Play Solitaire
Setting the table…
How to play Klondike Solitaire
Klondike is the classic solitaire: from a shuffled 52-card deck, seven tableau piles are dealt with only each pile's top card face up, and the remaining 24 cards form the stock. Your goal is to get every card onto the four foundations.
The tableau
Build downward in alternating colors — a red Ten goes on a black Jack. Any face-up run (or just the top part of one) can move as a unit onto another pile. When a face-down card is exposed, it turns over automatically. Only a King, alone or leading a run, can fill an empty column.
The foundations
One pile per suit, built upward from Ace to King. Cards move to a foundation one at a time — double-click or double-tap an eligible card to send it there quickly. You win the moment all four foundations are complete. You may also bring a foundation card back onto the tableau when you need it (for 15 points).
Stock and waste
PlayCards defaults to Draw 3 with unlimited redeals: tap the stock to turn three cards onto the waste at once (when only one or two remain, just those turn over), and only the top waste card can be played. When the stock runs out, tap it again to turn the waste back over and keep going, as many times as you need. Prefer one card at a time? Switch to Draw 1 under Game mode in the New game menu — switching starts a fresh deal, and PlayCards remembers your choice. Other Klondike implementations differ — limited redeals and other draw rules are common — so scores are comparable only within the same rules.
Scoring
Standard scoring: 5 points for waste to tableau, 10 for any card reaching a foundation, 5 for each face-down card you turn over, and −15 for taking a card back off a foundation. Recycling the waste is where the modes differ: in Draw 3 your first three passes through the stock are free and each recycle after that costs 20 points; in Draw 1 every recycle costs 100. Your score never drops below zero, and undo is unlimited and free — it restores the previous position exactly, score included.
Beginner tips
- Turning face-down cards over is almost always the most valuable move on the board — prefer plays that free them.
- Don't rush every card to the foundations: you may still need that red Five on the tableau to hold a black Four.
- Empty columns are precious. Think about which King (and which color) you want before you fill one.
- Dig through the whole stock early to see what you have — redeals are unlimited here. In Draw 3, playing waste cards shifts which cards the next pass turns face up.
- Stuck? Ask for a Hint (the H key), or undo a few moves and try a different line — experimenting is free.
Solitaire is the first game at the PlayCards table— Hearts, Spades, FreeCell, and more classics are on the way.