# Pinfu — Riichi Mahjong Glossary

> A 1-han yaku where your closed hand contains four sequences and a valueless pair, waiting on a double-sided wait. Worth 20 fu on tsumo, 30 fu on ron.

**Source:** https://www.mahjongmaster.co/learn/riichi/glossary/pinfu/
**Author:** Kenji Tanaka (https://www.mahjongmaster.co/about/kenji-tanaka/)
**Publisher:** Mahjong Master (https://www.mahjongmaster.co)
**Published:** 2026-02-18
**Updated:** 2026-03-10
**Japanese:** 平和
**Category:** hand-structure
**Variant:** riichi

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## Pinfu

**Pinfu** (平和) is a fundamental one-han yaku in mahjong that rewards players for constructing a hand composed entirely of sequences with a valueless pair and a double-sided wait. It is one of the most common and accessible yaku in the game.

## Pinfu at a glance

Pinfu is a closed-hand yaku worth exactly one han. To qualify, your hand must contain:

- Four sequences (chow/chi)
- One pair with no honor value
- A double-sided wait (ryanmen) on the final sequence

When pinfu is won by tsumo it is worth exactly 20 fu, the minimum fu value in the game; won by ron, the 10 fu closed-hand bonus brings it to 30 fu. This unique characteristic makes pinfu essential for understanding scoring calculations.

## How Pinfu works

### Hand Composition

Pinfu requires that all four melds be sequences rather than triplets. Each sequence consists of three consecutive tiles of the same suit (for example, 2-3-4 of characters or 5-6-7 of dots). The pair must be valueless: any number tile (including 1s and 9s) or a guest wind works, but dragons and your seat or round wind are disqualifying, as these would add fu value and disqualify the hand from being pinfu.

### The Ryanmen Wait Requirement

The critical element distinguishing pinfu from other sequence-based hands is the ryanmen wait. A ryanmen wait occurs when you need a tile that completes a sequence from either end. For example, if your final sequence is 3-4-5, you wait on either 2 or 6 to complete it. This requirement ensures that pinfu hands maintain a specific strategic construction.

### Fu Value and Scoring

Pinfu's defining characteristic is its exactly 20 fu value when closed. This is the minimum fu count in mahjong and creates significant scoring implications. A non-dealer pinfu tsumo (pinfu plus menzen tsumo, 2 han 20 fu) collects 400 from each non-dealer and 700 from the dealer (1,500 total), while a bare pinfu ron (1 han 30 fu) scores 1,000 points from the discarder. These modest scores reflect the hand's accessibility and frequency.

### Closed Hand Requirement

Pinfu is only valid when your hand remains closed (menzenchin). If you call any meld at any point (chi, pon, or kan, including a concealed kan), pinfu is impossible. This restriction makes pinfu a pure strategy for riichi players committed to keeping their hands concealed until winning.

## Seeing Pinfu in play

Consider this closed hand waiting to win:

**Closed hand:** 1-2-3 characters, 4-5-6 dots, 1-2-3 characters, 5-5 bamboo, 7-8 bamboo (13 tiles, waiting)

This hand contains four sequences (1-2-3 characters, 4-5-6 dots, 7-8-9 bamboo, and 1-2-3 characters) with a simple pair (5-5 bamboo). With the 7-8 bamboo ryanmen you wait on 6 or 9 bamboo to complete 6-7-8 or 7-8-9; winning on either tile with the valueless 5-5 pair gives you pinfu.

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*This content is from [Mahjong Master](https://www.mahjongmaster.co), a free educational reference for riichi (Japanese) and American (NMJL) mahjong. When citing this page, please link to https://www.mahjongmaster.co/learn/riichi/glossary/pinfu/.*