It took me a long time to figure it out. Speed certainly plays a part, but some of my fastest games end up in the 8000's. I found a web site that explained the value of the different icons. Each icon's value is multiplied by the number of tiles still left in play so the sooner you match them the more points you'll receive. The teddy bear is worth the most so I'm always scanning for those. Others with high values are the telephone, the bug (I think it's a bug ... the dark brown thing), and the guitars. Stars, cubes, and other shapes aren't worth very much. I'll try to find the web site but I think I just searched for Mah Jong scoring and I eventually found Toy Chest. There are other ways to get bonuses. If you play fast at the very end, I'm not sure how many matches, you can get a 500 point bonus. That's usually how I get my big scores. It also seems that if you make matches in the same area, work a certain space down, you'll get several smaller bonuses. I'm not sure on that one yet, but it seems to be the case. Hope this helps a bit. Good gaming! Bruce