Solitaire — guidebook

A quiet game of arranging a shuffled deck. Uncover the hidden cards, make useful spaces and build all four suits from Ace to King. This edition is draw-one Klondike with unlimited trips through the stock.

The table and the goal

The seven lower columns are the tableau. They start with one through seven cards; only the last card in each column is face up. The remaining 24 cards form the stock at the top left. Drawing puts a card into the waste beside it. The four spaces at the top right are the foundations, one for each suit.

You win when all 52 cards are in the foundations. There is no clock or score penalty for thinking. The move counter records successful draws, recycling and card moves.

Your first moves

1. Look for an exposed Ace. Select it, then its matching suit foundation.
2. Look for a card or ordered stack that can move onto another column.
3. If there is no useful move, select the stock to draw one card.
4. Keep uncovering cards and building foundations until the table is clear or you decide to try another deal.

Hearts and diamonds are red; clubs and spades are black. The suit symbols and card labels remain visible as well as colour.

Tableau rules, with examples

Build downward in alternating colours. A red 7 can sit on a black 8; it cannot sit on a red 8 or a black 9. A descending, alternating face-up sequence moves together: select its first card, then the destination. For example, a black 9, red 8 and black 7 can move as a group onto a red 10.

Only a King, alone or leading a valid sequence, may fill an empty column. You cannot pick up a face-down card. When a move uncovers the last face-down card of a column, the game turns it over automatically. Undo reverses that flip as part of the move.

Foundations, stock and waste

Each foundation builds upward by suit: Ace, 2, 3 and so on through King. Only one card at a time moves there. A hearts 2 needs the hearts Ace beneath it, even if another foundation already has an Ace. The top card of a foundation may be moved back to the tableau when that helps rearrange a sequence.

Only the top waste card is available. Select the stock to draw the next card. When the stock is empty, select its recycle arrow to turn the waste back into stock in its original order. Recycling is unlimited and does not shuffle the cards. A card that is buried in the waste becomes available on a later pass as cards above it are used or recycled.

Touch, mouse and keyboard

Select a face-up card or the first card of a stack, then select its destination. The selected sequence is highlighted in gold. Select that same card again or press Escape to clear the selection. An invalid move also clears the selection and explains the rule.

There is no dragging requirement. On a keyboard, Tab moves between controls and cards; Enter or Space selects them. On narrow screens, scroll vertically to reach long columns and the controls. The board always waits for your action, so no pause button is needed.

Undo and replay

Undo restores the complete previous successful action, including stock draws, recycling, moved stacks and automatic flips. Up to 100 actions are retained. You can undo after winning if you want to inspect the last move.

New deal shuffles a fresh deck. Once you have made a move, it asks before replacing an unfinished deal. There is no guarantee every random deal is solvable, and there is no automatic solver. Getting stuck does not necessarily mean you played badly.

A practical playbook

• Prefer moves that expose hidden cards, particularly in longer columns.
• Before emptying a column, consider which King or King-led sequence can use it.
• Avoid moving every available card to a foundation immediately. A low card may still support a tableau move; you can also bring a foundation card back.
• Remember the stock order. Unlimited recycling gives you time to plan around the next available waste card.
• Use Undo to compare choices and learn. If every pass repeats without a useful move, try a different earlier choice or a new deal.

Saves, installation and offline play

Your deal and up to 100 undo states save in this browser after successful actions. Reloading restores them. The current highlighted selection is not saved. Saves do not follow you between browsers, devices or website addresses, and clearing browser data removes them.

Open the complete standalone game online once. Install uses your browser's Install app or Add to Home Screen flow where available; iPhone/iPad Safari uses Share, then Add to Home Screen. Installation is optional. After the first complete online load, the game and guidebook work offline. Installation belongs to the host site when embedded.

The full guidebook opens in another tab so your deal remains open. Print it or save a PDF using your browser. Physical-phone installation and performance have not been verified on a device.

If something does not move

Check that the source is face up, that a stack is in descending alternating order, and that the destination follows the same colour/rank rule. Empty columns require Kings. Foundations require the matching suit and next rank. You cannot take a covered waste or foundation card directly.

If Undo is unavailable, there is no retained successful action to undo. If a save is missing, check the browser/site address and its storage settings. If offline loading stops after clearing data, open the game online once more.