Mahjong has rules, and then it has customs. The rules are on the card and in the rulebook. The customs live in the small silences after a beginner does something slightly wrong, and nobody explains them because everybody assumes you know. Here they are, written down.
Name every discard out loud
Say the tile as you place it: 'four bam', 'west', 'green'. This is not decoration, it is the mechanism the game runs on. Players are sorting their racks and cannot watch every hand, so the spoken name is how anyone gets a chance to call. A silent discard robs the table of that chance.
Place the tile down flat in the center, do not toss it into the pile. And do not change your mind once your hand leaves the tile, the discard is committed.
Keep pace
The single kindest thing a beginner can do is move at roughly the table's speed. That does not mean rushing your decisions, it means not re-reading the entire card on every turn. Narrow to two or three candidate hands during the Charleston and stop reopening the question.
When you genuinely need a moment, say so out loud. 'One second, I'm deciding' costs the table nothing. Silent deliberation while three people wait costs goodwill.
Hands off
Never touch another player's tiles, rack, or exposures, not even to straighten them or count them. If you want to see an exposure, ask or lean. Do not reach.
Do not touch the wall until it is your turn to draw, and take from the correct end. Rebuilding a knocked wall mid-hand is nobody's favorite part of the evening.
Do not coach unless asked
This is the one that stings. When you can see a beginner about to discard the tile they need, the generous instinct is to stop them. Do not. Unsolicited coaching mid-hand embarrasses the player, gives information to the whole table, and changes the outcome of a hand people may be playing for money.
Between hands, if someone asks, teach freely. That is where mahjong knowledge actually passes down, and most players are genuinely delighted to explain. The line is simple: after the hand, not during it.
Money, phones, and the rest
Settle up immediately and cheerfully. Bring your own card and your own change. If you cannot make a session, tell the host early, because four is not a suggestion and a missing player cancels the game.
Phones face down. Photographing your own hand to ask for advice later is fine at a casual table and unwelcome at a serious one, so read the room. And offer to shuffle. The player who reaches for the tiles first without being asked gets invited back forever.
Put it into practice
The fastest way to make any of this stick is to read a real hand. Mei, our AI coach, reads your exact tiles and explains every move, free, no account needed.