How to Play Klondike Solitaire – Rules & Strategy

What is Klondike Solitaire?

Klondike is the classic solitaire card game that most people think of when they hear “solitaire.” If you’ve ever used a Windows PC, you’ve probably played the Microsoft version. It’s a single-player game where you sort cards into four foundation piles by suit, starting with Aces and building up to Kings. The game is known for being easy to learn but challenging to win consistently.

Klondike perfectly balances accessibility with depth—anyone can learn the rules in minutes, but mastering the strategy can take much longer. It’s the perfect game for a quick mental break or a longer, more contemplative session. What makes Klondike so enduring is that satisfying feeling when you complete a foundation pile or reveal a crucial hidden card.

Objective of Klondike Solitaire

Your goal is simple: move all 52 cards to the four foundation piles, sorted by suit in ascending order (Ace through King). The challenge comes from the limited access to cards and the strategic decisions required to uncover hidden cards.

Complete Rules for Klondike Solitaire

Setup

• A standard 52-card deck is shuffled and dealt into seven piles (called the tableau):
  • The first pile has 1 card (face up)
  • The second has 2 cards (1 face down, 1 face up)
  • The third has 3 cards (2 face down, 1 face up)
  • And so on until the seventh pile has 7 cards (6 face down, 1 face up)
• The remaining 24 cards form the stock pile (also called the draw pile)
• Four empty spaces at the top are reserved for the foundation piles

Card Movement Rules

In the Tableau:

• You can move cards between tableau piles, but only by placing cards in descending order and alternating colors
• For example, you can place a red 9 on a black 10, or a black 5 on a red 6
• Only the top card of each pile can be moved, unless you’re moving a sequence of face-up cards together
• An empty tableau spot can only be filled with a King (or a King-led sequence)

From the Stock/Waste:

• Turn 1 card at a time from the stock pile to the waste pile (in standard Klondike)
• The top card of the waste pile is available for play
• When the stock pile is empty, you can flip the waste pile over to reform the stock (usually unlimited times)

To the Foundations:

• Each foundation pile must be built up by suit from Ace to King
• You can move cards to the foundations from the tableau or the waste pile
• Once a card is placed in a foundation pile, it can sometimes be moved back to the tableau if helpful

Variations of Klondike

Turn 1 vs. Turn 3

• Turn 1: Draw one card at a time from the stock. This is the standard and easier version.
• Turn 3: Draw three cards at a time from the stock, with only the top card playable. This makes the game more challenging.

Scoring Systems in Klondike Solitaire

Standard Scoring

• Moving a card to a foundation pile: +10 points
• Moving a card from waste to tableau: +5 points
• Turning over a face‑down tableau card: +5 points
• Returning a card from foundation to tableau: –10 points
• Time bonus: 700 000 ÷ completion time in seconds (no bonus if the game ends in under 30 s)

Winning Strategy Tips for Klondike Solitaire

1. Prioritize Uncovering Face-Down Cards

The biggest obstacle to winning is not being able to see or access cards. Always try to make moves that will turn over face-down cards in the tableau, even if it means holding off on moving cards to the foundations.

2. Create Empty Tableau Spaces

Empty spaces (which can only be filled by Kings) give you tremendous flexibility. Try to clear an entire tableau pile early if you can see that all of its cards can be moved elsewhere.

3. Don’t Rush to Move Cards to Foundations

Just because you can move a card to a foundation doesn’t mean you should. Consider:

• Keeping Aces and Twos in the tableau a bit longer can sometimes help uncover more cards
• For higher cards (especially 8 and above), think twice before moving them to foundations, as they might be needed to build tableau sequences

4. Look Ahead When Moving Sequences

Before moving a sequence of cards to another tableau pile, consider what card will be uncovered and whether that helps your overall strategy.

5. Maintain Color Balance in Foundations

Try to keep foundation piles growing at similar rates. If red suits (hearts and diamonds) are much higher than black suits (clubs and spades), you might run into trouble building sequences in the tableau due to the alternating color requirement.

6. When to Break the Rules

Sometimes the “always uncover face-down cards” rule should be broken:

• If you can move an Ace or Two to foundations without losing tableau flexibility
• If you need to free up a specific card in the waste pile before it gets buried

7. Planning Multiple Moves Ahead

Strong players think several moves ahead. Before drawing from the stock pile, plan what you’ll do with potential cards that might appear. Consider what cards you need and where they might be hiding, then work methodically to expose them:

• If you need a red 6, look at which tableau piles still have face-down cards that might contain it
• When you have multiple play options, choose the one that gives you access to more hidden cards
• Sometimes, the best move is to hold off on moving cards to foundations to maintain flexibility in tableau building

Probabilities and Statistics

Win Rates

• Standard Klondike (Turn 1) has approximately a 80-90% theoretical win rate with perfect play
• However, most human players win only 15-30% of games
• Turn 3 Klondike drops the win rate significantly to around 5-15% for average players

Unwinnable Deals

Yes, some Klondike deals are mathematically impossible to win, no matter how perfectly you play. Don’t blame yourself for every loss!

Fascinating Mathematical Facts

The number of possible initial Klondike deals is astronomical—there are 52! (factorial) possible ways to arrange a deck of cards, which equals approximately 8×10^67 different arrangements. That’s more than the estimated number of atoms in our galaxy!

Out of all these possibilities, computer analysis suggests that about 79% of Klondike games are theoretically winnable with optimal play. So when you’ve tried everything and still can’t win, there’s about a 1 in 5 chance that the game was impossible from the start.

History and Trivia

Klondike Solitaire gets its name from the Klondike region of Yukon, Canada, which was the site of a famous gold rush in the late 19th century. The game was popular among prospectors and miners during long, isolated winters. Picture gold miners in remote cabins, passing the time between prospecting expeditions by laying out cards on rough-hewn tables by lamplight.

In the United Kingdom and some other countries, solitaire card games are known as “Patience” rather than Solitaire, reflecting the virtue needed to play them successfully. This naming difference highlights how the game is perceived—either as a solitary pastime or as an exercise in restraint and careful planning.

Microsoft included Klondike Solitaire with Windows 3.0 in 1990 not just as entertainment, but as a way to teach users how to use a mouse—teaching dragging and dropping in a fun, non-threatening way. This clever inclusion helped millions of office workers and home computer users become comfortable with the then-new mouse interface. In fact, Klondike Solitaire is often cited as one of the most-played computer games of all time, having helped countless people procrastinate on work projects for decades!

Frequently Asked Questions

Is every game of Klondike winnable?

No. Mathematical analysis has shown that some initial deals are impossible to win, no matter how perfectly you play. However, the majority of games are winnable with optimal play.

What’s the difference between Klondike and regular Solitaire?

They’re the same game! “Solitaire” refers to any single-player card game, but in popular usage, especially in the United States, “Solitaire” commonly refers to Klondike specifically.

What’s the best strategy when I’m stuck?

Look for these opportunities:

1. Any face-down cards that can be exposed
2. Creating an empty tableau space for a King
3. Moving cards from the waste to the tableau, even if they don’t immediately help
4. As a last resort, move lower cards to the foundations to see new stock cards

How long does an average game take?

Most games take between 3-10 minutes, depending on your experience level and the difficulty of the deal.

Is Klondike a game of skill or luck?

It’s both. While luck plays a significant role in the initial deal and the order of the stock pile, skill and strategy greatly increase your chances of winning. Good players consistently win more often than beginners.

Why do I sometimes get stuck with just a few cards left?

This is a common frustration! Often, you’ll get down to the last few cards and find yourself unable to complete the game. This usually happens when key cards are trapped in an unfortunate sequence in the stock pile. Sometimes you need a red 7 to come before a black 8, but they’re arranged in the opposite order. With practice, you’ll get better at avoiding these “logjam” situations by planning several moves ahead.

Are there any professional Klondike players?

Not in the traditional sense of professional card players, but there are competitive speedrunners who try to complete Klondike games as quickly as possible, and some online platforms host tournaments with leaderboards. The real competition in Klondike is usually against yourself—trying to improve your win percentage or beat your best time.