How to Play Classic Klondike Solitaire (Turn 1)
Learn the rules, scoring system, and expert strategies that help you clear the tableau and send every card home in this iconic solitaire experience.
Prefer a tougher draw? Head over to Klondike Solitaire Turn 3 and try the three-card challenge.
Game Setup & Layout
Klondike uses a standard 52-card deck dealt into seven tableau columns, a stock pile, a waste pile, and four foundation piles.
- Tableau: Columns 1-7 hold increasing numbers of cards; only the top card in each column starts face up.
- Stock: Draw pile that feeds the waste one card at a time in Turn 1.
- Waste: Holds the most recently drawn stock cards; only the top card is playable.
- Foundations: One per suit; build upward from Ace to King.
Primary Objective
Move all 52 cards into the four foundations in ascending order (Ace through King) while keeping suits matched.
Reminder: A game is only complete when every card sits face up in the foundation piles. It's perfectly normal to recycle the stock several times before you get there.
Core Move Rules
- Alternate colors and descend by rank when stacking cards in the tableau (e.g., black 9 on red 10).
- Expose hidden cards by moving the face-up card that covers them; newly exposed cards flip automatically.
- Only Kings (or valid sequences starting with a King) can fill an empty tableau column.
- Send cards to the foundations whenever it doesn't lock a necessary move in the tableau.
- Draw exactly one card from the stock pile per tap. When the stock is empty, you may recycle the waste back to stock.
Scoring & Move Tracking
OnlineCardGames.io follows a friendly, mobile-first scoring system tuned for casual and speed-focused players alike.
- +10 points for moving a card from the tableau to a foundation.
- +15 points for moving a card from the tableau onto another tableau column (revealing hidden cards).
- +5 points for promoting a waste card to the foundation.
- -15 points for pulling a card down from the foundation when you need to rebuild the tableau.
- Moves counter increments on every stock draw and every successful placement.
Tip: Preserve your foundation lead. If moving a card up blocks you from revealing a new tableau card, hold it back until the column is free.
Pro Strategy Checklist
- Prioritize uncovering hidden tableau cards over sending early cards to the foundation.
- Keep at least one empty tableau column available for high-value sequences (ideally headed by a King).
- Cycle the stock deliberately - note the order of waste cards so you can plan two or three moves ahead.
- Balance suit colors across tableau columns to avoid "all red" or "all black" choke points.
- Use the undo button to study alternatives; it's there to help you memorize better lines.
Helpers & Accessibility Features
We bundled a handful of tools to keep the experience approachable for new players and power users alike:
- Auto Move: Sends safe cards to the foundations when toggled on. It pauses automatically during manual drags or undo.
- Hints: Highlights a recommended move when you're stuck. Perfect for learning priority lines.
- Undo: Instantly rewinds to the last stable layout, including card orientation and auto-move status.
Keyboard users: Tab through tableau and foundation piles, then press Enter or Space to interact with highlighted cards.
Need Help or Want to Contact Us?
Any comments, complaints, bug reports, questions, or anything else should be sent to help@onlinecardgames.io. We can't respond to everyone, but we try to respond to as many as we can. If you just have a quick question make sure it isn't covered in our FAQ. You can also often get help from other users on our Reddit community, where many of our users congregate. Pop in and say hello!
You can also find us on any of the following sites:
r/OnlineCardGamescom