Which solitaire should I play?
Solitaire is not one game but a family of them, all played alone with a pack of cards. Here are the seven on this site and what each is like.
The one everybody knows
Klondike is the game most people mean when they say solitaire: seven columns, a stock to turn, and four foundations to build from ace to king. Play it turning one card at a time, or three for a harder game. Every deal on the Winnable setting has been played through to a win by our solver before you see it, and if you get stuck the Solution button will show you how it goes out.
All skill and no luck
FreeCell deals every card face up, so there is nothing to hope for and everything to work out. The deals are the classic numbered ones, 1 to 32000, and every deal the game gives you can be won. If you like to plan six moves ahead, this is your game.
The long game
Spider uses two packs and ten columns, and asks you to build eight runs from king down to ace. One suit is a gentle start, two suits is a proper challenge, and four suits is one of the hardest solitaire games there is.
Klondike with the brakes off
Yukon looks like Klondike without a stock. The difference is that you can pick up any face-up card, however deep it lies, and everything on top of it comes along. There is far more to see and far more to think about.
Three quick ones
These take a few minutes each and are easy to learn.
- Golf: clear seven columns by playing cards one higher or one lower than the last. It is all about finding the longest run.
- TriPeaks: the same idea on three overlapping peaks, with face-down cards to uncover and points for long runs.
- Pyramid: take the cards away in pairs that add up to 13. Simple sums, and harder than it looks.
At a glance
| Game | Cards | What it asks of you | Winnable deals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Klondike | 52 | Patience, and care with the stock | Yes |
| Spider | 104 | Keeping suits together over a long game | No |
| FreeCell | 52 | Planning: nothing is hidden | Always |
| Pyramid | 52 | Pairs that make 13 | Yes |
| TriPeaks | 52 | Long runs up and down | Yes |
| Golf | 52 | Spotting the longest run | Yes |
| Yukon | 52 | Looking deep into every column | Yes |
“Yes” means the game has a Winnable setting, and it is the one you start on. Spider deals a plain shuffle every time.
Can every deal be won?
With a real pack of cards, no. Shuffle and deal Klondike at the kitchen table and roughly one game in five cannot be won however well you play. Golf by the strict rules comes out less than half the time, and Pyramid a little over half even with three turns through the stock.
That is why most of the games here have a Winnable setting. On it, every deal has been solved before it reaches you, so a lost game is one you could have won. Switch to Random for a plain shuffle, as the cards would fall at home. The line under each table tells you which kind you are playing.
What every game here has
- Undo, as far back as you like. Trying a line and taking it back is part of the game.
- Hint, when you cannot see a move.
- Tap to play. Every game can be played with taps alone, which makes them easy on a phone. In the column games a tapped card goes where it fits, or you can drag it there yourself.
- The same deal again. Every deal has a number, shown under the table, and you can start it again from the beginning as often as you like. In FreeCell you can ask for any deal by its number.
- Your game is kept. Close the page and the cards are where you left them when you come back, on the same device.
Solitaire or patience?
They are the same thing. “Patience” is the older, British name and “solitaire” the American one, and both cover hundreds of games for one player. Klondike became the best known of them all when it was included with Windows in 1990, which is why so many people simply call it Solitaire.