Bingo patterns: the winning shapes explained
A bingo pattern is the shape of marked squares that wins the game. In 75-ball bingo the common patterns are any line, four corners, X, postage stamp, frame, plus and blackout; in 90-ball bingo you play for one line, then two lines, then a full house. The host announces the pattern before the first number is called.
75-ball and word bingo patterns
Pink circles show the squares that must be marked. The centre square is FREE and counts as marked in every pattern.
Any line
Any one of the 12 lines: five rows, five columns or the two diagonals. The FREE centre counts. The diagram shows the middle row.
Call it “any line” or “one line”. It is the quickest pattern and the default in Clickety, so it suits a first game.
Four corners
The four corner squares of the card.
Short and fast. A good bonus round between longer patterns.
X
Both diagonals, forming an X. The FREE centre is shared by the two.
A medium-length pattern. Announce “X” or “letter X”.
Postage stamp
A 2 by 2 block in any one corner of the card (the diagram shows the top-left corner).
Fast, with four possible places to win. Players must say which corner when they call.
Frame
All 16 squares around the outside edge. The FREE centre is not part of it.
Takes a while. Good for a mid-evening prize. Also called picture frame or outside edge.
Plus
The middle row and the middle column together, making a plus sign.
Includes the FREE space, so only eight numbers are needed.
Blackout
Every square on the card (also called coverall).
The longest game. Keep it for the last, biggest prize; it can take most of the 75 balls.
90-ball patterns
A 90-ball ticket has 3 rows and 9 columns with 15 numbers, five in each row. Prizes are usually played in order, and the same ticket can win more than once.
One line
All five numbers in any one row of the ticket.
The first prize of the game. After it is checked, play on for two lines.
Two lines
All ten numbers in any two rows of the same ticket.
The second prize. Callers often say “two lines” or “two rows”.
Full house
All 15 numbers on the ticket.
The top prize and the end of the game. The ticket that completes first wins.
How to call and check a pattern
- Announce it first. Say the pattern clearly before the first ball and hold it up on a sign. People who join late will thank you.
- Say which corner for a postage stamp. A stamp is four squares in one corner, so a winner should say top-left, top-right, bottom-left or bottom-right.
- Check against the numbers called. A card wins only when every square of the pattern was actually called. Free squares count.
- Use the right pattern for the card. In Clickety the checker is set to the pattern being played, so a card that would win a different pattern is correctly told “not yet” and shown the numbers it is missing.
Need cards for these games? Make them free with the bingo card generator, then see how to host a bingo night.
Run your next bingo night with Clickety
Pick any of these patterns in the app and let it check winners for you.