Klondike Solitaire

The 'Windows Solitaire' — seven tableau piles, four foundations, draw from stock in ones or threes.

🌤indoor
Photo · Wikipedia

What is Klondike Solitaire?

Klondike is the single-player card game most people mean when they say 'solitaire'. Seven tableau columns of increasing length are dealt from a shuffled deck; play builds foundations up by suit from Ace to King, and tableau piles down in alternating colours. Popularised worldwide as Microsoft's default Windows Solitaire from 1990. Only about 82% of games are winnable with perfect play.

Quick facts

Category

Card Games

Type

Individual

Players

1–1

Where played

indoor

Country of origin

🇨🇦 Canada

Estimated origin

Late 19th-century Yukon (named after the Klondike gold rush)

Olympic

No

Popularity

global

Sources & provenance

Last verified 2026-08-24.verified