12 Best American Mahjong Apps to Learn and Play in 2026

The best American Mahjong app depends on the job. To learn from zero: Mahj Parlour's twelve lessons are free, and MAHJ: Learn American Mahjong teaches 18 lessons for a one-time $4.99 (see the best app to learn). To play a hand: I Love Mahj is the long-running online table with live players and bots, Eight Bam's American Mahjong Practice is the classic solo trainer, Mahj Parlour is the polished newcomer with online tables, and Bam Good Time Mahjong Online (formerly Mahjic Play) is free, with AI opponents and live online tables. To run a club: Bam Good Time: Mahjong Club handles events and registration free, card payments on Starter and leagues and standings on Pro, on the web and in its apps, and TileTime, Mahjy, Mahjong Mamas and Let's Mahj are phone-first options. Those are different jobs, and mixing them up is the most common mistake in this category. Below, all twelve apps compared, with prices checked on October 18, 2026.

The American Mahjong App Landscape

For years, American Mahjong players had few digital options. The game is still best in person. But your fourth cancels, the weather turns, or you just want to practice without gathering a full table.

In 2026 the choice is wide. There are apps for online play with friends, solo practice, learning from zero, and running the club itself. Quality varies a lot. Tile art, rule enforcement and price all differ, and a wave of new apps arrived in 2026.

If you are new to the game, start with our beginner's guide to American Mahjong rules. Knowing the NMJL card, the Charleston and how calling works will help you judge which app fits.

Quick Comparison: Every Major American Mahjong App

Prices and platforms below come from each app's own App Store listing or website, checked on October 18, 2026. Prices change, so check the listing before you subscribe.

Apps to play a hand

Apps to run a club

Best App to Learn American Mahjong

For a complete beginner, the best app to learn American Mahjong is one that teaches before it deals: Mahj Parlour has twelve free interactive lessons, and MAHJ: Learn American Mahjong has 18 step-by-step lessons for a one-time $4.99. Once you know how a turn works, learn the card in an app that coaches you while you play, such as Eight Bam, Mahjong 4 Friends or our free Bam Good Time Mahjong Online.

No app replaces a patient table, so the end of this section points you to real classes too. First, here is what each app actually teaches, taken from each app's own listing or website on October 18, 2026.

Learning Tools in Each App

Best for Complete Beginners: Apps With Lessons

Mahj Parlour is the most complete free course. Its App Store listing describes twelve interactive lessons that go from meeting the tiles through the Charleston, calling, jokers, reading the card, choosing your hand and defensive play. Every lesson is free. When you are ready for full games, they need a subscription ($6.99 a month or $49.99 a year, after a free trial). It runs on iPhone and iPad, and its site says you need an official NMJL card to play.

MAHJ: Learn American Mahjong from Welcome2Mahj is built only for learning. Its listing has 18 step-by-step lessons, tile drills, daily practice, a printable cheat sheet, an A to Z glossary, play against bots, and Ask the Coach, an AI tutor that explains rules and strategy in plain English. Lessons 1 to 3 are free, in the app and on its website. One $4.99 purchase unlocks all 18 lessons, the Coach and play against bots, with no subscription and no ads. It is on iPhone, iPad and Google Play. It is not connected to the League and teaches with practice hands, so you will still want the real card.

NMJL Online, the League's own game, includes a detailed interactive tutorial, and its listing says you can play the tutorial without a membership. Full games need the physical card plus an online game membership, from $4.99 a month in the App Store.

Maylee and The Mahjong App have built-in tutorials too. Maylee's tutorial walks you through the tiles, the Charleston, calling, exposures and reading the card, and then you get two free games a day. The Mahjong App is free with ads and has AI opponents at several levels.

Best for Learning the Card: Apps That Coach While You Play

Lessons teach the rules. The card takes hands, a lot of them. These apps help most once you know how a turn works.

Eight Bam teaches by doing. Its site says the app coaches you as you play and corrects illegal moves, and its Matching Hands view shows the card hands closest to your tiles and where they overlap. With the bots off, every hand plays to the end, so you see how your choices worked out. It also has a free rules guide. The download includes the 2018 hands for free. This year's hands cost $3.99 a month or $17.99 once on the App Store.

Mahjong 4 Friends has suggested hands, ready-hand alerts that tell you when you are one tile away, and bots from Medium to Superhuman, per its home page. It is free with ads. Its site also has a how-to-play guide and a teacher directory by state.

I Love Mahj pairs its online game with a practice mode, an Exercise Room and hand suggestions, plus tutorials and a strategy guide on its learning pages. Its own I Love Mahj card is free, so a new player can start before an NMJL card arrives. It costs $6 a month or $60 a year after a 2-week free trial.

MahJongg4Fun has a Beginner Hub with rule drills on the 2024, 2025 and 2026 hands, a tool to make a hand and check that it is valid, and Suggest Hand in practice mode, per its listing. Some features need a membership ($6.99 or $69.99 in the App Store), and the listing does not say which. Real Mah Jongg's Hand Suggestions do a similar job on a subscription.

How Bam Good Time Mahjong Online Teaches

Full disclosure: this is our game. Here is what it does and does not do in version 1.1.30, the one in the App Store today.

• Practice without an account. Start a practice game and pick one of five bot levels: Beginner, Casual, Skilled, Expert or Master. Start on Beginner.
• Suggested Hands. In practice games, during the Charleston and while you play, a panel shows the three card hands closest to your rack. Each shows how close you are, the tiles you still need, and, when the app's name for a hand differs from the card, the line as printed on your card, so you can find it. Tiles a joker cannot fill, because the slot is a single or a pair, are marked. Swipe a hand away and the next closest one takes its place.
• Call highlights. In practice games, when another player discards a tile you can call, the tiles you would expose light up.
• Joker exchange highlights. If a joker sits in an exposure and you hold the tile it stands for, that tile glows once you have picked or called, so you learn when a swap is allowed.
• Rules inside every game. A Rules button opens a rules page without leaving the hand. It covers the tiles, calling, claiming a discard, declaring Mah Jongg, jokers, scoring, both Charlestons and the blind pass, and it says which card the game is using.
• Scores explained. After a win, the score breakdown says in plain words why each player paid what they did.
• Two card years. Switch between the 2025 and 2026 NMJL cards in Settings.

Practice hints are on by default and you can turn them off in Settings. They never appear in online games. The joker glow is always on.

What it does not have is a lesson course. The welcome walk-through, which appears after you first sign in, is seven short cards on the tiles, building a hand, the Charleston, calling and jokers. It runs on iPhone and iPad, and on Macs with Apple silicon as an iPad app, with no Android or web version. It is free, with no in-app purchases.

Best Free App to Learn Mahjong

If you do not want to spend anything, here is what is free today:

• Free from start to finish: Bam Good Time Mahjong Online, with no in-app purchases, and Mahjong 4 Friends, which shows ads and has no paywall for continued play.
• Free lessons: all twelve Mahj Parlour lessons, the first three MAHJ lessons, and the NMJL Online tutorial.
• Free with an old card: Eight Bam's free download plays the 2018 hands. That is fine for learning the rules, but this year's card has different hands.

Want a Person, Not an App?

Apps are patient, but most people learn fastest with a teacher and three other players. A class shows you what an app cannot: building the wall, the pace of a real table and the manners that go with it.

• Find a beginner class: our lessons directory lists upcoming American Mahjong lessons by state, with dates, teachers and online signup.
• Find a teacher: the instructor directory is a free national list of teachers who publish their lessons on Bam Good Time. Our guide to finding a mahjong instructor covers where to look, what a first lesson should cover and what lessons cost.
• Learn the basics first: read How to Learn American Mahjong: A Complete Beginner's Guide, then our rules guide and how to read the NMJL card.
• Find a table: our club directory lists more than 1,400 mahjong clubs.

A Simple Learning Path

1. Read a beginner's guide once, so the words make sense.
2. Get the current card from the National Mah Jongg League. A new one comes out each spring.
3. Work through a lesson app or a tutorial.
4. Play practice games against the easiest bots, with hints on.
5. Turn hints off and move up a level.
6. Take a beginner class, or join a table that welcomes new players.

Now let's look at each app in detail. The first seven are for playing. The last five are for running a club.

I Love Mahj

The long-running online table, with live players and bots.

If you have played American Mahjong online, you have likely heard of I Love Mahj. It runs in a web browser, so there is nothing to install.

What It Does Well

You can play live with other people, against bots at three levels, or a mix. Video calling is built in, so a home game can move online and still feel like your table. You can create or join groups that play on a regular schedule.

It goes past the game itself. There is a practice mode, an Exercise Room, hand suggestions, and detailed stats, including the hands you have completed on each year's card. It also has its own free I Love Mahj card, so a new player can start before their NMJL card arrives. An in-person organizer helps large groups plan real games, too.

Where It Falls Short

There is no native app. Everything happens in a browser tab.

After the 2-week free trial it costs $6 a month or $60 a year. That is fair if you play often. It adds up if you only play now and then.

Who It Is Best For

Players who want live games with real people, and groups who want to keep their weekly game going over video. If multiplayer is your priority, I Love Mahj is a safe pick.

Eight Bam

The original solo practice app, now on Android and Windows too.

Eight Bam LLC makes American Mahjong Practice, the app most players mean when they say "Eight Bam." It calls itself the original American Mahjong practice app, and its App Store listing shows more than 22,000 ratings, averaging 4.9 stars. It runs on iPhone, iPad, Android phones and tablets, and Windows PCs through Google Play Games.

What It Does Well

Games are quick, and you never wait on other players. With the bots off, every hand plays to the end, so you see how your choices worked out. Turn the bots on for full games, or switch on bots that can win so you can practice defense.

The standout is the Matching Hands view. It shows the card hands closest to your tiles, and where they overlap, which is the fastest way to learn a new card. The app also coaches you as you play and corrects illegal moves, so every mistake becomes a quick lesson.

It is updated for each year's NMJL card, and you can switch between years in Settings. A Daily Challenge deals every player the same tiles, and the best score wins.

Where It Falls Short

There is no live play with friends or strangers. The Daily Challenge is the only way to measure yourself against others.

The download is free and includes an older year's hands (2018 on the App Store; the developer says 2025 on Google Play). On the App Store, the current card costs $3.99 a month, or $17.99 one time for the 2026 hands. On Google Play it is $2.99 a month or $14.99 one time.

Who It Is Best For

New players who want to learn at their own pace, and experienced players who want to get sharp on a new card before their group does. Pair it with solid strategy fundamentals and you will improve faster than you expect.

Mahj Parlour

The polished newcomer: free lessons, online play and designer tiles.

Mahj Parlour arrived on the App Store in April 2026 and grew fast. Its listing shows more than 1,000 ratings, averaging 4.8 stars. It is an iPhone and iPad game from Tour in a Box LLC.

What It Does Well

Learning is the strong suit. Twelve interactive lessons take you from your first tile through the Charleston, calling, jokers, reading the card and defense. Every lesson is free.

For play, you can host a private table for your group, and a computer player takes any empty seat. Quick Match deals you into a game with another Mahj Parlour player. Solo games against bots come in Easy and Normal. Suggested Hands shows the lines closest to your tiles, and you can pin one above your rack to follow.

It plays the 2026 NMJL card with the full Charleston, including blind passes and the courtesy pass. There are no ads, and you can collect hand-illustrated tile sets with Pearls you earn by playing.

Where It Falls Short

Full games need a subscription: $6.99 a month or $49.99 a year, after a free trial. Only the lessons and daily games are free.

It runs on iPhone and iPad, and on Macs with Apple silicon as an iPad app, with no Android version. Its site says a browser version is coming soon. And with two bot levels, strong players may outgrow solo practice.

Who It Is Best For

Beginners who want structured lessons, and groups who want a beautiful private table and do not mind paying for it.

MahJongg4Fun

Free to play, on the web and now on iPhone and iPad.

MahJongg4Fun started as a web game and now has an iPhone and iPad app as well. It is free to play, with a paid membership for extras.

What It Does Well

It supports three American cards: the 2026 NMJL card, The Mahjong Press Card and The Big Card. Ranked Match puts you on a global leaderboard. Friendly Match lets you set up a private table with your own rules. Practice mode has a Suggest Hand tool to help you learn any card.

The 3D tile sets are a highlight, including sets and mats from the designers Miss Mahjong and Bespoke Mahjong. Voice chat, detailed stats and card-completion tracking round it out.

Where It Falls Short

Some features need a paid membership. Its App Store listing shows memberships from $6.99 but does not say what they include.

Its App Store listing has a few hundred ratings, far fewer than the leaders, so it has a smaller following.

Who It Is Best For

Players who want free online games with friends, and groups who play more than one American card.

Mahjong 4 Friends

Free, unlimited, and on almost every device.

Mahjong 4 Friends runs in a web browser and has apps for iPhone, iPad and Android. Its App Store listing shows more than 24,000 ratings, averaging 4.9 stars. Its home page shows a live count of players online.

What It Does Well

It is free, with no paywall for continued play and no time limits. Play solo against bots, invite friends to a private room by link or QR code, or join an open table. If you do not have four people, bots fill the seats.

American Mahjong uses the 2026 NMJL card or the Marvelous card, with the Charleston, jokers and full scoring. Suggested hands help newer players, and bot difficulty runs from Medium to Superhuman. The same app also plays Chinese, British, Hong Kong and Panama styles, per its Google Play listing, so a mixed group can share one place.

Where It Falls Short

It shows ads unless you pay to remove them. Optional upgrades are sold in the app.

Because it covers several styles, it is less focused on American players than a dedicated American app.

Who It Is Best For

Groups on mixed devices, Android users, and anyone who wants a free game with real people tonight.

Real Mah Jongg

Live and computer play with voice chat, on a subscription.

Real Mah Jongg is made by Mattron Entertainment and has been on the App Store since 2017. It is not the National Mah Jongg League's own app; that one is NMJL Online, covered under other apps below.

What It Does Well

You can play with live players, bots, or both. Invite friends, meet new players, or play privately in invisible mode. Voice and text chat make it feel like the same room.

It plays the NMJL card plus alternates like The Big Card and Mah Jongg Press. Hand Suggestions show the hands closest to your tiles, and a scorecard tracks the hands you have completed. You can pick your playing speed and tile design. It runs in a desktop browser and on iPhone and iPad, and its site says it works on Android devices too.

Where It Falls Short

After a 2-week free trial it costs $6.99 a month, one of the higher monthly prices on this list. You also bring your own card.

Who It Is Best For

Groups who want to talk while they play, and players who use more than one American card.

Bam Good Time Mahjong Online

Beautiful tiles, smart suggestions, and free to play.

Full disclosure: Bam Good Time Mahjong Online is our app. We built it to feel as good as a real table, with tools that help you improve and a link to the clubs where most mahjong happens. Its App Store listing shows 4.9 stars.

What It Does Well

The tile art is the first thing people notice. Every tile face comes from artwork by TravelMahj, so playing a hand feels like sitting down to a nice set.

The hand suggestions panel is the feature players use most. In practice games, as you draw and discard, it checks your rack against the current NMJL card and shows the hands you are closest to, with the exact tiles you still need. For newer players, it speeds up learning. For experienced players, it is a second opinion. If you are working on reading the NMJL card, it is like a patient teacher looking over your shoulder.

AI opponents are free, with five levels to choose from. You can start a practice game without making an account. The bots handle the Charleston, make sensible discards, and call tiles when it makes sense. A short walk-through after you first sign in covers the tiles, the Charleston, calling and jokers.

To play live, sign in free and pick a table. Open Table matches you with players near your rating. Play with Friends gives you a private table and a link and code to share. If your club runs on Bam Good Time, Play My Club seats you with your club-mates. Bots fill any empty seat, so you never need four people. Your skill rating and game history are saved to your free account, and the rating follows you to in-person games at Bam Good Time clubs.

Where It Falls Short

It is the newest game on this list, with far fewer ratings than the leaders, so its player base is smaller than the long-running sites. It plays the NMJL card only, with no alternate cards.

It runs on iPhone and iPad, and on Macs with Apple silicon as an iPad app. There is no Android or web version.

Who It Is Best For

Players who want a beautiful practice game that costs nothing, and club members whose club already runs on Bam Good Time.

Bam Good Time: Mahjong Club

The app for running the club, not playing the hand.

This is the other half of our family, and it answers a different question from the games above. Those are places to play American Mahjong. Bam Good Time: Mahjong Club is where a group organizes the game: who is coming Tuesday, who paid, who sits where, who is on the waitlist, and where the season standings live.

What It Does Well

Events and registration are the core. You post a game night, members register from their phone or computer, and you watch the list fill. Waitlists promote people automatically when somebody drops, and close to game time the open seat is offered to the whole list. Check-in at the door is a QR scan.

Members do not need to download anything. Every club gets its own web page, and a member can register from a link in any browser. The apps are there for people who want them.

Payments run through it too, so dues, game fees, punch cards and monthly passes stop living in a shoebox and a payment app. Card payments through Stripe start on the Starter plan; on Free, members pay you by Venmo or cash.

Leagues and tournaments are built in on Pro, with standings that compute themselves from submitted scores. Player ratings carry across clubs through Mahjic.org, a free rating system, so a player's record follows them from group to group. Rosters import from a spreadsheet, which matters when a club arrives with years of contacts.

It is free to start, and that is not a trial. The Free plan covers 5 events a month and a 50-player roster, for as long as you like. Starter ($19 a month) raises that to 12 events and 150 players and adds card payments. Pro ($49 a month) removes the limits and adds leagues, tournaments and custom branding. See pricing for the full list.

It runs on the web at bamgoodtime.com, on iPhone and iPad, on Android through Google Play, and on Mac as Bam Good Time Desktop, a native Mac app. Players can also find a game in our club directory, which lists more than 1,400 mahjong clubs.

Where It Falls Short

You cannot play mahjong in it. It is not a game. The tiles live in Bam Good Time Mahjong Online, and the two are separate downloads.

It is aimed at organized groups. If you are four friends at a kitchen table with no dues, no waitlist and no standings, it is more than you need.

Who It Is Best For

Anyone who runs a club, league or regular game night with a spreadsheet, a group email and a payment app. Also players whose club already uses it, since that is where the schedule and their standings live.

TileTime

The closest club app to ours, on phones only for now.

TileTime arrived on the App Store in April 2026 and is on Google Play too. It aims to be one home for the mahjong community: players find games, groups and instructors, and instructors run events. We wrote a full Bam Good Time vs TileTime comparison.

What It Does Well

The prices are low. Free covers profiles, groups of up to 100 members, messaging, map-based event discovery and waitlists that fill seats automatically. Basic ($1.99 a month) adds searching for and joining leagues.

Professional ($14.99 a month) is the organizer plan: unlimited events, leagues and tournaments, RSVP management, check-in and no-show tracking, cancellation and refund settings, and a dashboard with attendance and revenue reports. Yearly billing saves 17%.

Where It Falls Short

It is an app only, so every member has to install it to join. Its site says a web version is in the works.

Its pricing page still lists payments and tournament table rotation as future releases, though in-app payments through Stripe arrived in its October 13, 2026 update, so check what is live before you plan around them.

Who It Is Best For

Instructors and hosts whose players are all happy on a phone app, and who want the lowest monthly price.

Mahjy

Hosting tools for in-person games, with a players' Discover tab.

Mahjy comes from Second Arcs LLC and launched in March 2026. It is on iPhone, iPad and Android.

What It Does Well

Hosts can create games, lessons, open plays and recurring series, then let Mahjy handle registrations, waitlists and payments through Stripe. Smart seating uses skill levels, connections and buddy requests. Players check in on their phone and see their table.

Players get a Discover tab that finds games nearby, filtered by NMJL, Riichi or Hong Kong rules and by skill level. Addresses stay hidden until close to game time. Every host and group also gets a public web page that lists upcoming events.

Where It Falls Short

There are no leagues or tournaments yet; its site says they are coming soon.

Players pay too. After a 90-day free trial, a player membership is $0.99 a month or $9.99 a year. Hosts pay $9.99 a month, with seat prices capped at $15, or $19.99 a month for Pro. Paid events add a 2% Mahjy fee on top of Stripe's processing fee.

Who It Is Best For

Hosts who run casual and paid games on phones, and players who want to find open games nearby.

Mahjong Mamas

A private, invite-only app for a club and its game nights.

Mahjong Mamas Social Club is a newer app for iPhone and Android, built for mahjong players.

What It Does Well

You start a club or join one with an invite code, so it stays members only. Admins post games with a date, time, location and table count, and recurring games run themselves. Players claim a seat, join a waitlist when a game is full, and get a reminder 24 hours before. Each game has its own chat.

Club owners can also set a price per seat for paid games, tournaments or lessons, and players pay in the app. It is free to download, with no in-app purchases listed.

Where It Falls Short

Because clubs are invite-only, new players cannot find you through it. It lists no leagues, standings or ratings, and there is no web version.

Who It Is Best For

An established group that wants to move its game nights out of the group text, and does not need to grow.

Let's Mahj

Neighborhood mahjong, organized without the group text.

Let's Mahj is a free app for iPhone and Android that helps neighborhood groups plan games. Its site says more than 2,400 players use it.

What It Does Well

Groups are organized by ZIP code and can be public, private or invite-only. Propose a time, pick a spot and invite players, who RSVP from their phones. Reminders go out the night before and the morning of. Player profiles show skill level and the styles people play. It has no ads.

Where It Falls Short

It is built for casual games. Its site lists no payments, leagues or standings, and there is no web version yet (the site says one is on the roadmap).

Who It Is Best For

Neighborhood groups and new players looking for a nearby table.

Other American Mahjong Apps Worth Knowing

These did not make the main list, but they come up often.

• NMJL Online is the National Mah Jongg League's own online game. You play other people or seven AI players, in a browser or on iPhone and iPad. The tutorial is free; full games need the current card plus an online game membership from the League.
• The Mahjong App from Windy City Games is a newer iPhone, iPad and Android game with more than 7,000 App Store ratings. It is free with ads. Premium ($5.99 a month) adds multiplayer hosting and the American Mahjong Society card.
• Maylee is an iPhone and iPad game with hand-illustrated tiles inspired by Chinese porcelain. You get two free games a day, or you can subscribe for unlimited play.
• MAHJ: Learn American Mahjong from Welcome2Mahj is a lesson app with 18 lessons, drills, bots and an AI coach. The intro lessons are free, and one optional one-time purchase unlocks the rest.

How to Choose the Right App

With twelve options on the table, here is a simple way to narrow it down.

If You Want to Play Online with Real People

Start with I Love Mahj for live games and built-in video, or Real Mah Jongg if your group wants voice chat at the table. For free live play, Mahjong 4 Friends has open tables and private rooms, and MahJongg4Fun has ranked and friendly matches.

If You Want to Practice Solo and Improve

Eight Bam is the classic trainer, with Matching Hands and quick games. Bam Good Time Mahjong Online is a strong free choice, with five bot levels and hand suggestions that show the exact tiles you need. Mahj Parlour is the paid pick if you also want lessons.

If You Are a Complete Beginner

Start with lessons, then practice. Mahj Parlour's twelve free lessons or MAHJ's 18 lessons teach the rules. Then Eight Bam's coaching or the hand suggestions in Bam Good Time Mahjong Online help you learn the card. The full comparison is in Best App to Learn American Mahjong above. Either way, pair the app with our beginner's guide to American Mahjong and a copy of the current NMJL card. No app replaces a real table with patient players, so look for a beginner class near you too.

If You Run a Club

Bam Good Time: Mahjong Club fits if you want members to register and pay from a link, with no download, plus leagues and standings. It is free to start. TileTime or Mahjy fit if every member is happy on a phone app. Mahjong Mamas or Let's Mahj suit a small group that only needs scheduling. Members can practice between nights in Bam Good Time Mahjong Online. If you are already managing a club online, see how the tools compare in our club software guide.

If You Are on a Budget

Mahjong 4 Friends is free with ads. Bam Good Time Mahjong Online is free with no in-app purchases. MahJongg4Fun is free to play, and Eight Bam is free with an older year's hands. You do not need to spend anything to start playing American Mahjong on a screen.

If You Need Android Support

For playing, Mahjong 4 Friends, Eight Bam and The Mahjong App are on Google Play, and I Love Mahj, MahJongg4Fun and Real Mah Jongg run in an Android browser. For your club's schedule, registration and standings, Bam Good Time: Mahjong Club is on Google Play and works in any browser, and TileTime, Mahjy, Mahjong Mamas and Let's Mahj are on Google Play too.

A Note on the NMJL Card in Apps

This trips people up, so it is worth saying plainly. The NMJL publishes a new card each spring, and that card defines the legal hands for American Mahjong. Any app that plays American Mahjong needs to update to it.

On their own listings or sites, Eight Bam, Mahj Parlour, MahJongg4Fun and Mahjong 4 Friends all name the 2026 card, Real Mah Jongg plays the official card, and Bam Good Time Mahjong Online follows the current card. Some apps also ask you to own the physical card before you play. Mahj Parlour and Real Mah Jongg both say so.

Before you spend time or money on any app, check that it supports this year's card. Practicing with an old card builds habits for hands that no longer exist. Check that it is American Mahjong at all, too: many apps called mahjong are tile-matching solitaire or another style of the game, and they do not use the NMJL card.

If you are new to reading the card, our guide to understanding the NMJL card explains the sections, symbols and strategy behind picking your hand.

The Future of American Mahjong Apps

American Mahjong apps are still young next to chess or poker, but they moved fast in 2026. Here is what the apps themselves say is coming.

Into the browser. Mahj Parlour says a browser version is on the way, and TileTime says it is working on a web version. Players want to join from a link, not an app store.

Competition built in. Club apps are adding leagues and tournaments. Mahjy lists them as coming soon, and TileTime puts them on its Professional plan. Bam Good Time runs them today on Pro.

Ratings that travel. Player ratings are part of our own bet. Mahjic.org gives every player a free rating that carries across clubs and apps, with an optional verified status. Practice between club nights, then see it in your league standings.

Better teaching. More apps now teach as you play: free lesson tracks, AI coaches, and bots that grow with you. That lowers the barrier for new players and grows the whole game.

Pick Your App, Then Play

The most important thing is not which app you choose. It is that you play. Every hand you practice on a screen makes you sharper at the table, and every new player who learns through an app is a possible fourth for your Tuesday game.

Many of the apps on this list are free or have free trials, so try a couple. You will quickly see which one clicks for you.

And when you are ready to take your game offline, or bring your offline game online, Bam Good Time is here to help you build the club where it all comes together.