to it from here.

2. 2

   Add fu for how you won

   If you win by ron with a closed hand (no calls; a closed kan is allowed), add 10 fu. This is the closed ron bonus (menzen kafu). If you win by tsumo, add 2 fu, except when the hand is pinfu, in which case the 2 tsumo fu are not added.

3. 3

   Add fu for triplets and quads

   Sequences are worth 0 fu. Only triplets and quads earn fu, depending on the tiles and on whether they were called or completed by yourself (see the table in the next section).

4. 4

   Add fu for the pair and the wait

   A pair of yakuhai (dragons, the round wind or your seat wind) is worth 2 fu. A closed, edge or single wait is worth 2 fu; an open (two-sided) wait or a shanpon wait is 0 fu.

5. 5

   Round up to the next 10

   Round the total up to a multiple of 10: 32 fu becomes 40 and 22 fu becomes 30. Exactly 30 or 40 stays as it is. Only chiitoitsu's 25 fu is not rounded.

Counting in this order makes it hard to forget an item. When looking at a hand, move your eyes in the same order, “how you won, then each set from the left, then the pair, then the wait”, and checking becomes faster.

Remember triplet and quad fu as “start at 2 and keep doubling”

Triplets and quads have the most entries in the fu table, but one rule gives them all. The starting point is an open triplet of simples (2 to 8) = 2 fu. Each of the following conditions doubles it.

• Terminals or honours (1, 9 or honour tiles): double
• A concealed triplet (completed by yourself): double
• A quad: four times

The largest is a closed quad of terminals or honours, worth 32 fu. One closed quad alone takes a closed ron hand to 20 + 10 + 32 = 62 fu, rounded up to 70 fu. Rather than memorising the table, remember that it runs 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 by doubling.

Count three example hands

Suppose you win as the South seat (non-dealer) in the East round, with no dora. The breakdowns below are the same as the ones shown when the same hand is entered into the fu calculator. Tiles are written with m for characters, p for circles and s for bamboo.

In the second example East was called, so there is no closed ron bonus. The 2 tsumo fu still apply, giving 26 fu, rounded up to 30. The third example has a closed kan, but a closed kan is not a call, so the hand stays closed: you can still declare riichi and the 10-fu closed ron bonus applies.

Five common counting mistakes

• Adding the closed ron bonus to an open hand: after a pon, chi or open kan, the 10 fu do not apply. A closed kan alone keeps the hand closed.
• Forgetting the 2 tsumo fu: every tsumo except pinfu gets 2 fu. Rounding can change the result, turning 26 into 30 or 32 into 40.
• Giving fu to a pair of non-value winds: a pair of a wind that is neither the round wind nor your seat wind is 0 fu. Only dragon pairs and pairs of the round or seat wind are 2 fu.
• Adding 2 fu for a wait that can also be read as two-sided: the same hand can sometimes be read as either a closed wait or a two-sided wait. In that case, choose the reading that scores more.
• Rounding chiitoitsu up to 30 fu: chiitoitsu is fixed at 25 fu and is not rounded.

The exceptions, such as 20 fu for pinfu tsumo, 25 fu for chiitoitsu and 30 fu for open hands with no fu, are collected in the fu exceptions: pinfu tsumo 20 fu, chiitoitsu 25 fu and more. Once fu and han are decided, you can look up the score in the mahjong score table and how to remember it.

How to practise so fu counting becomes quick

1. 1

   Count first, then check the answer

   Take a hand you won, or one from a game record or video, and count it yourself first. Then enter the same hand in the fu calculator and compare the breakdown line by line; you will see straight away where you went wrong.

2. 2

   Get used to the line between 30 and 40 fu

   A closed ron hand starts at 30 fu. Add a concealed triplet of terminals or honours (8 fu), or a concealed triplet of simples (4 fu) plus a closed wait (2 fu), and it becomes 40 fu. Build the instinct “over 30 means 40” first.

3. 3

   Learn the exceptions last

   Pinfu tsumo, chiitoitsu and open hands with no fu are less confusing if you learn them after you are comfortable with normal counting.

FAQ

Do I have to learn fu counting?

If you call your own scores, knowing the difference between 30 and 40 fu is enough to get by. Mangan and above from 5 han are scored regardless of fu, so fu only matter for hands up to 4 han. Until you are used to it, learning while checking your answers with the fu calculator works well.

How many fu is a closed kan?

A closed quad of simples (2 to 8) is 16 fu, and one of terminals or honours (1, 9, honours) is 32 fu. A closed kan is not a call, so the hand stays closed: you can still riichi, and a ron win gets the 10-fu closed ron bonus.

Do you always get the 20 base fu?

Every winning hand gets them. Only chiitoitsu skips the base fu and is fixed at 25 fu. Yakuman hands are not counted in fu.

What do I use when I count 32 fu?

Round up to 40 fu. 22 fu becomes 30, and 42 fu becomes 50. Only chiitoitsu's 25 fu is used as it is, without rounding.