Eight ball is the most popular form of pool in the world, played in pubs, clubs and on phones everywhere. It is easy to learn: pot your group of balls, then the black 8 ball. Winning consistently, though, takes a little knowledge about aiming, controlling the cue ball and thinking a shot or two ahead. This guide covers the rules, then the skills, step by step, and you can practise all of it in our free browser game:
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The rules of 8 ball in one minute
- The balls: 15 object balls and a white cue ball. Balls 1 to 7 are solids, 9 to 15 are stripes, and the 8 is black.
- The break: the balls start in a triangle with the 8 ball in the middle. The first player breaks them apart.
- Choosing groups: in our game, the first ball you pot after the break decides your group, solids or stripes. Your opponent gets the other group.
- Your turn: you keep shooting as long as you legally pot one of your own balls. Miss, and it is your opponent's turn.
- Winning: once all your balls are down, pot the 8 ball to win.
- Losing: potting the 8 ball before your group is cleared, or committing a foul while potting it, loses the game.
Rules vary slightly between pubs, leagues and apps, so always check the version you are playing. The essentials above are the same almost everywhere.
Fouls and ball in hand
A foul gives your opponent ball in hand: they can place the cue ball anywhere on the table, which is a huge advantage. Common fouls include:
- potting the cue ball, known as a scratch,
- hitting one of your opponent's balls first, or the 8 ball before your group is cleared,
- missing every ball completely,
- no ball touching a cushion and no ball being potted after the cue ball hits the first ball.
Avoiding fouls is the easiest way to improve. A safe shot that leaves the cue ball in a sensible place is far better than a risky pot that hands your opponent ball in hand.
How to aim: the ghost ball method
Aiming is the skill everyone wants to master first, and one simple technique works for nearly every shot.
- Draw an imaginary line from the centre of the pocket through the centre of the ball you want to pot.
- Extend that line just past the object ball. Imagine a second cue ball, the ghost ball, sitting there, touching the object ball on the side opposite the pocket.
- Aim the real cue ball at the centre of the ghost ball.
- Shoot smoothly. When the cue ball arrives where the ghost ball was, the object ball goes towards the pocket.
Straight shots are easiest: the cue ball, object ball and pocket are all in a line. The bigger the angle, called the cut, the thinner the contact needs to be, and the less margin for error you have. Beginners should look for straight or gentle-angle shots whenever possible.
In browser pool games, the aiming guide line often shows where the object ball will travel. Use it to learn the ghost ball idea: after a while you will start to see the right contact point before the line even appears.
Power: the most underrated skill
New players hit too hard. A gentle shot that just drops the ball in the pocket is more accurate, because the pocket "accepts" a slow ball even if it is slightly off line, while a fast ball can bounce out of the jaws. Slower shots also leave the cue ball in a predictable place. As a rule of thumb, use the minimum power needed to reach the pocket plus a little extra, and save hard shots for breaks and long-distance positional play.
Controlling the cue ball
Good players think about where the white ball will stop as much as about potting. Where you hit the cue ball changes how it behaves after contact. If your game offers a spin control, these are the three basics:
| Spin | Where you hit the cue ball | What it does after contact |
|---|---|---|
| Stun | Centre | On a straight shot, the cue ball stops dead where it hits the object ball |
| Follow (topspin) | Above centre | The cue ball rolls forward after the object ball |
| Draw (backspin) | Below centre | The cue ball comes back towards you |
| Side spin | Left or right of centre | Changes the angle the cue ball takes off a cushion; best avoided until you are confident |
With these, you can steer the cue ball into a good position for the next shot instead of leaving it to chance. That is called position play, and it is what separates players who pot one ball from players who clear the table.
How to break
A good break spreads the balls, gives you a chance to pot one and keeps the cue ball in the middle of the table.
- Hit the front ball of the triangle full and firmly, aiming at the centre of the cue ball so it does not fly off the table.
- Many players break from slightly to one side of the baulk area, which can help send a ball towards a corner pocket.
- Prioritise control over raw power. A break that scratches hands your opponent ball in hand.
Plan your clearance
After the break, take a moment to look at the whole table before shooting. Ask yourself:
- Which of my balls are easy to pot from where they are now?
- Are any of my balls blocked, stuck on a cushion or clustered with other balls? Those need a plan early.
- Which ball should be my last one before the 8, so the cue ball ends up near the 8?
Then work backwards: choose an order that lets each shot leave the cue ball in position for the next. Even a rough plan wins far more games than potting whatever looks easiest at each moment.
Safety shots: when not to pot
Sometimes there is no good pot available. Instead of a hopeful shot that leaves an easy chance for your opponent, play a safety: hit one of your balls gently and leave the cue ball somewhere awkward for your opponent, for example behind one of your balls or tight against a cushion. Remember the rule that a ball must touch a cushion after contact, or it is a foul. Good safety play frustrates opponents and often wins you ball in hand when they foul.
The 8 ball endgame
- Before your last ball, think about the 8. Pot your last ball in a way that leaves the cue ball close to the 8 with a straight shot.
- Do not rush the black. Take extra care on the final shot and use only the power you need.
- Watch for the scratch. Potting the 8 but also sinking the cue ball usually loses the game. On risky angles, use a little stun or draw to stop the white ball following into a pocket.
- Block your opponent. If your opponent is down to the 8 and you are not, leave your balls in front of the pockets they need.
Shots every player should learn
The stop shot
On a straight shot, hit the cue ball in the centre with medium power. The cue ball stops where the object ball was, which keeps it in the middle of the table and away from pockets. It is the most useful positional shot in pool and the first one to practise.
The bank shot
Sometimes the only way to pot a ball is to bounce it off a cushion first. The basic idea is that the ball leaves the cushion at roughly the same angle it arrived. Pick a point on the cushion halfway between the object ball and the pocket's reflection, and aim the object ball there. Bank shots are harder than direct pots, so keep them for when there is no better option.
The kick shot
When the ball you need is hidden behind other balls, you can bounce the cue ball off a cushion to reach it. Use the same angle-in, angle-out idea. Even if you do not pot anything, hitting your own ball first avoids a foul, and often leaves your opponent in a tricky spot.
Breaking up clusters
When two or more balls are touching, they are hard to pot. Use a shot that pots one ball and sends the cue ball gently into the cluster to spread it, or play a safety that nudges it apart. Deal with clusters early in your turn, while you still have easy balls left to fall back on.
Reading your opponent
Against the computer or a friend, watching how your opponent plays gives you an edge. Notice which of their balls are hard to pot, and avoid knocking those into easier positions. If your opponent likes to attack every ball, a tight safety will often tempt them into a foul. And when you are ahead, there is no shame in playing safe: the player who makes fewer mistakes usually wins.
Five mistakes that lose games
- Hitting every shot as hard as possible.
- Potting easy balls early and leaving difficult ones for last.
- Ignoring where the cue ball will end up.
- Taking a risky pot instead of a safety when nothing easy is on.
- Forgetting to check whether the cue ball could follow the object ball into the pocket.
A 15-minute practice routine
- 5 minutes, straight shots: practise potting straight balls with gentle power until you rarely miss.
- 5 minutes, cut shots: practise half-ball and thin cuts using the ghost ball method.
- 5 minutes, a full game against the computer on Easy or Normal, planning your clearance after every break.
When you beat Normal regularly, move up to Hard, or challenge a friend in 2 player mode. Pool is also one of the games we recommend in our guide to playing on phone and PC: it plays best with a mouse, but works well on a tablet too.
Pool, snooker and billiards: what is the difference?
People often use these words interchangeably, but they are different games. Pool covers games like 8 ball and 9 ball on a table with six pockets and numbered balls. Snooker is played on a much larger table with 15 red balls, six coloured balls and smaller pockets, and is especially popular in the UK and Asia, including India. English billiards uses just three balls and scores points for pots and cannons. All three share the same core skill: controlling where the cue ball goes. Once you learn that in pool, you will find the other games much easier to pick up.
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