FreeCell: the thinking player's solitaire

FreeCell is the patience game where almost nothing is hidden. All 52 cards are dealt face up in front of you from the very first second, so there is no luck of the draw to blame and no stock pile to bail you out. Everything you need to win is already on the table — the trick is working out the order.

That open layout is why FreeCell has such a loyal following in New Zealand, especially among players who grew up with it on an office computer in the 1990s. It rewards patience and planning rather than quick reflexes, and it is very kind on a wet Wellington afternoon or a quiet hour after dinner.

You can play it right here, free, with no ads and nothing to sign up for. Deal a game and read on — the rules below take about three minutes to learn.

The rules of FreeCell, explained simply

The layout

A standard 52-card pack is dealt into three areas:

• Eight tableau columns across the middle. Four columns hold seven cards, four hold six. Every card is face up.
• Four free cells in the top left. Each one holds a single card — think of them as parking spaces.
• Four foundations in the top right. These are where you build your winning piles.

How you win

You win by moving all 52 cards to the four foundations. Each foundation is built up by suit, starting with the Ace and finishing with the King: Ace, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King. Four complete suits and the game is yours.

How cards move

Only the bottom card of a tableau column is available to move (and any card sitting in a free cell). From there:

• Onto another column: a card may go onto a card one rank higher of the opposite colour. A red 7 goes on a black 8; a black 4 goes on a red 5.
• Into a free cell: any available card may be parked in an empty free cell. It sits there until you move it out.
• Onto a foundation: Aces go up first, then each card of that suit in order.
• Into an empty column: any card may be placed in a column you have emptied.

Cards never move off a foundation in FreeCell, so send a card up only when you are sure you will not need it to catch a lower card of the other colour.

Moving several cards at once

Strictly speaking, FreeCell only ever moves one card at a time. In practice the game lets you drag a tidy run (such as black 9, red 8, black 7) in one go, using your empty free cells and empty columns behind the scenes. The number of cards you can shift in a single move follows a well-known formula:

(free cells empty + 1) × 2 ^{(empty columns)}

That single line explains the whole game: empty space is power. Every cell you fill makes you weaker, and every column you clear roughly doubles your strength.

Playing FreeCell on this site

This version is built to be pleasant rather than pushy. It is completely free, there are no ads of any kind, no pop-ups and no paywalls — and there is nothing to download, install or sign up for. No account, no email address. Click, and the cards are dealt.

• Large, clear cards and readable text, with a zoom control to make the board bigger — handy for tired eyes or a small phone screen.
• Hint when a position has you stumped, and unlimited Undo so you can back out of a bad move and try another line.
• Restart to begin the same deal again from the top.
• Auto Play to send the cards home once the game is effectively solved.
• Drag and drop or simply tap a card and then its destination — whichever suits you.
• Wins, time and moves are tracked for your current game, if you like a target to beat.
• Sound can be switched off, and there is fullscreen mode plus a choice of table colours.

It runs in any modern browser on a desktop, tablet or phone. There is no gambling, nothing to buy, and no timer nagging you to hurry — the game exists purely for enjoyment. Our privacy page sets out how the site works.

Strategy that actually works

Before you touch a card, look

Since everything is face up, the first thirty seconds are the most valuable in the game. Find the Aces and 2s and note how deeply they are buried. Look for the columns that are almost tidy, and the ones that are a mess of high cards. Plan a route to the worst-buried Ace before you start moving.

Guard your free cells

Cells are not storage — they are working space. A card parked in a cell is out of play until something turns up to receive it, and four full cells with no empty column means you can move exactly one card at a time. As a rule of thumb, never fill your last free cell unless the move that follows clearly wins something.

Empty a column early

The six-card columns are your best candidates. An empty column is worth far more than a free cell: it doubles your moving capacity, gives a King somewhere to live, and lets you unpack a long run in one sweep. Once you have one, be fussy about what you put in it.

Do not rush cards to the foundations

This is the classic beginner's error. Sending a red 5 up the moment the 4 goes home feels like progress, but if a black 4 is still stuck at the bottom of a column, you have just thrown away the card that could have received it. A safe habit: hold a card back until both cards of the opposite colour, two ranks below it, are already home.

Work backwards from the blockage

Strong players do not ask "what can I move?" — they ask "what is in the way?". Find the card you need, count how many cards sit on top of it, then work out whether you have the space to lift them. If you do not, build that space first.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Making obvious moves simply because they are available, with no plan behind them.
• Burying a low card under a high one in a column you will need to dig out later.
• Dropping a middling card into your only empty column without a reason.
• Giving up too early — use Undo and try a different order instead of restarting.

What the numbers actually say

FreeCell is famous for being winnable far more often than most patience games. According to Wikipedia's article on FreeCell, it is estimated that around 99.999% of possible deals can be solved. The same article cites a 2018 analysis by Theodore Pringle and Shlomi Fish which tested 8.6 billion deals and found 102,075 that could not be solved — roughly one impossible deal in every 84,000.

The best-known example is deal number 11982 from the old Windows version, which Wikipedia notes is the only unsolvable deal among the original "Microsoft 32,000". In the mid-1990s volunteers working through those 32,000 numbered deals by hand left that one standing, and computer solvers later confirmed it cannot be beaten.

The practical lesson for the rest of us: if you lose a game of FreeCell, the odds overwhelmingly say the deal was winnable and the wrong move was ours. That is exactly why Undo is unlimited here.

Frequently asked questions

Is FreeCell harder than Klondike?

It is harder to play well, but far easier to win. Klondike hides cards and relies on the draw; FreeCell hides nothing, so skill decides almost everything. If you would like the contrast, try Klondike Draw 3.

Can every FreeCell game be won?

Very nearly, but not quite — see the figures above. A tiny fraction of deals are genuinely impossible.

Does using Hint or Undo count as cheating?

Not at all. There is no scoreboard to protect and nothing to buy here. Many players use Undo as a learning tool: back up a few moves, take the other road, and see which one opens the position.

How long does a game take?

Most players finish in around five to fifteen minutes. A tough deal can take longer, and that is half the fun.

Do I need to create an account or download anything?

No. Nothing to install, no sign-up, no email. Open the page and play.

Can I play on my phone?

Yes. The game works in any modern browser on phone, tablet and computer. Tap a card and then its destination, and use the zoom control if you would like the cards larger.

What else can I play here?

Have a look at Spider Solitaire and its two-suit and four-suit versions, browse the full list on our games page, or start from the home page. There are more tips and walkthroughs on the blog.