Mahjong Solitaire
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Daily Mahjong
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Board & Tile GamesUpdated
Mahjong Solitaire
Classic Tile-Matching Solitaire. Free Online
Play Mahjong Solitaire free online in your browser, the classic tile-matching game, with no download or account needed.
Mahjong Solitaire, also known as Shanghai solitaire, is the calm, one-player tile-matching game played with the 144 tiles of traditional mahjong. The tiles are stacked into a layout several layers deep, and your job is to take them apart two at a time, matching free tiles with the same face until the board is bare. It is a game of looking ahead rather than racing the clock: every deal can be solved, undo is unlimited, and nothing ever runs out on you. Play it free here at CardAndPuzzle.com, in your browser on a PC or a phone, with no download or sign-up.
How Do You Play Mahjong Solitaire?
- Match Pairs: Tap a free tile to select it, then tap a free tile with the same face. The pair is removed from the board.
- Only Free Tiles Can Move: A tile is free when nothing sits on top of it and its left or right side is open. Blocked tiles are drawn darker, so you can see your moves at a glance.
- Identical Tiles Match: Characters, bamboos and circles from 1 to 9, the four winds and the three dragons each come in sets of four, and each matches only its twin.
- Flowers and Seasons Are Special: Any flower matches any flower, and any season matches any season, even though the pictures differ.
- Winning: Clear every tile from the board.
Can Every Mahjong Solitaire Deal Be Solved?
Yes. Many mahjong games deal tiles at random and leave you to find out the hard way that a board was never winnable. Here, every deal is built backwards from an empty table by removing free pairs one at a time, so a complete solution exists before you see the board.
- Mistakes Can Be Undone: Undo is unlimited and free, so a wrong pair is never the end of a game.
- Shuffle When You Are Stuck: Shuffle rearranges the tiles left on the board into a position that can still be cleared, and it can be undone too. A few end positions are beyond any shuffle, such as the last pair stacked on itself, and the game tells you so rather than offering one.
- The Game Watches for Dead Ends: If no free pair is left, the game tells you right away and offers a shuffle when one can help, or a fresh start.
What Are the Game Modes?
- Journey: An endless run of stages in chapters of seven. Each chapter opens with two easy boards, climbs through three harder ones, gives you a breather and ends on a finale board. Early stages are small and use fewer kinds of tile, and the full 144-tile boards arrive as you go. Every player plays the same board for the same stage, and each new chapter changes the background color.
- Classic: Pick a layout and get a fresh random deal. There are nine layouts, from Petite with 16 tiles to Pagoda and the traditional Turtle with all 144.
| Layout | Tiles | Layers |
|---|---|---|
| Petite | 16 | 2 |
| Diamond | 40 | 3 |
| Butterfly | 48 | 2 |
| Steps | 56 | 4 |
| Gallery | 64 | 2 |
| Plateau | 72 | 2 |
| Fortress | 100 | 3 |
| Pagoda | 144 | 4 |
| Turtle | 144 | 4, plus a single top tile |
Not sure where to begin? Petite is a quick way to learn the rules, Diamond and Butterfly are gentle middle sizes, and Turtle is the full traditional challenge. Layouts turn to fit your screen, so a board plays as comfortably on a phone held upright as on a wide monitor.
How Do Hints, Undo and Shuffle Work?
- Unlimited Undo: Take back as many matches as you like, for free, in every game.
- 3 Free Hints a Game: A hint lights up a matching pair of free tiles. Press it again to see a different pair.
- 1 Free Shuffle a Game: Shuffle mixes the remaining tiles into a new arrangement when you are stuck. It cannot rescue every dead end, and the game tells you when a fresh start is the better choice.
- More When You Need Them: Extra hints and shuffles are available by watching a short ad.
- No Time Pressure: Each pair is worth 10 points and a clock runs from your first match, but there is no time bonus to chase. Score, time and moves can all be hidden in the settings.
- Five Tile Styles: Switch between Classic, Jade, Amber, Sakura and Obsidian tile sets, each with its own look. The tiles keep their own styling whichever site theme you use.
- Picks Up Where You Left Off: A game in progress is saved, and Continue takes you straight back to it.
What Are the Best Mahjong Solitaire Strategies?
- Free the Long Rows First: Tiles at the ends of long rows block everything behind them. Clearing them opens more of the board than clearing a short row.
- Work the Tall Stacks Early: Tiles on the top layers sit on top of several others. Removing them early frees more tiles than any other move.
- Don't Match Just Because You Can: When you can see three of a kind free, think about which two to take. The fourth tile may be buried under one of them.
- Watch for Tiles Stacked on Their Twins: If two identical tiles sit one on top of the other, the bottom one can only be matched with one of the other two copies. Make sure those are not used up elsewhere.
- Save Flowers and Seasons: They match each other freely, so they are flexible. Keep them for when you need a pair to unlock something.
- Use Undo to Explore: Undo costs nothing. If a line of play stalls, back up and try a different pair.
Why Play Mahjong Solitaire Here?
- Every Deal Is Winnable: No random deals that were lost before you started.
- Unlimited Free Undo: Explore as much as you like without paying for it.
- Relaxed by Design: No countdown, no time bonus, and the score and clock can be hidden.
- Endless Journey: A new stage after every win, with a finale board at the end of every chapter.
- Free in Your Browser: No app store, no download and no account needed. It works on a PC, Mac, Chromebook, tablet or phone.
More Free Games
Mahjong Solitaire sits with our board and tile games and our puzzle games. If you enjoy clearing a board one match at a time, TriPeaks Solitaire and Pyramid Solitaire are the card games closest in feel. For another game played with tiles, try Mexican Train Dominoes.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you play Mahjong Solitaire?
Mahjong Solitaire starts with a pile of tiles stacked in layers. Tap a free tile, then tap another free tile with the same face, and the pair is removed. Keep matching pairs until the whole board is clear. It is a one-player tile-matching game, not the four-player mahjong played around a table, and it uses the same 144 tiles.
What makes a tile free in Mahjong Solitaire?
A tile is free when nothing rests on top of it, not even partly, and its left or right side is open. Tiles that are not free are drawn darker, so the bright tiles on the board are the ones you can play. Tapping a blocked tile just makes it shake.
Which tiles match in Mahjong Solitaire?
Most tiles match only an identical tile: the characters, bamboos and circles from 1 to 9, the four winds and the three dragons each come in sets of four. The exceptions are the flowers and the seasons. Any flower matches any other flower, and any season matches any other season, even though their pictures are different.
Can every Mahjong Solitaire deal be solved?
Yes. Every deal is built backwards from a cleared board, so a full solution exists before you make your first move. You can still paint yourself into a corner by matching the wrong pairs, but undo is unlimited, so you can always back up to a point where the board was still winnable. Shuffle can also rearrange the remaining tiles when you are stuck, though it cannot rescue every position.
What happens when there are no moves left?
The game checks after every match. If no free pair is left, it tells you. When a shuffle can help, it offers one, which rearranges the tiles still on the board. Some positions cannot be rescued by any shuffle, for example when the last two matching tiles are stacked on top of each other, and then it offers a fresh start instead. You can always undo back to an earlier point and try a different pair.
What is Journey mode in Mahjong Solitaire?
Journey is an endless run of stages grouped into chapters of seven. Each chapter starts gently, builds up, gives you a breather and then ends on a bigger finale board. Early stages use small boards with fewer kinds of tile, and the full 144-tile boards arrive as you progress. Every player gets the same board for the same stage. If you would rather pick a layout and play, Classic mode deals a fresh game on any of nine layouts.
What is the Turtle layout in Mahjong Solitaire?
Turtle, also called the Dragon, is the traditional Mahjong Solitaire layout: all 144 tiles in four layers shaped like a turtle, with one tile on top of the shell. It is the layout most people picture when they think of the game. You can play it in Classic mode, where it is one of nine layouts. If you are new, start with a smaller layout such as Petite or Diamond and work up.
Is there a trick to winning Mahjong Solitaire?
Clear the tiles that unlock the most others first, such as the ends of long rows and the tall stacks. When three or four matching tiles are free, think before taking a pair, because the tile you leave behind may be the only one still buried. Flowers and seasons match within their group, so they are handy for unlocking a stuck spot. Undo is free, so test an idea and back out if it stalls.
Is there a timer in Mahjong Solitaire?
A clock starts on your first match and the score goes up by 10 for every pair, but there is no time bonus and nothing runs out. You can hide the score, the time and the move count in the settings if you would rather play without them.
Are there hints in Mahjong Solitaire?
Yes. Every game comes with 3 free hints and 1 free shuffle, and undo is unlimited and always free. A hint lights up a matching pair, and pressing it again shows a different one. If you need more hints or shuffles, you can get them by watching a short ad.
Is Mahjong Solitaire free to play?
Yes. Mahjong Solitaire on CardAndPuzzle.com is free and runs in your browser on a PC, Mac, Chromebook, tablet or phone. There is nothing to download and no account needed, and a game in progress is saved so you can continue it later. Sign in if you like to keep your progress on every device.
Is there a daily Mahjong Solitaire layout?
Yes. Every day at midnight Pacific time, Mahjong Solitaire gets one new layout that everyone plays. Your first try is the one that counts, and replays are practice. The board ranks by fastest finish, and you can see where you stand against the people you follow, your league of twenty players at your level, and everyone. The Card & Puzzle regulars, sixteen computer players who are always marked, fill any empty league seats. Find today's deal in the strip under the game, on Daily, and on the Mahjong Solitaire leaderboard.
