How many points is a foul in snooker?
B · Beginner · Fouls and penalties · 5 of 5A foul ends the striker's turn and gives the opponent penalty points: four at least, or the value of the ball on or the ball concerned if higher, so up to seven. A few fouls always cost seven. Points already scored in the break stand, but nothing counts from the foul stroke itself.
How it works
- Minimum: every foul costs at least four points.
- Value of the ball on: for missing every ball, potting the white, a jump shot, playing improperly from in-hand, hitting the white twice, both feet off the floor or a non-standard cue.
- Ball on or ball concerned, whichever is higher: for hitting a ball not on first, potting a ball not on, a push stroke, playing while a ball is moving, touching a ball with the body or clothes or forcing a ball off the table.
- Two balls hit together: the higher value of the two, unless they were two reds or a free ball and the ball on.
- Seven points: using a ball off the table for any purpose, measuring a gap, playing at reds in successive strokes, using a ball other than the white as the cue ball, failing to declare when asked or a foul after a red and before nominating a colour.
- More than one foul in a stroke: only the highest penalty applies.
- The break: points scored before the foul count; balls pocketed in the foul stroke score nothing.
- Condoned: a foul not called by the referee or claimed by the opponent before the next stroke stands as played.
- Penalties: some infringements, such as by the non-striker, give points without changing the order of play.
The glossary has the foul, the ball on, the push stroke, the jump shot, the cue ball and the striker.
Tricky cases
The striker is on a red and the white goes in-off a red. How much is the foul?
Four points: potting the white costs the value of the ball on, which is one, so the minimum of four applies.
The striker is on the yellow and first hits the pink. How much?
Six: the higher of the ball on (two) and the ball hit (six).
The striker brushes the black with a sleeve while playing a red. How much?
Seven, the value of the ball touched, because it is higher than the ball on.
Nobody notices a foul and the next shot is played. Can it be called later?
No. Once the next stroke is made, the foul is condoned.
Why the rule exists
Tying the penalty to the value of the balls involved makes a foul near the black cost more than one near a red. The four-point minimum keeps cheap fouls on low balls from being a useful tactic.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Fouls | Four to seven points | WPBSA Snooker 3.11(a) to 3.11(d) |
| Penalties | Points with no change to the order of play | WPBSA Snooker 2.15, 3.11(e) to 3.11(g) |
| Snooker Shootout | A time foul or no ball hitting a cushion costs at least five | WPBSA Snooker Shootout rules 16 and 17 |
| English billiards | A foul gives the opponent two points | WPBSA Billiards 3.16 |
From the rule book
World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association, Official Rules of the Games of Snooker and English Billiards (May 2022 update), snooker part, Section 2 Rules 15 and 16 and Section 3 Rules 10 and 11. Checked 14 October 2026. Official document: the association's rule book, which covers snooker and English billiards together.