How do I play Frontier online with friends?

Create a private online room and share the invite link. Friends join in their browser or installed app, and you play together in real time or turn-by-turn — no downloads required to join.

How do async games over days work?

An online room can run one turn at a time over hours or days. When it is your move, Frontier sends a “your turn” notification instead of letting a bot take over, so a game fits around real life.

How long does a game take?

A quick game against bots takes about 15–30 minutes. Online games can be played in one sitting or stretched out one turn at a time over several days, whichever suits the group.

How many players can play?

Frontier supports 2 to 6 players free, in every mode. Online games on the bigger Frontier Plus board seat 7 or 8 when the host has Premium. Bots fill any empty seats, so a full game is always ready even if only one human is around.

Illustrated rules

How to play Frontier

Settle an island, turn each dice roll into resources, and trade your way to the target renown before anyone else. The pictures below are from the current game.

Follow a first turn Open the glossary

Actual Frontier game board with resource terrain, number tokens, ports, roads and settlements — Actual 2D game view

Read the island

Four things tell you where to build.

1
Terrain
Each hex produces one of the five resources.
2
Number tokens
When the dice match, that hex produces for adjacent buildings.
3
Corners and edges
Settlements sit on corners; roads connect the edges between them.
4
Ports
Coastal access can improve a bank trade rate.

The goal

Reach the table's renown target.

A Classic table normally ends at 10 renown. Settlements are worth 1, cities are worth 2, and titles or some cards can add more. The active player wins as soon as their total reaches the configured target.

Settlement

Collects from adjacent producing hexes.

City

Upgrades a settlement and increases production.

Longest Trail

Hold the longest eligible route of at least five roads.

Grand Host

Play at least three Soldiers and hold the largest force.

A turn, step by step

The board always shows the next legal action.

Step 1

Place your opening pieces

During setup, place two settlements and their connecting roads. Favour corners touching varied resources and useful number tokens.

Step 2

Roll and produce

Roll the dice. A matching number token makes its hex produce for every adjacent settlement or city, unless the Raider blocks it.

Step 3

Trade

Offer resources to other players or use the bank and your ports. You can skip trading when your hand already has what you need.

Step 4

Build or play a card

Spend the shown recipe on roads, settlements, cities or progress cards, then use any actions your current rules allow.

Step 5

End your turn

Review the leader, your Safe Hand and open routes, then pass play to the next seat.

Resources

Five resources fund every plan.

Wood: Roads and settlements
Brick: Roads and settlements
Grain: Settlements, cities and progress cards
Wool: Settlements and progress cards
Ore: Cities and progress cards

Three useful habits

Open on variety

Touching several resource types gives you more ways to build after any roll.

Trade with a purpose

Know the recipe you are completing before revealing what your hand needs.

Count hidden routes

A Longest Trail swing is worth 2 renown, so watch both length and interruption points.

Guided first game included

Learn on the real board.

Start solo and the seven-step first-game guide follows your progress. You can collapse or skip it at any time.

Play free — no account