How to Keep Score in Bowling

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Making sense of scorekeeping, including strikes, spares, and open frames

Co-authored by Luke Smith, MFA

Last Updated: October 27, 2024 Fact Checked

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Filling Out a Scorecard

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Scoring Your Turns

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Calculating Your Final Score

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Q&A

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Tips

Most bowling alleys score your game automatically, but understanding how to score bowling gives you valuable insight to the game and comes in handy if electronic scoring isn’t available. We’ll get you started by familiarizing you with the layout of the scorecard. Then, we’ll show you how to score each turn, including strikes, spares, and open frames, and how to tally your final score to see how you stack up against other players.

Things You Should Know

Score a spare by adding 10 points to the number of pins you knock over on your next roll.
Score a strike by adding 10 points to the number of pins you knock over on your next 2 rolls.
If you don’t knock down all the pins on your turn (also called an “open frame”), your score for that turn is simply the total number of pins you did knock over.
If you have scored all 12 strikes, you are now awarded with 300 points (also called a “perfect game”)

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Filling Out a Scorecard

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Write the names of the players in the empty column on the far left of the scorecard. The other columns, labeled 1-10, each represent a single turn, or a “frame.” Each player typically bowls twice per frame. These bowls are represented by the 2 small boxes in the top right of each frame. The far right column is for your final score at the end of the game.^{[1]
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Note: Some scorecards only depict a single box in the top right of each frame, which represents the second bowl, and in which case the empty space to the left of the box represents the first bowl.
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Write the number of pins you knocked down each roll in the small boxes. Each player gets to bowl twice in each turn except in the last (tenth) frame, unless they knock over all the pins with their first roll (in which case they only bowl once that turn). Write the number of pins you knock over on your first roll in the small, left-hand box at the top of that turn’s frame. Then, record the number of pins you knock over on your second roll in the right-hand box.^{[2]
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- For example, if you knock over 2 pins on your first bowl, write the numeral “2” in the upper left box. On your second bowl, if you knock over 4 more, write “4” in the right-hand box.
- Be sure to only write down how many pins you knocked over on your second roll in the right-hand box, not the total number of pins you knocked down that turn.
- Each player will bowl a maximum of 21 times per game.
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Write an “X” in the small right-hand box to indicate a strike. Bowling a strike means that you knocked down all 10 pins on the first roll of your turn. While the small box in the top-right of the scorecard frame is typically reserved for the second roll of your turn, we typically mark strikes in this right-hand box anyway, for overall neatness.^{[3]
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- If you bowl a strike, your turn is over and your don’t bowl a second time that frame.
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Write a forward slash in the small right-hand box to indicate a spare. Bowling a spare means that you didn’t knock over all the pins on your first bowl, but you got the rest of them on your second bowl. To record a spare, first write down how many pins you knocked over on your first roll in the left-hand box of the frame. Then, draw a forward slash (connecting the bottom left and top right corners of the box) in the right-hand box.^{[4]
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- For example, if you knocked down 3 pins on your first roll and 7 pins on the second roll, write a “3” in the left-hand box and a forward slash in the right box.
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Mark a foul by writing an “F.” If you step past the foul line (the line at the start of the lane, beyond which a bowler cannot step) on your first roll for that turn, place an “F” in the left-hand box. If you step past the foul line on your second roll for that turn, place an “F” inside the small right-hand box of the scorecard frame. A foul results in no points for that bowl.^{[5]
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- You’re still allowed a second roll if you foul on your first roll of the turn.
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Write a dash in the small box if you miss the pins. If your ball goes in the gutter or if you otherwise miss the pins, indicate the miss with a horizontal dash (－). For instance, if your ball went in the gutter on your first bowl, you’d mark a dash in the small left-hand box of the frame. If your ball missed the pins on your second bowl, you’d mark a dash in the small right-hand box.^{[6]
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- If you miss the pins on one bowl but knock some of them over on the other, make sure to record the score for the roll where you did knock some pins over.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Scoring Your Turns

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1
Write your total score in the current frame after your turn. If there are still any pins standing after the second roll of your turn, this is known as an “open frame.” Add the number of pins you knocked over on your first and second rolls (the numbers you wrote in the 2 small boxes of the frame), then add that sum to your total score to find your current score. Write your current score in the large box for that frame.^{[7]
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- For example, if you knocked over 5 pins on your first roll and 4 pins on your second, you earned 9 points that frame. Then, if you had 30 points before, add your 9 points to 30 for a total score of 39.
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Score a spare by adding 10 to your next roll. When you bowl a spare (or knock down all the remaining pins on the second roll of your turn), mark it with a slash. Then, after you’ve taken your next turn, add 10 points to the first roll of that turn to find out how much your spare is worth, and write that score on the previous frame (the frame on which you got the spare). A spare can be worth anywhere from 10 to 20 points depending on how much you score in the next roll.^{[8]
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- For example, let's say you scored 6 points in turn 1. In turn 2, you knock over 3 pins, then 7, for a spare. Wait until you've rolled the first roll of turn 3 to tally your score. Then if you roll a 7, add up 6 (from turn 1) +10 (your spare)+ 7 (your first roll of turn 3) to get 23!
- After you’ve scored your spare, add up your rolls for turn 3. If you rolled a 7 and then a 2, you'd add 23 (your score in turn 2) +9 to get 32 for turn 3.
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Score a strike by adding 10 to your next 2 rolls. Just as with a spare, hold off on scoring a strike (when you knock down all of the pins on your first roll) until after you complete your next turn. Then, add 10 points to the sum of your next 2 rolls.^{[9]
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- For example, let's say you get a strike in turn 1. In turn 2, you roll a 2 and a 6, for a total of 8 points. Once you finish turn 2, your score for turn 1 is 18; 10 (for the strike) +8 (in turn 2). Then, add 18+8 for a total current score of 26
- If you roll a strike on each of your first 3 turns, the first strike is worth 30 (10 for the strike, + 10 for each of the next 2 strikes). The second strike is worth 20 (10 for the strike, + 10 for the strike in turn 3) + the score of the first roll of your fourth turn.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Calculating Your Final Score

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1
Score a third roll on the 10th frame if you roll a strike or spare that turn. The third box in the 10th frame is known as the "fill box," which helps decide what your spare or strike will be worth if you roll one in the 10th frame. If you roll a strike or a spare in the 10th frame, take a third roll on that turn and score it as you would any other roll. If you roll an open frame on the first 2 rolls, you don’t get a third roll.^{[10]
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- For instance, if you knock down 1 pin in your first roll and 9 pins in your second roll, write “1” in the left box and a “/” in the center box. Then, bowl once more and add the number you roll to 10 to calculate your spare.
- Alternatively, if you roll a strike on your first roll of the 10th frame, roll twice more. If you roll an 8 and then a 1 (for a total of 9), your score for that turn is 19.
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Determine the winner by comparing the final score of the 10th frame. Find the number of points you scored in your 10th frame, then add them to your total from the 9th frame to find your final score. For example, if your 10th-frame score is 110 and your friend's is 100, you've won the game. Congratulations!^{[11]
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- Achieving a score of 300 is considered a “perfect” game and requires bowling a strike every turn. Bowl your best to see how close you can get to 300 points!

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If a pin is touched by the rack and knocked down, is it a strike?

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A strike is only considered "legal" if the pins were knocked down by the ball, by other pins, or by the sweep bar or other equipment while it is at rest (e.g., if a pin tips against the sweep bar, rebounds, and falls over). A pin that's knocked down by a human pinsetter or moving mechanical equipment does not count toward your score.

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How do you score a team meet?

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There are a variety of different ways to score a team game. One method is to tally up the sum of each player's 10 frames to create a total score for the team. Another (called the "Baker Method") is to have each team member bowl 5 frames, then add those frames together for a total 10-frame score. You can also have 3 or 5 member teams, but the players must rotate through and take their turns in a specific order.

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How does frame 10 work?

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If you throw a strike, the next two shots are to determine your bonus from that mark. If you throw a spare, the same thing happens with the next shot. If you get an open, you don't get the third shot, as there's no bonus to be added to the pinfall. Strikes or spares beyond the first ball in the tenth will not have any bonuses, the score will end at the 10th frame.

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Two strikes in a row is called a “double,” while 3 strikes in a row is called a “turkey.”^{[12]
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A roll is also called a “bowl” or a “delivery.”

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If you roll a strike, then a spare (or vice versa), you’ll earn 20 points in that frame.

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