How to Play Klondike Solitaire

The goal

You win by moving all 52 cards into the four foundation piles at the top of the board. Each foundation is built one suit at a time, in order from Ace up to King — Ace, 2, 3, and so on through Jack, Queen, King. When all four suits are complete from Ace to King, you have cleared the deck and won the game.

Setting up the board

The game uses one standard 52-card deck dealt into seven columns called the tableau. The first column gets 1 card, the second 2, the third 3, and so on up to 7 cards in the last column — 28 cards in total. Only the top card of each column is turned face up; the rest stay face down. The remaining 24 cards form the stock (the face-down draw pile), with an empty space beside it called the waste where drawn cards are placed. Above the tableau sit the four empty foundations you are working to fill.

How to play, step by step

1. Find the Aces and twos firstAces can move straight up to start a foundation, so look for them right away. Once an Ace is up, its matching two can follow, then the three, and so on.
2. Build the tableau down in alternating coloursWithin the seven columns, place cards in descending order and alternating colours — for example a black 7 goes onto a red 8, and a red 6 goes onto that black 7. This is how you stack and rearrange cards to free up the ones you need.
3. Flip face-down cards when you uncover themWhenever you move the face-up card off a column, the face-down card beneath it turns over. Uncovering these hidden cards is the main way you make progress, so prioritise moves that reveal them.
4. Draw from the stock when you are stuckWhen you run out of moves on the board, tap the stock to turn cards over to the waste. The top card of the waste is available to play onto a foundation or tableau column.
5. Use empty columns wiselyWhen you clear an entire column, only a King (or a stack starting with a King) can be placed into that empty space. Save empty columns for Kings rather than filling them too early.
6. Move cards to the foundations to winKeep sending cards up to the foundations in suit order, Ace through King. Once all four foundations reach the King, the game is won.

Beginner tips

• Always try moves that flip a face-down card before moves that don't — revealing hidden cards opens up the whole board.
• Don't rush every card up to the foundation. Sometimes a low card is more useful left in the tableau to catch a card of the opposite colour.
• Plan ahead before emptying a column, since you can only refill it with a King — clearing a column with no King ready can leave a dead space.
• Cycle through the entire stock when stuck to see every available card before deciding you have no moves left.
• Use undo to experiment; trying a line of play and stepping back is a great way to learn which moves pay off.
• Deal with face-down-heavy columns early, because the longer they sit buried the more they can block your progress.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Moving every Ace and low card to the foundations as fast as possible — this can strand higher cards that needed those low cards in the tableau.
• Emptying a column without a King available to fill it, leaving a useless gap on the board.
• Forgetting to flip or work on face-down cards, so columns stay locked and the game stalls.
• Ignoring the stock and waste pile, missing cards that could have continued a chain.
• Stacking cards in the same colour or wrong order in the tableau — columns must go down in rank and alternate red and black.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many cards are used in Klondike Solitaire?

One standard 52-card deck. Twenty-eight cards are dealt into the seven tableau columns and the remaining 24 form the stock pile you draw from.

What is the difference between draw-1 and draw-3?

In draw-1, you turn over one card from the stock at a time, so every card is easy to reach. In draw-3, you flip three at once and can only play the top of those three, which makes the game harder because reaching the cards underneath takes more passes. Draw-1 is the friendlier choice for beginners.

Is every game of Solitaire winnable?

No. Because of how the cards are shuffled, some deals simply cannot be solved no matter how well you play. Most games are winnable with good play, but a portion of random deals are dead ends from the start.

What is the hardest part of Klondike Solitaire?

The trickiest challenge is uncovering the face-down cards in the longer columns without getting stuck, and managing your stock so you don't run out of useful moves. Draw-3 mode adds extra difficulty because fewer cards are reachable on each pass.

What card can go on an empty column?

Only a King (or a sequence of cards starting with a King) can be placed into an empty tableau column. This is why it's worth saving empty columns for Kings.

How do the foundations get built?

Each foundation is built one suit at a time, starting with the Ace and going up in order: Ace, 2, 3, all the way to King. Filling all four foundations from Ace to King wins the game.