There are two basic scoring systems used to determine the winner at the end of a game; they almost always give the same result. Territory scoring counts the number of empty points your stones surround plus the number of stones you captured. While it originated in China, today it is commonly associated with Japan and Korea. Area scoring counts the number of points your stones occupy or surround. It is associated with contemporary Chinese play and was likely established there during the Ming Dynasty in the 15th or 16th century.

In Western countries, players have typically used territory scoring, though practice varies, particularly at an official level. New Zealand has long used area scoring, while national Go federations in the US, France and the UK have shifted more recently to a set of rules developed by The American Go Association.? The AGA Rules resemble territory scoring while giving the same result as if area counting method had been applied, so as to minimize the practical effect of the change.