About the Dart Checkout Calculator
In 501 and 301, the most popular darts games, the hardest part is not scoring big but finishing. You must reach exactly zero, and the last dart must land in a double — the thin outer ring — or the bullseye. Knowing the right combination of darts for any remaining score, called a checkout or out-shot, is what separates regular players from beginners, and top players know hundreds of routes by heart.
This dart checkout calculator gives a three-dart route to finish any score from 2 to 170, using the fewest darts and preferring the doubles players aim for most. It shows the value of each dart, flags the bogey numbers that cannot be finished, and for higher scores suggests what to leave with your next visit.
How to Use the Dart Checkout Calculator
Enter the score remaining, from 2 to 501.
For scores of 170 or less that can be finished, the calculator shows a route. For higher scores or bogey numbers, it shows what a maximum or two treble 20s would leave.
How Checkouts Work
the last dart must be a double (2 × the number) or the bull (50)
outer bull = 25 inner bull = 50 (counts as a double)
treble = 3 × the number
a dart that leaves 1, goes below 0 or reaches 0 without a double is a bustThe calculator searches for a finish with one dart, then two, then three, preferring the doubles D20, D16, D8, D18 and D12, and high trebles for the scoring darts.
Step-by-Step Example
121 remaining.
Dart 1: T20 = 60 leaves 61
Dart 2: T7 = 21 leaves 40
Dart 3: D20 = 40 finished170 remaining — the "big fish".
T20 (60) + T20 (60) + Bull (50) = 170Bogey Numbers
Some scores of 170 or less cannot be finished in three darts: 169, 168, 166, 165, 163, 162 and 159. They are called bogey numbers. From a bogey number, you have to score first and leave a finish for the next visit. From 169, for example, two treble 20s leave 49, which can then be finished with a single 9 and double 20.
Choosing a Good Double
Players prefer doubles that can be halved several times, because a dart that hits the single instead of the double still leaves an even number. Double 16 (32) is the classic favourite: a single 16 leaves 16 for double 8, and a single 8 leaves 8 for double 4. Double 20 (40) is also popular because it sits at the top of the board where players aim all game. Leaving an odd number, or 1, is always a problem.
Setting Up a Finish
When you cannot finish in one visit, think about what you leave. From scores between 171 and about 200, scoring to leave a known finish such as 40, 32 or 100 is often better than scoring as much as possible. Many players aim to leave 170 or lower, avoiding the bogey numbers, and prefer finishes that can be completed in two darts, such as 100 (T20 D20) or 80 (T20 D10), so that a missed dart still leaves a chance.
Other Routes
There is usually more than one way to finish a score. For 121, T17 T10 D20 and T20 11 Bull also work. Players choose routes based on their favourite trebles, their strongest doubles, and what the route leaves if a dart misses. The calculator gives one reliable route and shows the value of each dart, so you can check or adapt it.
Practising Checkouts
Practice routines help players learn finishes. A popular one is to go round the doubles, from double 1 to double 20 and then the bull, with a set number of darts. Another is to start at 41 and try to check out in three darts, then move up one number at a time to 100 or higher. Practising the common two-dart finishes — such as 100 (T20 D20), 80 (T20 D10), 60 (20 D20) and 50 (10 D20, or the bull) — builds confidence for match play.
Scoring Before the Finish
In 501, an average player scores 40 to 60 per three-dart visit, and a professional averages 90 to 100 or more. A nine-dart finish, the perfect leg of 501, needs three visits: two maximums of 180 and then a 141 checkout such as T20 T19 D12. The calculator can show the checkout for whatever is left after your scoring visits.
Checkouts in Other Games
Some games use different finishing rules. In "straight out" darts, any segment can finish, while "double in, double out" variants require a double to start scoring as well as to finish. The calculator follows the standard double-out rule used in almost all 501 and 301 play, from pub leagues to the professional game.
Understanding Your Result
Checkout shows the darts to throw, in order.
Route gives the value of each dart and confirms the total.
Darts shows how many darts the finish needs.
Tip gives advice for odd numbers or for scores you cannot finish yet.
Worth knowing explains that other routes exist.
When Should You Use This Calculator?
Learning checkouts as a new player.
Practising finishes at home.
Checking a route during a match.
Scoring for others in a league match.
Understanding bogey numbers.
Common Mistakes
Finishing on a single instead of a double.
Leaving 1, which can never be finished.
Going for a bogey number finish that does not exist.
Leaving an odd number after the second dart.
Forgetting the bull counts as a double 25.