Solitaire Craft

How to Win at Klondike Solitaire: Strategy That Works

Solitaire Craft guide. Updated 13 November 2026.

Klondike rewards a calm, methodical player. The same few habits win more games than any clever trick. This guide explains the order in which to look for moves, how to treat empty columns and foundations, and how the number of cards you draw changes the plan.

Know what you are aiming for

You win when all 52 cards are on the four foundation piles, built in suit from ace to king. Almost everything you do in the seven columns exists to free the cards that are face down. A game is not lost because a card looks buried. It is lost when no face down card can ever be reached.

The order in which to look for moves

  1. Moves that turn over a face down card. These are the most valuable because they bring new information. Choose the move that uncovers a card in the longest column.
  2. Moves that free an ace or a two. Low cards go to the foundations at once.
  3. Moves between columns that create no problem. Join runs, and move a card only when it helps.
  4. Only then, turn a card from the stock. A card from the stock cannot be put back, so use every useful move on the table first.

Handle empty columns with care

An empty column is powerful, but only a king can fill it. If you empty a column and you have no king ready, you may waste the space. Try to empty a column when a king is available, either in the columns or about to come from the stock.

Be patient with the foundations

Aces and twos should go up straight away. Higher cards are different. A red six sitting on a black seven can carry a black five, so sending it up too early can leave a black five with nowhere to go. A useful rule is to keep the foundations roughly level, so that no suit runs far ahead of the others.

Draw 1 or draw 3

With draw 1 you see every card in the stock as you go round, so careful play wins a high share of games. With draw 3 only the top card of each group of three can be played at first, which hides cards and makes the stock order matter. On Solitaire Craft you can choose any number from 1 to 8, so you can raise the challenge slowly.

Accept that some games cannot be won

Many random shuffles cannot be won with any play at all. That is why the levels on Solitaire Craft use deals that have been tested. If you want a game that you know can be won, play Easy, Medium, Hard or Near impossible, and use Undo to try another plan.

Ready to try these ideas? Play Klondike Solitaire or read whether every solitaire game can be won.

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