How to Play Air Hockey: Rules, Fouls and Tips
Updated
In air hockey, two players stand at opposite ends of a table and use hand-held mallets to hit a light puck into the other player's goal. The puck floats on a cushion of air, so it moves fast and bounces off the rails. Under the standard rules, the first player to score seven goals wins the game.
The rules are short, and most of them exist to keep the game fair at speed: how long you may hold the puck, where you may reach, and what you may touch it with.
The table and equipment
| Part | What it is |
|---|---|
| Table | A smooth surface with tiny holes that blow air, so the puck glides with almost no friction |
| Rails | The raised edges; the puck bounces off them at the same angle it came in |
| Goals | A slot in the rail at each end |
| Centerline | The line across the middle that divides the two halves |
| Mallet | The handle with a flat base you hit with; also called a striker, pusher or paddle |
| Puck | A light plastic disc |
Tournament tables are eight feet long. Home and arcade tables are often smaller, and mini tables can be as short as 1.5 feet.
Air hockey rules, step by step
These are the basic rules as listed in the Wikipedia article on air hockey, which follow the tournament associations.
- A face-off decides who gets the puck first.
- Hit the puck with any part of your mallet. Each player uses one mallet at a time.
- Once the puck is on your side, you have seven seconds to shoot it toward the opposite goal.
- When a goal is scored against you, you have ten seconds to put the puck back into play.
- Stay on your side of the centerline. You may move anywhere along your end of the table.
- When the puck is touching the centerline, either player may hit it.
- The first player to score seven points wins the game.
Each player may also call one ten-second time out per match, while they have the puck or while it is out of play.
What counts as a foul
| Foul | What it means |
|---|---|
| Palming | Touching the puck with your hand |
| Topping | Placing your mallet on top of the puck to stop it |
| Body contact | Touching the puck with your arm, clothing or anything other than the mallet |
| Puck off the table | Hitting the puck so it leaves the table |
| Holding too long | Keeping the puck on your side for more than seven seconds |
| Reaching over | Crossing the centerline to hit the puck |
After a foul, the player who committed it gives the puck to the opponent.
A more serious violation, such as blocking your goal with your hand, is a technical foul. The opponent gets a free shot at your goal, and you may not defend it. If the shot misses and bounces back off your end, play goes on.
House rules you may meet
- Goals to win: seven is the standard, but many home and arcade games play to a different number or to a time limit.
- Serves: in the standard rules, the player who was scored on puts the next puck into play. If your group does it differently, agree before the first face-off.
- Timing: the seven-second count and the time out come from tournament play. At home, agree whether you use them.
How to defend in air hockey
A fast puck is easy to block from the right place, so learn defense before power.
- Stay in front of your goal. Keep the mallet centered, at least eight inches out from the goal. From there, small moves left and right block almost every straight shot.
- Pull back for bank shots. When the puck comes off a rail, pull back quickly toward the corner of your goal it is heading for. Players call this the triangle defense.
- Do not chase the puck. Swinging at a puck on your opponent's side leaves your goal open.
- Hold the mallet from behind. Tournament players grip it behind the knob with their fingertips instead of on top. This gives more wrist action and faster moves.
Shots and attacking
- The straight shot. Hit the puck through the middle at the goal. It is fast, but a centered defender stops it.
- Bank shots. Aim at a rail so the puck bounces into the far corner of the goal. A bank changes the angle the defender has to cover.
- Drifts. Strong players move the puck slowly around their own side before shooting, in set patterns, to throw off the opponent's timing. Remember the seven-second limit.
- Same motion, two shots. Hitting the puck on a slightly different spot of the mallet sends it the other way from the same arm movement. That makes your shot harder to read.
Play air hockey in your browser
Browser air hockey uses the mouse, the keyboard or a finger instead of a real mallet, and each game sets its own score to win.
- Neon Hockey 2 has a mode against the computer, with three difficulty levels, and a mode for two players on one device. A match is the best of three periods, with seven goals needed to win a period. Player 1 uses the mouse, the left half of the screen or WASD; player 2 uses the right half or the arrow keys. You can change the mallet size and the top puck speed in the settings.
- Air Hockey - Classic follows the standard target: the first player to seven goals wins the match.
- Air Hockey - 2 Players puts you against the computer at the difficulty you choose; the first to 15 points wins.
- Air Hockey Glow: 2 Players lets you play against the computer or against a friend on the same device, steering the puck by the speed of your drag.
- Velocity Puck is a 3D game against computer opponents, where the force and angle of your paddle set the puck's path.
Air Hockey Cup is a relative rather than true air hockey: you shoot tokens to score goals and play through a league and tournaments.
For more games to share a screen with a friend, open the 2-player category or read two-player games on one keyboard. Other table games are in the sports category, and if the next table is a pool table, see 8 ball pool rules.
Common questions about air hockey
How many points do you play to in air hockey?
Seven is the standard game. Home tables and browser games often use other targets, such as 15 points or a time limit.
Who serves after a goal?
The player who was scored on. They have ten seconds to put the puck back into play.
Can you cross the centerline in air hockey?
No. You must stay on your side, but when the puck is touching the centerline, either player may hit it.
Can you stop the puck with your hand?
No. Touching the puck with your hand is palming, a foul. Blocking your goal with your hand is a technical foul, and your opponent gets a free shot.
Keep your mallet in front of the goal, shoot within seven seconds, and let the rails do half the work.
