Klondike Solitaire | Play Free Solitaire Online | Arcadia

1. Goal: Move all 52 cards onto the four foundations, one suit each, from ace to king.
2. Build: Stack tableau cards one rank lower in the opposite colour, and move face-up runs between columns.
3. Draw: Turn cards from the stock when the tableau offers nothing; recycle the waste when the stock runs out.
4. Unlock: Uncover hidden cards by moving what sits on top of them; an empty column takes only a king.
5. Finish: Send cards up to the foundations, undo freely, and press Finish once the engine can prove the endgame.

The starting layout. Twenty-eight cards form seven tableau columns, containing one to seven cards. Only the bottom visible card in each column starts face up. The other 24 cards make the stock. The four foundations start empty.

Build the tableau. Place a card on a card one rank higher and of the opposite colour. A red queen can go on a black king. You may move one face-up card or an entire correctly ordered face-up run. Moving cards off a hidden card automatically turns it face up.

Use empty columns. Only a king, or a descending alternating-colour run headed by a king, can fill an empty tableau column. Leaving a column empty can be useful when you have a king ready to move.

Build the foundations. Move aces to their suit foundations, then add 2 through king in ascending order. The top waste card or a top tableau card can move to a foundation. You may move the top foundation card back to the tableau when it helps.

Draw 1 and draw 3. Drawing turns cards from the stock onto the waste. Draw 1 reveals one card at a time. Draw 3 turns up to three cards, and only the top waste card is playable. Playing that card exposes the card immediately below it.

Pass through the stock. When the stock is empty, use the recycle control to turn the remaining waste into a new stock, preserving the next pass order. Easy and Medium allow unlimited passes. Hard allows three passes in total, including the first one.

Undo and hints. Undo restores the complete previous position, including any automatic reveal and the stock pass count. Undo itself does not add a move. Hints are available on Easy and highlight a legal move for you to make; they do not promise a solution.

Finish or start again. You win when all 52 cards reach the foundations. When every tableau card is face up and the stock is empty, Finish can complete a proven legal endgame. If no legal move remains, the game offers Undo and New deal. Some deals cannot be solved, and there is no automatic restart.

• Reveal hidden cards. A move that turns over a hidden card usually gives you more information and more options. Look at the deeper columns before moving a card simply because it fits.
• Keep useful cards available. Sending every available card straight to a foundation can make the tableau harder to rearrange. Keep an eye on both colours and the ranks you still need below them. You can bring a foundation card back when a legal move allows it.
• Plan your empty column. Before clearing a column, check which king will use it. Moving a king from another column can reveal a hidden card; moving a waste king can unlock more of the waste.
• Watch the draw-three order. Removing a waste card changes what becomes accessible on later passes. On Hard, think about the remaining passes before recycling. A move that exposes a useful card can be more valuable than a cosmetic rearrangement.
• Use undo to test a branch. Undo lets you compare a different route from the same position. Try a meaningful change, such as freeing a different column, instead of repeating the same stock cycle. A shuffled deal still may have no solution.