15 Sneakiest Ways To Cheat At Monopoly (And Not Get Caught!)

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There are two types of people in this world – Good people, and those who Google how to secretly cheat at Monopoly. 

Only joking!

According to a survey by Monopoly makers Hasbro, almost 50% of people admit to cheating during a game of Monopoly. So you’re certainly not alone.

There are many reasons you might want to cheat at Monopoly…

  • Perhaps your opponents are super-competitive and you can’t bear to see them gloating?
  • Maybe you find Monopoly boring and want to entertain yourself by seeing how much you can get away with cheating?
  • Perhaps you know that your friends cheat and have adopted the attitude of ‘if you can’t beat them, join them’.

I love to play Monopoly Cheaters Edition, so definitely check out my guide to that if it sounds fun. Otherwise, read on to find some sneaky ways that you can cheat at Classic Monopoly…

The Best Ways To Cheat at Monopoly

Many people think that cheating at Monopoly involves stealing extra $500 notes from the bank when nobody is looking. However, there are 15 much sneakier ways to cheat that are all much less likely to get you caught…

1. Steal money before the game begins

The stealthiest Monopoly cheaters plan their cheating hours and even days before the game begins.

If you know that you’re going to play Monopoly you can sneakily remove some money from the game and hide it in your pocket. During the game, sneak the extra bills into your money pile and your opponents will be none the wiser.

If you’re serious about this, you can even buy Monopoly money on Amazon so that you’ve got a never-ending supply to top up with! 

2. Cause a distraction

The rules of Monopoly state The owner may not collect the rent if he/she fails to ask for it before the second player following throws the dice.

Therefore, if you land on someone’s property that could be the perfect time to offer to fetch more snacks or to ask your opponent how their brother or sister is getting on lately. Anything to prevent them from claiming the rent they are owed!

3. Claim opponents’ properties as your own

When you land on a property that belongs to someone else, simply say ‘that’s mine’ and pass the dice on.

You’ll be surprised how few people actually check who owns it if you say it in a confident way.

4. Move a different number of spaces to what the dice shows

Imagine you roll a seven which lands you on Luxury Tax, but you really needed an eight to land on Boardwalk and get the full set.

If you skip a space when moving your piece, you can count to seven out loud but actually move your piece eight places fairly easily without anyone knowing. 

5. Bribe your opponents with real-life rewards

Offering real-life rewards such as doing the dishes for a week or giving a back rub can get you far in the game of Monopoly.

Yes, it’s against the rules, but if your opponent agrees to take a bribe in lieu of rent then that’s a win-win for both of you.

couple cheating in Monopoly by whispering

7. Shortchange your friends

When your friend is paying rent and you need to give them change, you can sneakily give them too little.

You’ll only be able to make a few dollars at a time with this method, but the upside is that it’s one of the best cheating methods to pass off as an honest mistake.

shortchanging in Monopoly

7. Make an alliance with another player

Sometimes the best way to cheat is to plan a two-person attack. Before the game begins, make an alliance with another player.

You could ‘forget’ to claim rent when you land on each other’s properties, avoid buying properties you know they want or work together to negotiate good trade deals.

Read more: Can You Team Up In Monopoly?

teaming up in Monopoly

8. Scoop up the dice before anyone sees your roll

Roll the dice, announce the number that you need and then quickly pick up the dice before anyone sees what it was that you rolled. 

It’s a sneaky way to cheat, but if you don’t do it so often, you’ll likely get away with it.

throwing dice

9. Tamper with the order of Chance or Community Chest cards

You’re probably going to need to wait until nobody is in the room for this one. Let’s say that you’re the only one with lots of houses and the ‘street repairs’ cards haven’t come up yet.

Those are dangerous as they’ll cost you a fortune if they do come up!

You’re going to want to find those bad boys and place them near the bottom of the pack to avoid a hefty bill.

11. Pretend your Chance or Community Chest card is a good one

When you pick up a Chance or a Community Chest card, don’t show anyone but announce ‘Bank Error in Your Favor – Collect $200’.

Then, put your mediocre card back in the middle of the pack before anybody sees that you were meant to advance to their hotel.

Community Chest

11. Make up fake rules

If you’re playing Monopoly with beginners, you can have some real fun making up fake rules!

After all, most people don’t know the official Monopoly rules.

You’ll want to tailor these rules, depending on what properties they have. For example, if your opponent has the Water Works and Electric Company you could decide that you only have to pay if you land on it with a double. 

Monopoly has so many rules that the sky’s the limit on this one!

Just remember to keep track of what you’ve made up. And know that they WILL suss you out eventually. It might not be today, though!

Monopoly utilites

12. Sneakily add extra houses

When purchasing houses, hand over the money and help yourself to houses from the bank. You may be able to add an extra one or two without anyone noticing that you didn’t pay for them all.

Monopoly houses

13. Lie about how long you’ve been in jail

Early on in the game of Monopoly, you’re going to want to get out of jail as quickly as possible so that you can continue to buy up the remaining properties.

But later in the game, it makes sense to linger in jail for as long as you can.

After three rolls, you’ll have to pay a fine and leave jail. Unless you can sneak in a fourth, or maybe even a fifth roll and call it your third that is!

Monopoly token in jail

14. Call for rent that isn’t yours

When a player lands on a property that you don’t own, just call out ‘Mine!’ and ask for the rent.

There’s a chance that they’ll pay up without actually checking whether or not you own the title deed card.

15. Ask for more rent than you’re owed

When asking for rent, you’ll usually need to pick up your title deed card to see how much you’re owed.

Since it’s unlikely that anyone will check that you’re asking for the right amount, you can inflate the number of dollars that you’re owed. This is particularly good to do when you already have a couple of houses.

title deed cards

How To Avoid Getting Caught

Now you know some of the ways that you can cheat at Monopoly…

But you have to be careful if you want to avoid getting found out!

If you’ve decided to be the bad guy and try out some of these sneaky Monopoly cheats, there are a few extra things that you can do to make sure that you don’t get caught…

1. Volunteer to be the banker

If you’re playing an honest game, there’s absolutely no reason to want to be the banker. It’s annoying and it distracts you from your strategy and from making sure you collect all of the rent that you’re due.

However, if you plan to cheat then being the banker will give you a great advantage as you, quite literally, hold all the cards (and cash).

banker in Monopoly

2. Mix up your cheating strategies

The more times you repeat a particular cheat, the more chance there is of your opponents noticing and of you being caught.

However, if you mix up ten or more different strategies, you might only need to do each one once to win the game.

3. Give your opponents plenty of drinks

Plying your opponents with alcohol is a surefire way to make them take their eyes off the prize. But, even if your opponents are tee-total, this can still work. More drinks equal more bathroom breaks, giving you more opportunities to sneak around with cards and cash.

drinking wine

4. Keep your money pile messy

With neatly stacked piles of cash, it can be quite obvious if yours suddenly grows or is much larger than everyone else’s. Instead, keep your money in a messy pile and it will be virtually impossible for anyone to know how much money you’ve actually got.

The last thing you want to do is to spread your money out into neat little piles so that everyone can see how much you have.

Monopoly money

5. Tap your piece as you move it

When you tap your playing piece on the board as you move it, your opponents will become accustomed to the sound and may subconsciously stop watching it move and instead rely on listening to the taps.

This will make it much easier to move an incorrect number of spaces while tapping the correct number as shown on the dice.

6. Play dumb

If you’re caught cheating at Monopoly, the best thing may be to play dumb and act like you didn’t know that what you did was wrong.

You might have to tone down your cheating at this point, but at least you can continue the game until you win.

7. Know your friends

When it comes to cheating at board games, you really need to know the people that you’re playing with when you decide how much, if any, you can get away with.

If this is the first time meeting your boyfriend’s parents, for example, I strongly suggest that you play nicely. At least until you’re married when it will be too late!

What happens if you cheat at Monopoly?

The rules of Classic Monopoly don’t specify what happens when players cheat. The most important thing to think about is how your opponents would react if you were caught.

If they’d find it funny, go ahead! If they’d disown you forever, then maybe think twice before cheating.

If you like to cheat at Monopoly, then you should definitely consider getting the Monopoly Cheaters Edition game. In this version of Monopoly, cheating is part of the game.

It even comes with a pair of plastic handcuffs to chain cheating players to the jail space!

Monopoly Cheaters

The bottom line

Cheating at Monopoly can be a fun way to add some extra excitement to what might otherwise be seen as a dull game. In some households, cheating is practically the norm and is expected!

If you’d like to cheat at Monopoly guilt-free, I strongly suggest that you try Monopoly Cheaters Edition. This hilarious game has rave reviews on Amazon and I’m sure that you’ll find it anything but boring.

Jenni Fielding

Jenni Fielding is the founder of Monopoly Land - an unofficial fan site. She has been a huge fan of Monopoly and has been playing the game for over 30 years. She is a stickler for the rules and loves to find vintage Monopoly sets in second-hand shops.