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How Go Is Scored: Territory, Area, and Captures Explained

⏱ Read ~4 min · Updated July 2026 · Part of: Learn Go

Once a Go game ends, you count who controls more of the board. Two main rulesets do this slightly differently — but they almost always agree on the winner.

English中文Plain meaning
territory scoring地目法（日韓）count empty points you surround + captures
area scoring數子法（中國）count empty + your live stones
komi貼目White's bonus points
dame單官neutral points, no value

1. The shared goal

Both rulesets ask: who controls more of the board? A point you fully surround (empty, with only your live stones around it) is yours. The player with more points wins, after White's komi is added.

🎯 Plain: your score = the empty space you control (+ stones, depending on ruleset) − komi if you're Black.

2. Japanese / Korean (territory)

Count empty points you surround + stones you captured. Living stones themselves aren't counted — only the territory and captures. This is the older, traditional method.

3. Chinese (area)

Count empty points you surround + your living stones on the board. Captures aren't counted separately (they show up as the opponent having fewer stones). Simpler to count on a physical board.

4. Why they agree

Terrory vs area differ in detail, but for almost every finished game they give the same winner. The main difference is how you handle neutral dame points and a few edge cases. Don't worry about choosing — both are "correct."

5. Scoring on a 4×4 capture puzzle

braingo's 4×4 puzzles don't use territory scoring at all — you win by capturing a stone, not by counting space. It's the cleanest possible win condition: the first capture ends it. Scoring becomes relevant only when you move to full 9×9+ games.

Try the simplest scoring

A capture is a clearer win than any point count.

👉 Play brainGO — win by capture

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