About Free Cell Solitaire
How to Play Free Cell Solitaire
All cards are dealt face up into eight columns. The first four columns have seven cards each, and the remaining four have six. There is no stock or hidden card to uncover.
Build downward in the tableau, alternating colours. For example, a red 6 can go on a black 7.
The four free cells each hold one card temporarily. You can move an available card into an empty free cell, then move it back to the tableau or to a foundation when a legal move is available.
Any card can move into an empty tableau column. You can also move a valid sequence there if you have enough free cells and empty columns available to make the move.
Build the foundations by suit in ascending order, starting with an Ace and finishing with a King.
You may be able to move several correctly ordered cards together. This is called a supermove. How many cards you can move depends on the number of empty free cells and tableau columns available.
Move every card to the foundations to win.
Free Cell Solitaire Strategy and Tips
Find the blocked Aces and 2s
Look across the full layout before moving. Identify the low cards you need to start each foundation and work out which cards must move to reach them.
Keep free cells available
Each occupied free cell reduces how many cards you can move at once. Use a cell to clear a specific blockage, then look for a way to empty it again.
Try to open a column
An empty column gives you room to rearrange sequences and increases how many cards you can move. Consider which moves could clear a column without filling all your free cells first.
Plan the whole sequence of moves
Before moving a card into a free cell, check what you will do with it next. A move that frees one card may leave you stuck if it fills the last space you needed.
Check before moving to a foundation
Moving an Ace or 2 up usually helps. With higher cards, check whether you still need that card in the tableau to build a sequence or uncover another card.
Use empty columns deliberately
Any card can fill an empty column, but you lose that working space when you do. Prefer a move that helps you uncover a blocked card or build a useful sequence.
Free Cell Solitaire FAQs
How many cards can I move at once?
The number depends on your empty free cells and tableau columns. With all four free cells empty and no empty column, you can move a correctly arranged sequence of up to five cards. One additional empty column can raise that capacity to ten.
Can a FreeCell deal be unwinnable?
Yes, but unwinnable deals are rare. Among the first 32,000 numbered Microsoft FreeCell deals, only one is known to be unsolvable. Nearly every deal can be won, though not every possible arrangement has a solution.
Why is it called FreeCell?
The name comes from the four free cells above the tableau. Each can temporarily hold one card while you rearrange the columns.
Do the free cells need to be empty to win?
You win when all 52 cards reach the foundations. You do not need to empty the free cells as a separate step; any card in a cell must eventually move to a foundation.
Why does FreeCell involve more planning than Klondike?
Every FreeCell card is visible from the beginning, so you can plan using the whole layout. Klondike starts with hidden cards that are revealed as you play.