Klondike is the solitaire most people mean when they say “solitaire”: seven columns, a stock pile in the corner, and four foundations to build from ace to king. It is easy to learn, but the difference between a casual player and a strong one is large. Strong players do not just make any legal move. They choose the move that keeps the most options open.
This guide covers the habits that win more games, from the first deal to the last few cards.
The basics in one minute
Twenty-eight cards are dealt into seven columns: one card in the first column, two in the second, up to seven in the last. Only the top card of each column is face up. The other 24 cards form the stock.
In the columns you build down in alternating colours: a red 9 on a black 10, a black 8 on that red 9. You can move a correctly built run of face-up cards as a group. When you move the last face-up card off a column, the card underneath turns face up. Only a king (or a run starting with a king) can go into an empty column.
The four foundations are built up by suit, from ace to king. You win when all 52 cards are on the foundations.
Draw 1 or draw 3?
Klondike comes in two common versions, and they play very differently.
Draw 1 turns one card from the stock at a time. You can see every card in the stock on each pass, so you have a lot of control. Most deals are winnable with careful play, and this is the best mode for learning.
Draw 3 turns three cards at a time, and only the top one of those three is playable. The cards underneath become available only after you play the top one. This means some cards can stay out of reach for several passes. Draw 3 rewards planning and patience, and it is noticeably harder.
Rules on how many times you can go through the stock vary. Some versions allow unlimited passes, others allow only one (draw 1) or three (draw 3). Scoring also varies: there is a standard points system and a “Vegas” style that counts money. If you play a version with limited passes, every trip through the stock becomes much more valuable, so think before you turn.
In draw 3, it can help to play a card from the waste even when you do not need it right now, simply to shift the order of the stock for the next pass. The cards that were stuck in the middle of a group of three will then land in a different position.
Uncover face-down cards first
The single most important rule of Klondike strategy: face-down cards are the problem. Every hidden card is a card you cannot plan with. Your top priority should almost always be turning them over.
When you have a choice between two moves, pick the one that reveals a face-down card. If both reveal one, prefer the column with more hidden cards. The seventh column starts with six face-down cards, so freeing it opens up far more of the game than clearing the second column, which has only one.
A useful habit: before playing from the stock, check whether any move in the columns would turn a card over. Columns first, stock second.
Do not empty a column without a king ready
An empty column feels like progress, but it is only useful if you can fill it with something good. In standard Klondike only a king can go there.
If you empty a column and no king is available, you have lost a spot where you could have stacked cards. Before clearing a column, check whether a king is waiting: at the bottom of another column’s face-up run, on top of the waste, or soon to come from the stock.
Choose your king carefully
When you do have an empty column and more than one king could go into it, think about which one helps more.
- A king that sits on top of face-down cards in another column is a strong choice: moving it reveals a hidden card.
- Look at the queens and jacks you can see. If you have a red queen waiting with nowhere to go, a black king is the better pick, because the queen can follow it straight away.
- A king on the waste pile is usually the weaker option, unless moving it lets you reach important cards beneath it in the stock.
Timing the foundations
It is tempting to send every card to the foundations as soon as you can. Aces and twos are always safe to move up, since nothing can be built on them in the columns. With higher cards, be more careful.
A card on the foundation can no longer hold anything in the columns. If you move a black 6 to the foundation too early, you may later find a red 5 with nowhere to go. A simple guideline: a card is safe to play to the foundation when the cards of the opposite colour one rank lower are already there, or will not need it. For example, the 5 of hearts is safe once both black 4s are on their foundations.
Many versions, including the one described below, let you move a card back down from a foundation to a column if you need it. This costs points in standard scoring, but it can rescue a stuck game.
Use runs to rebalance columns
You can move a run of face-up cards, not just a single card. This is useful for shifting cards off a column that has hidden cards under it, even if the move does not seem to help right away.
For example, suppose one column shows a red 8 with four cards hidden beneath, and another column ends with a black 9. Moving the red 8 (and anything stacked on it) onto the black 9 will turn over a new card. Look for these moves every time something changes.
When you are stuck
Before giving up, try the following:
- Go through the stock once more, slowly, and note which cards are in it.
- Look for a card you can move from the foundation back to a column to unlock a move.
- Check whether splitting a run lets you reach a card in the middle of it.
- If undo is available, go back to the last real decision and try the other path.
Playing Klondike in Solitaire Big Cards
Solitaire Big Cards: Classic includes Klondike in both draw 1 and draw 3, along with Spider and FreeCell. It allows unlimited passes through the stock and uses standard scoring (no Vegas), with the score and timer hidden unless you choose to show them. In draw 1, each recycle of the stock costs 100 points. Only kings go into empty columns, and you can move a card back from a foundation when you need it. An optional setting sends cards that are no longer needed in the columns up to the foundations automatically. Every deal is checked in advance and can be won, so a stuck game always has another path, and undo is unlimited with free hints.