Key Terms
- Stock: The remaining deck after the deal. Click it to draw cards.
- Waste: Cards drawn from the stock are placed here face-up. The top card is available to play.
- Foundations: The four piles where you build each suit from Ace to King to win the game.
- Tableau: The seven columns of cards dealt at the start. Cards are arranged in descending order, alternating red and black.
The Deal
Klondike solitaire is played with a single standard card deck (without the Jokers). Cards are shuffled and dealt into seven columns. The first column is dealt one card. The second is dealt two cards. The process continues to the seventh pile, which is dealt seven cards. Finally, the top card in each column is turned over. These seven columns are called the tableau.
The Stock and Waste
The remaining deck, placed in the left or right corner of the screen, is called the stock. Cards are drawn one at a time (easy gameplay) or three at a time (hard gameplay). Once drawn, cards are flipped over and placed in the waste pile. When you can no longer draw cards from the stock pile, click its outline to replenish it with cards.
The Foundations
The four empty spaces above the tableau are called foundations. The object of the game is to play all the cards on the foundations, by suit and in order from Ace to King.
Moving Cards in the Tableau
Until you have uncovered all the cards needed to build the foundations, you will need to move cards between the tableau (seven columns). Cards in the tableau must be arranged in descending order from King to Ace, and alternate between red and black.
Moving Cards on Your Mac
- Drag: Click and hold a card, then drag it to a valid pile.
- Click to Move: Single- or double-click a card to automatically move it to the best available position. The default on Mac is double-click. You can change this in Settings > Gameplay > Click to Move.
- Stock: Click the stock pile to draw cards. Click the empty stock outline to recycle the deck.
Winning the Game
The game is won when all 52 cards have been moved to the four foundation piles, each built in order from Ace to King. If Auto Complete is enabled in Settings, the game will finish automatically once all cards are face-up and in order.
Undo
You can undo as many moves as you like. There is no limit. Press ⌘U or click the Undo button. Each undo deducts 30 points in Standard scoring and $5 in Vegas scoring.