FreeCell

How to play FreeCell

FreeCell is a Solitaire card game with almost no luck. All 52 cards are dealt face up into eight columns at the start, so you can see everything and plan ahead. Above the columns are four free cells and four foundations.

Goal

Move every card to the foundations. Each foundation holds one suit and is built up from Ace to King.

Turn by turn

1. Move the top card of any column onto a card that is one rank higher and of the other colour. A black 9 can go on a red 10.
2. Put any single card into an empty free cell. Each cell holds only one card. You can move it out again later.
3. Any card or ordered group can go into an empty column.
4. Move an Ace to a foundation as soon as it is free, then add the 2, the 3 and so on of the same suit.

Moving several cards

Officially you move one card at a time. But if there is enough free space, you can move an ordered group at once, as if you used the free cells to carry it. The largest group you can move is (empty free cells + 1) × 2 for each empty column. For example, with 2 free cells and 1 empty column you can move 6 cards. When you move a group into an empty column, that column does not count.

Playing on this site

Drag cards, or tap a card and then tap where it should go. Double-tap sends a card to the foundation, a column or a free cell. Cards that are no longer needed in the columns go to the foundations by themselves. Hint shows a move and Undo has no limit.

Deal numbers

Every game has a deal number, shown above the board. The deals use the same numbers as the classic Windows FreeCell, so deal #1 here is the same as deal #1 there. Type a number and press Play deal to play a deal again or to try one a friend has solved. Almost every deal can be solved; the famous deal #11982 is one of the very few that cannot.

Strategy tips

• Plan before you move. Every card is visible, so find the Aces and 2s first and work out how to dig them out.
• Keep free cells empty. Each full cell halves the number of cards you can move at once. Use a cell only when it leads somewhere.
• An empty column is gold. It is worth more than a free cell because it doubles your moving power. Try to clear a short column early.
• Build long, ordered columns. Sort cards into neat runs of alternating colours. Ordered runs are easy to move later.
• Don't bury low cards. Avoid putting cards on top of an Ace or 2 that you will need soon.
• Use Undo to explore. If a plan fails, go back and try another order. Learning from a dead end is part of the game.