Klondike Classic Solitaire

How to play

How to Play Klondike Classic Solitaire

Reveal the tableau, build descending alternating-color sequences, and transfer every suit to its foundation from Ace through King.

1. 01

   Scan all seven tableau columns before drawing or moving. Look for exposed Aces, cards that can reveal a face-down card, and useful descending red-black connections.

2. 02

   Drag a face-up card onto a card one rank higher and of the opposite color. For example, a black 8 can sit on a red 9. When allowed, move a whole ordered sequence by dragging its top card.

3. 03

   Turn over a newly uncovered tableau card immediately. Revealing information usually matters more than rearranging an already visible sequence with no follow-up.

4. 04

   Start each foundation with an Ace, then build upward in the same suit. Use foundation moves that release a face-down card or make a needed tableau move possible.

5. 05

   Place only a King, or a valid sequence beginning with a King, into an empty tableau column. Choose the King that creates the strongest chain of reveals rather than filling the space automatically.

6. 06

   Use the stock when the tableau has no productive move or when a stock card enables a reveal. Before taking the next card, check whether the current available card has a useful destination.

About the game

Play the familiar seven-column card puzzle with a plan

Klondike Classic Solitaire is a one-player card puzzle developed by Ermac Alex. The tableau begins with seven columns, including face-down cards that must be uncovered. You build visible tableau cards downward in alternating colors, move Kings or King-led sequences into empty columns, and send cards to four suit foundations that rise from Ace to King.

The rules are simple enough to recognize at a glance, but useful moves are not always obvious. A legal move can still make the position worse if it blocks a needed card, fills the only empty column too early, or sends a card to a foundation before the opposite-color cards beneath it have done their work. Good play is less about moving constantly and more about opening information while preserving choices.

This guide focuses on decisions you can apply to the board in front of you: which face-down card to expose first, when a King deserves an empty column, how to compare two legal moves, and how to rebuild your plan after a sequence stalls. Card order still matters, so a careful game can remain difficult, but each decision can be made with clearer evidence.

Controls

Controls for Klondike Classic Solitaire

Mouse drag

Move a card or an ordered face-up sequence to a legal tableau or foundation destination.

Mouse click

Select a face-up card, draw from the stock, or use an available on-screen control; eligible cards may move automatically.

Useful strategy

Prefer moves that reveal cards and preserve useful space

Separate legal moves from productive moves

A legal move follows the rank and color rules. A productive move also improves the position. The clearest productive result is exposing a face-down card, because it replaces uncertainty with a card you can use. Emptying a column, freeing an Ace, or creating a landing place for a card that blocks a reveal can be productive too.

Suppose either of two black 7s can move onto a red 8. One black 7 covers a face-down card; the other is the last card in a fully visible column. Both moves obey the same rule, but moving the first immediately reveals new information. Unless you have a useful King ready for the second column, opening the hidden card is usually the better choice.

Avoid counting movement itself as progress. Moving a sequence from one open column to another may only relocate the problem. Before dragging, name the result you expect: reveal a card, open a column, free a foundation starter, or prepare a specific stock card. If there is no result, keep the arrangement stable while you inspect alternatives.

Use empty columns to reorganize the tableau

An empty column accepts a King or a sequence led by a King, so it is more restrictive than an ordinary landing spot. Its real value is the room it creates around the rest of the tableau. A well-chosen King move can uncover a card, collect a long alternating run, and help empty a second column. A weak King move can occupy the space without opening anything.

When several Kings are available, trace the cards below each one. Prefer the choice that removes cards from a column with hidden depth or that connects to another useful sequence. A lone King that covers no hidden card may be less urgent than a King with Queen-Jack cards attached, provided the longer sequence creates a clear follow-up.

Do not empty a column merely because you can. First check whether a playable King exists and what that King will accomplish. If none is ready, preserving the last card in that column can keep another landing spot available. Once you create the gap, use it as part of a short plan rather than as a decorative empty space.

Build foundations without starving the tableau

Foundation progress is necessary, but timing matters. Low cards usually move safely when they release an important tableau card, yet even a modest foundation card can be needed as support. For example, moving a red 5 away removes a landing place for either black 4. If one of those black 4s blocks a face-down card, keeping the red 5 in play may be valuable.

Before moving a middle-rank card to its foundation, inspect the opposite-color cards one rank lower. If they are already placed or can advance safely, the move is less likely to hurt. Also check whether the same card blocks a reveal; in that case, foundation movement may solve two problems at once.

Think of the four foundations as connected to the tableau rather than as separate score piles. Balanced progress brings more ranks within reach and reduces the chance that one suit races ahead while another remains trapped. There is no need to force perfect symmetry, but large gaps deserve a quick review before you commit another card.

Use stock cards as scheduled resources

The stock is easiest to use when you prepare for it. As cards appear, notice which ones have no destination and which tableau card would create one. If a red Queen appears but every black King is blocked, the useful question is not simply whether you can take the Queen now. Ask which King must be freed before the Queen becomes productive.

Check the current available stock card before advancing. It may start a foundation, extend a tableau sequence, or provide the bridge that lets you uncover a hidden card. Passing a usable card can delay the entire chain, especially when you have not established how the stock cycles in the current game.

Do not assume that reloading, leaving the player, or repeatedly cycling the stock will preserve the same opportunity. The safest approach is to finish the useful moves available in the current position, remember key blocked cards, and treat refresh as a last resort rather than a planning tool.

Diagnose a stalled game one dependency at a time

When no move looks useful, identify the lowest blocked card you need. If a foundation requires a 4, find that 4 and inspect what covers it. If a tableau reveal requires moving a 9, locate the opposite-color 10 it needs. Turning “I am stuck” into one card dependency makes the position easier to audit.

Then work backward. The needed black 10 may require moving a red 9, which may require opening a column. Stop when you reach a card that is currently movable. This does not guarantee that every deal can be rescued, but it prevents random rearrangement and shows exactly where your plan lacks a legal link.

If you recognize a recent move that removed an essential landing card or filled the only useful empty column, use an available in-game recovery control if one is present. Because control availability and limits can vary, do not base the whole strategy on repeated undo. Reconstruct the intended chain first so that a corrected move leads somewhere different.