The Azul box sold in India by Green Elephant Games: patterned blue, red and orange tiles framing the title, marked English and Hindi — The English–Hindi edition sold in IndiaPhoto: Tabletop Universe

The back of the Indian Azul box with the three steps of play in English and Hindi — The back of the box, in English and HindiPhoto: Tabletop Universe

Azul's contents: player boards, factory discs, coloured tiles, the cloth bag and the box — What's in the boxPhoto: Next Move Games (Plan B Games)

Five round factory displays, each holding four coloured tiles, with the first-player tile in the middle — Factory displays loaded with tilesPhoto: Next Move Games (Plan B Games)

Factory displays on a wooden table during a game, with some tiles already taken — Take all the tiles of one colour from a displayPhoto: Asmodee

A hand placing a red tile on a player board with tiles already lined up in rows — Placing tiles on your boardPhoto: Asmodee

Close-up of a player board with chunky resin tiles lined up in the pattern rows — Chunky resin tilesPhoto: Next Move Games (Plan B Games)

The cloth tile bag spilling blue, red, yellow, black and pale blue tiles — The drawstring bag of tilesPhoto: Asmodee

Video

Family game · Indian edition available

Azul

Draft colourful tiles and build the best-scoring palace wall

Pattern building Pick and pass

2–4best with 2-4
30–45 minper game
About 3 minto set up
8+years
Easy
Nonereading

The official edition, on Amazon.in

Indian edition

Buy on Amazon.in

This listing is the official imported edition. An Indian edition also exists, but this isn't it. Amazon shows today's price, the seller and delivery.

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The game in a nutshell

Azul is a tile-laying game for 2 to 4 players. You pick up sets of coloured tiles and arrange them on your own board to score points, while trying not to get stuck with tiles you can't use. The rules are simple enough for a family with children aged 8 and up, there is enough planning to keep adults thinking, and a game takes 30–45 minutes. It won the 2018 Spiel des Jahres (German Game of the Year), and Green Elephant Games distributes an English/Hindi edition in India.

Is Azul right for you?

Great if

Families with children aged 8 and up who want real decisions without long rules
Couples, because it plays well with just two
Mixed-language tables, since nothing on the tiles or boards needs reading
A gift for people new to modern board games

Skip it if

You want lots of chatter and laughter: Azul is quiet and thoughtful
Someone in your group hates being blocked, since you can force others to take tiles they don't want
You want a strong story or theme, because here it is light (decorating a palace wall with tiles)

THE BOARDGAMES.IN TAKE

Our ratings

How hard to learnEasy

2 / 5

Luck or skillMostly skill

LuckSkill

Set-up~3 min

ReadingNone

Behind the ratings

How hard to learnOn a turn you just take one colour and place it, so the rules are about as light as Ticket to Ride and lighter than Catan. The planning gets deeper as the rounds go on.

Luck or skillWhich tiles land on the factories is random. What you take, and what you leave for others, decides the game.

Player interactionNobody attacks anyone directly, but every pick changes what others can take. Leaving someone a pile they can't use is a big part of the game, and it's sharper with two players.

Set-up timeThe first time, press the factory displays and other cardboard pieces out of their sheets. After that, give each player a board and a scoring marker, lay out 5, 7 or 9 factories and draw 4 tiles from the bag onto each. That takes 2 or 3 minutes.

Reading neededThere are no words on the tiles or boards. Only the rulebook needs reading, and the Indian edition includes it in Hindi.

Difficulty uses our 1–5 scale: 1 is UNO or Connect 4, 3 is Catan, 5 is a heavy strategy game. These describe the experience, not an overall score.

A place on the honours list

Good company to be in.

Recognition from beyond our table.

Winner · 2018

Spiel des Jahres

Germany’s Game of the Year: the jury’s top family-game honour.

Meet the jury’s choice ↗

More recognition 1

As d'Or, Jeu de l'Année (France's Game of the Year), 2018 (Winner)

How Azul plays

Each player has a board with a 5×5 wall on the right and five 'pattern lines' on the left that hold 1 to 5 tiles. In the middle of the table are small round 'factory displays': 5 for two players, 7 for three and 9 for four. Each one gets four random tiles from a bag of 100.

Time to teach: about 10 minutes.
Reading and language: The tiles and boards have no text, so nobody needs to read during play. The Indian edition comes with an extra rulebook in Hindi.

How to play Azul in 4 Minutes · Teach The Table

If this creator doesn’t allow embedded playback, watch on YouTube ↗.

Your turn, step by step

1
Pick
Take every tile of one colour from one factory display and push the rest into the centre. Or take every tile of one colour from the centre. The first person to take from the centre in a round also takes the first-player marker, which costs 1 point.
2
Place
Put the tiles on one of the five pattern lines on your board. A line holds only one colour, and only a colour you haven't already placed in that row of your wall. Tiles that don't fit fall to your floor line and lose you points.
3
Tile
When every tile has been taken, each full pattern line moves one tile across to your wall. It scores 1 point, or more if it joins tiles already in its row or column.
4
Win
The game ends after the round in which someone completes a row of five on their wall. Add bonuses: 2 points per full row, 7 per full column and 10 for each colour with all five tiles placed. Highest score wins.

Read the official rules (PDF)Azul rulebook (English, web version) · English

The full explanation: how a game of Azul goes

On your turn, take all the tiles of one colour from one factory and push the rest into the centre of the table. Or you can take all of one colour from the centre. The first person each round to take from the centre also takes the first-player marker, which goes on their floor line and costs a point. Put the tiles you took on one of your pattern lines. Each line can hold only one colour.

Any tiles that don't fit drop to the floor line at the bottom of your board, and each tile there costs you points. A lot of the game is about leaving your opponents with piles they don't want.

Once every tile has been taken, each full pattern line moves one tile across to the matching spot on your wall, and the rest go back. Each tile you place scores a point, plus extra points if it touches other tiles in its row or column.

The game ends after the round in which someone completes a horizontal row of five on their wall. At the end you earn 2 bonus points for each complete row, 7 for each complete column and 10 for each colour you have placed all five of. The highest score wins.

What's in the box

100Tiles
chunky resin tiles, 20 in each of 5 colours and patterns
4Player boards
double-sided: a coloured wall for the normal game and a grey wall for the variant
9Factory displays
round cardboard discs; use 5 for two players, 7 for three and 9 for four
4Scoring markers
one per player, moved along the score track on your board
1Starting player marker
taken by the first player to pick from the centre each round
1Bag
linen bag for drawing tiles
1Rulebook
English; the Green Elephant Indian edition adds a Hindi rulebook

Box: 26.2 × 26 × 7.4 cm, 1.1 kg. Handy to know for gifting and travel.

The list is from Next Move Games' official Azul page (100 resin tiles, 4 player boards, 9 factory displays, 4 scoring markers, 1 starting player marker, 1 linen bag, 1 rulebook). The official rulebook adds that there are 20 tiles of each colour, that boards are double-sided, and how many factories to use. Indian listings say the Green Elephant Indian edition has the same components, made in the same factory, plus an extra rulebook in Hindi.

Where to buy

Amazon.inImported edition

The official edition, on Amazon.in

This listing is the official imported edition. An Indian edition also exists, but this isn't it. Amazon shows today's price, the seller and delivery.

Buy on Amazon.in

Opens Amazon.in in a new tab.

Green Elephant Games is the authorised Indian distributor of an English/Hindi edition, made with Plan B Games and Asmodee. Indian listings describe it as having the same components as the English version, plus a Hindi rulebook, so the extra rulebook is the only difference. Our Amazon.in link goes to the international Plan B Games edition.

How to make sure you get a genuine copyA little care before you click.

Look for Plan B Games or Next Move Games on the box. The Indian edition also names Green Elephant Games and says English/Hindi. Generic brand names on Amazon.in 'Azul' listings are a warning sign.
Be wary of a set that costs a fraction of the usual price. One Indian website sold a much cheaper 'Azul' without naming Plan B or Next Move.
Check the contents: 100 tiles (20 in each of 5 colours), 4 player boards, 9 factory displays, a bag, scoring markers and a first-player marker. If the scoring markers or the first-player marker are missing, it is likely a copy.
Unofficial copies have been sold under other names, such as 'Blue Standard Edition', to avoid trademark checks. Be careful with a game that looks like Azul but goes by a different name.
Check print quality: dull or uneven tile colours and blurry box printing are common signs of an unofficial copy.

We link to one Amazon.in listing that we've checked against the maker's own information. We don't show prices: Amazon shows today's price, the seller and delivery. Paid link. We may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.

What reviewers and players say

Reviewers and players agree that Azul is one of the easiest modern games to teach that still rewards real planning. The rules are short, set-up is quick, and the heavy, colourful tiles look and feel lovely. It works with 2, 3 or 4 players, and one game often turns into two. The catches: the palace theme is just decoration, and much of the skill is leaving others with tiles they can't use, which can feel a little mean.

What people love

Very few rules and almost no exceptions, so new players get it within a round
Chunky resin tiles that look great on the table, plus quick set-up and pack-up
Early turns feel free and easy, but each round gets tenser and needs more planning
Good for families and people new to board games, while experienced players still enjoy it

Common complaints

The theme of tiling a palace barely matters, so it plays like an abstract puzzle
Forcing someone to take tiles they can't place can feel mean, especially with two players
With 3 or 4 players it's more about grabbing chances than planning ahead

Based on 6 reviews and discussions

Review Review: Azul, board game of the year? (Nate Anderson, July 2018) · Ars Technica
Review The confoundingly simple yet deep design of Azul, the best board game of 2018 (Emily St. James, December 2018) · Vox
Players I just played Azul for the first time and I really like it (Dharkstare, December 2025) · Board Games community (c/[email protected]), Lemmy/PieFed
Award Azul: jury statement, Spiel des Jahres 2018 (in German) · Spiel des Jahres
Reference Azul: official game page (contents, rules download, awards) · Next Move Games
Reference Azul (board game) · Wikipedia

Summarised in our own words from the sources above. We don't use Amazon reviews or ratings.

More like Azul

Our picks if Azul isn't quite right

Feature	Azul	Splendor	Ticket to Ride	Jaipur
Players	2–4	2–4	2–5	2
Best with	2-4	2-3	4	2
Play time	30–45 min	30 min	30–60 min	30 min
Age	8+	10+	8+	10+
Rules	Easy	Easy	Easy	Easy
Indian edition	Yes	Import	Import	Yes
Why look at it	This page	Also easy to teach, with collecting and planning ahead using gem chips and cards instead of tiles	Another family game with simple turns, if you'd like a bit more theme and a map	A quick two-player trading card game for couples who play mostly as a pair

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Questions people ask about Azul

Is Azul available in India?

Yes. Green Elephant Games distributes an official English/Hindi edition, and the international Plan B Games edition is sold in India too. Our Buy on Amazon.in button goes to the Plan B Games edition; check that the box names Plan B Games or Next Move Games.

Is Azul good for 2 players?

Yes. With two players you use five factory displays instead of nine, and the game works well at that size. If you only ever play as a pair, Azul Duel is a two-player-only version released in 2025.

What is the Hindi edition of Azul?

It is the official edition for India from Green Elephant Games, made with Plan B Games and Asmodee. The components are the same as the English version, with an extra rulebook in Hindi.

How can I tell if an Azul copy is genuine?

Check that the box names Plan B Games or Next Move Games (and Green Elephant Games for the Indian edition). Be wary of a set that costs a fraction of the usual price, especially if the listing doesn't name the publisher.

Game facts

Designed by: Michael Kiesling
Publisher: Plan B Games / Next Move Games (part of Asmodee)
In India: Green Elephant Games (English/Hindi edition)
First published: 2017
Players: 2–4
Language: No reading – The tiles and boards have no text, so nobody needs to read during play. The Indian edition comes with an extra rulebook in Hindi.
Box size and weight: 26.2 × 26 × 7.4 cm, 1.1 kg
Awards: Spiel des Jahres (Germany's Game of the Year), 2018 (Winner); As d'Or, Jeu de l'Année (France's Game of the Year), 2018 (Winner)

Sources & photo creditsThe references behind this guide.

Facts on this page come from the publisher, the Indian maker or distributor, and the sources below. Photos are credited under each one.