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How to Play Klondike Solitaire (and Win More Often)

Klondike rules, draw-1 vs draw-3, foundations and tableau, and the stock-cycling strategy that wins more deals.
Updated June 2026

Solitaire on Board Gaming Hub is classic Klondike: a single 52-card deck, seven tableau columns, four foundations, and a stock you cycle through the waste. It runs in one HTML page with unlimited undo, smart-click auto-moves, and a toggle for Draw 1 or Draw 3. This guide covers the rules and the habits that turn losses into wins.

The layout

The deal puts 28 cards into seven columns — one card in the first column, two in the second, up to seven in the last — and only the bottom card of each column starts face-up. The remaining 24 cards form the stock; the waste and the four foundations begin empty.

Draw 1 vs Draw 3

The board offers both modes. Draw 1 turns one stock card at a time and every card is immediately playable — roughly 80% of deals are solvable with perfect play. Draw 3 turns three cards but only the top of the packet is live, so cards you need are often buried; solvability drops to around 5%. Learn on Draw 1, then switch to Draw 3 when you want the harder game.

Undo is a tool, not cheating: This build allows unlimited undo. Serious solvers use it to backtrack out of dead ends — with backtracking, real win rates climb close to the theoretical ceiling.

Winning strategy

  1. Work the stock early. Cycle the stock before you commit to big tableau moves so you know what is coming. In Draw 3, count where useful cards land — the order is fixed until you disturb it.
  2. Expose face-down cards first. Every hidden card is locked information. Prefer moves that flip a face-down card over moves that merely shuffle face-up runs.
  3. Do not rush to the foundation. A low card sent up too early can strand a card that needed it in the tableau. Keep 2s through 5s available as landing spots for the opposite color.
  4. Save empty columns for Kings. An empty column is your most valuable resource. Do not fill it with a random King if a more useful King (one that unblocks a long buried run) is coming.
  5. Send to the foundation when it is safe. A card is safe to bank once both opposite-color cards one rank lower are already up (or no longer needed as landing spots).

Use smart-click and auto-complete

Click any card to auto-move it to its best legal destination — foundation first, then the most useful tableau column. Once every card is face-up, use AUTO-COMPLETE to finish the deal in a single tap instead of clicking each card home.

Prefer a puzzle with no luck at all? Try Sudoku or its companion Sudoku tips guide. For a similar solo pace with tiles instead of cards, see Mahjong Solitaire.

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