solitaire card game rules
Solitaire Card Game Rules
Solitaire rules are less about opponents and more about board economy. Every variant gives you a layout, a set of movable cards, and a win condition. Spider clears suited runs, Klondike and FreeCell build foundations, Pyramid removes pairs totaling thirteen, and Golf or TriPeaks rewards long rank chains.
Use this guide when you want to choose a solitaire variant by difficulty, table layout, stock rules, and how much planning the game demands.
Start with these rules
Solitaire
Spider Solitaire rules
Build complete king-to-ace suited runs and clear all eight runs.
Solitaire
Klondike rules
Build four foundations from ace to king by suit.
Open solitaire
FreeCell rules
Use free cells to build all suits from ace to king.
Pairing solitaire
Pyramid Solitaire rules
Remove pairs totaling 13 from the pyramid.
Sequence solitaire
TriPeaks rules
Clear three peaks by playing cards one rank above or below the waste card.
Sequence solitaire
Golf Solitaire rules
Clear tableau columns by playing cards one rank above or below the waste card.
Which game fits?
Most classic
Klondike
Build four foundations while revealing hidden tableau cards.
Best difficulty ladder
Spider Solitaire
Move from 1-suit to 2-suit to 4-suit as same-suit planning improves.
Most open information
FreeCell
All cards are visible, so wins depend more on planning than luck.
Fastest clearing puzzle
Golf or TriPeaks
Play one-rank-higher or one-rank-lower chains to clear the tableau.
Tableau Rules Decide the Game
The tableau is the working area. Klondike hides information in face-down cards, FreeCell shows everything, Spider creates ten columns with stock pressure, and Pyramid uses coverage instead of columns. The first question to ask is not whether a card can move, but what that move reveals or blocks.
- Klondike rewards moves that expose hidden cards and preserve empty columns for kings.
- FreeCell rewards planning because most deals are visible and solvable with careful storage.
- Spider rewards same-suit sequences because mixed stacks are harder to move.
- Pyramid rewards uncovering cards that create multiple future pair options.
Stock and Redeal Rules
Stock rules are the timer of many solitaire games. In Spider, stock deals one card to every column and cannot be used while a column is empty. In Klondike, turn-one and turn-three draw rules change difficulty. In Golf and TriPeaks, every stock card changes the active rank chain.
- Do not deal from the stock until useful tableau moves are exhausted.
- Check whether a game allows redeals before assuming the stock is forgiving.
- In Spider, fill empty columns before dealing from stock.
- In rank-chain games, a stock card can either extend a streak or end your best path.
Which Solitaire Variant Should You Play First
Start with the variant that matches the amount of information you want. FreeCell is transparent but strategic. Klondike is familiar and partly hidden. Spider has difficulty settings. Pyramid, TriPeaks, and Golf are shorter clearing puzzles that teach planning without a full foundation build.
- Choose Spider 1-suit for a gentle sequence-building puzzle.
- Choose Klondike if you want the classic foundation-building solitaire rules.
- Choose FreeCell when you want a solvable planning puzzle with all cards visible.
- Choose Pyramid, TriPeaks, or Golf for faster sessions and simpler scoring.
Teaching sequence
- Identify every pile type before moving a card.
- Explain the win condition, then the legal movement rule.
- Show one move that reveals a hidden card or opens a workspace.
- Delay stock use until players understand what tableau progress looks like.
- Teach one variant at a time; stock, wrapping, and empty-space rules do not transfer cleanly.
Helpful comparisons
FAQ
What solitaire card game should beginners learn first?
Klondike is the familiar starting point, but Spider 1-suit and Golf Solitaire are also good because their legal moves are easy to see.
What is the difference between Spider Solitaire and Klondike?
Spider clears complete suited runs from ten tableau columns, while Klondike builds four foundations from ace to king by suit.
Can every FreeCell game be won?
Nearly every standard FreeCell deal is solvable, which is why the game rewards planning and careful use of free cells.
How do you get better at solitaire?
Prioritize moves that reveal hidden cards, open columns, preserve flexible spaces, and delay stock use until the tableau has no good move.
What are 1-suit, 2-suit, and 4-suit Spider rules?
The move structure is the same, but the number of suits changes difficulty. One suit is easiest, two suits is intermediate, and four suits is the classic hard game.
Play after reading
Each linked rules page includes a canonical play URL on the matching game site. Read the rules here, then open the dedicated game when you want the browser to enforce legal moves and scoring.