Open-source AI darts scoring using the hardware you already own.
Turn an old phone into an AI-powered darts scoring device. Play together in the same room or invite others to join remotely—no accounts required.
Try the live demo · Set up your first game · Run your own server
Transparency: Most of the server and frontend was implemented with the help of large language models (LLMs). The AI model, scoring pipeline, and stack architecture were designed manually. The training data was collected and labeled by hand.
All you need is a phone with a camera and a modern browser, plus a second device with a larger screen, such as a laptop, tablet, or PC.
- Open the hosted demo or your own server on the screen you will use for the match.
- Select Pair a Scoring Device. Scan the QR code with the phone that will watch the board.
- Follow the four short steps on the phone: give it a name, choose its camera, let InstaDarts test the device, and aim it at the board. Allow camera access when the browser asks.
- Place the phone to either side of the board and above or below the bull, then point it at the dartboard. Use the zoom slider until the board fills the camera preview. Leave enough distance between the board and the phone to protect it from stray throws and bounce-outs.
- Back on the main screen, choose Local Match or Online Match, add players, select a game mode and match format, then press Start Match.
- Throw. Detected darts appear in the current visit. Remove the darts after the visit and the game advances automatically; Undo and correct before removing darts from the board if necessary.
For an online match, the host shares the invite code or link shown in the lobby.
The software architecture is deliberately designed to make new game modes easy to add. The two included modes demonstrate what is possible, and more will be added. Every match can be played over multiple sets and legs.
The classic countdown game: 301, 501, or 701, with optional double-in, double-out, and match statistics.
A cooperative accuracy game built for practice and group play. Chase your high score as moles appear in specific areas of the board, and whack them before they finish digging their holes. Don't lose your darts, or the janitor will get mad at you.
The match server is the single source of truth for game rules, players, turns, sets, legs, and camera fusion. The frontends are synchronized views and controls; scorer devices focus on detecting dart tips. This separation keeps every screen consistent and makes new game modes easy to add.
InstaDarts is distributed as source code. Download the Source code (zip) from the latest GitHub Release, extract it, and open a terminal in the extracted folder. Then run:
npm install
npm run build
npm startThe server prints network addresses that you can open on other devices, similar to these:
http://192.168.1.20:3000
https://192.168.1.20:3001
Open one of the printed network addresses instead of localhost, even on the main screen. Pairing
and invitation links will then work on every device connected to the same network. Stop the server
with Ctrl + C.
This is enough to play on a local network. To invite players over the internet, the server must be reachable at a public HTTPS address.
Browsers only allow camera access from a secure page. Use the printed HTTPS address on scoring devices. With the default settings, InstaDarts creates its own local certificate. Each device will show a security warning the first time because that certificate is not trusted by a public certificate authority. Check that the address belongs to your server, accept the warning once, and the browser can use the camera.
A hosted instance or reverse proxy can use a publicly trusted certificate instead. HTTP and HTTPS
ports, certificates, capacity, media, and scorer behavior can all be changed in the optional
instadarts.config.jsonc settings file. The
instadarts.config.example.jsonc example lists every setting and
its default value; the defaults work without creating a file.
InstaDarts already supplies the difficult shared pieces: lobbies, invitations, players, turn order, sets and legs, reconnects, spectators, camera input, validation, responsive screens, and match summaries. For a new game mode, you normally need to supply only its settings, rules, and display values.
A straightforward mode is one TypeScript file plus one registry line. The lobby builds its settings form automatically, and the standard match screen can render scores and statistics without custom frontend work. When an idea needs a distinctive presentation, an optional React panel can take over that part of the screen while the rest of the framework stays unchanged.
This narrow, documented boundary also works well with LLM and agentic coding tools. For example:
Add an “Around the Clock” mode to InstaDarts. Follow
docs/game-modes.mdand the existing modes, expose its options through the standard settings fields, keep its rules on the server, and add tests for winning, misses, undo, and multiple players.
Review and test generated changes like any other contribution, then rebuild and restart the server. The game-mode guide explains the concise contract and includes a complete example.
External software can create matches with fixed settings and player names, distribute personal join links, and watch live standings and results through the spectator WebSocket. The optional authenticated HTTP API also lists available modes/settings and the caller's matches, cancels a match, and retains full results for 24 hours in memory. See the API documentation for setup and examples.
This README is deliberately focused on playing and hosting. If you want to edit or contribute to InstaDarts, start with CONTRIBUTING.md and the compact developer documentation index.
InstaDarts is free and open-source software licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 only. Third-party notices are generated with each production build and are also available from Settings → Third-party notices in the running app.