Solo Card Games to Play by Yourself, Free and Boxed
Solo card games split into two kinds. There is solitaire, the free games you play with a standard deck and a bit of table space, and there are boxed games designed for one player, with more decisions and a theme. Both are worth knowing, and most people only know Klondike.
So this page covers both. For the solitaires we give the rules in a sentence or two and, where Wikipedia has one, the published win rate, because how often you can win is the thing that decides whether a solitaire is relaxing or maddening. The boxed solo games we have not scored yet, and they say so. The last three are bigger games we have reviewed and scored on our Bamboo (quick to learn) and Pandas (fun) scales, each of which has a solo mode.
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The Short Answer
- The one you can win most: FreeCell, where almost every deal is solvable.
- The classic: Klondike, won somewhere between one game in five and two in five.
- For a real challenge: Spider with four suits, or Pyramid.
- A solo game that is not solitaire: Regicide, playable with the deck you already own.
- A boxed solo game: Friday, a deck-builder for one.
For card games with other people, our card games with a deck of cards covers 25 classics. Last verified: October 2026.
All 19 at a Glance
| Game | What you need | Time | Luck or skill | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Klondike | 1 deck | 10 min | Mostly skill | 18–43% |
| Spider | 2 decks | 20–30 min | Skill | About 1 in 3 with good play |
| FreeCell | 1 deck | 10 min | Skill | Almost every deal |
| Pyramid | 1 deck | 5–10 min | Mostly luck | About 1 in 50 (strict rules) |
| Golf | 1 deck | 5 min | Some skill | Not published |
| Clock | 1 deck | 5 min | Pure luck | Not published |
| Accordion | 1 deck | 10 min | Skill and luck | Rarely won |
| Aces Up | 1 deck | 5 min | Mostly luck | About 1 in 35 with normal play |
| Canfield | 1 deck | 10 min | Mostly luck | Very low |
| Monte Carlo | 1 deck | 5–10 min | Mostly luck | Not published |
| Calculation | 1 deck | 15 min | Skill | Over 80% for skilled players |
| Forty Thieves | 2 decks | 20–30 min | Skill and luck | About 1 in 10 |
| Regicide | 1 deck or the boxed set | About 20 min | Skill | Hard |
| Friday | Boxed | Under 30 min | Skill | Varies |
| Sprawlopolis | Boxed (18 cards) | 15–20 min | Skill | Target score |
| Onirim | Boxed | 15 min | Skill and luck | Varies |
| Wingspan (solo) | Boxed | 40–70 min | Skill | Score against the Automa |
| Heat (solo) | Boxed | 45–60 min | Skill | Race against bot cars |
| Spirit Island (solo) | Boxed | 90–120 min | Skill | Difficulty you choose |
Win rates are Wikipedia’s figures where one exists. Times are typical, and the luck-or-skill column is our judgment.
Free Solo Card Games With a Standard Deck
Card games to play by yourself start here: seven classic solitaires and one cooperative game. Everything in this section needs one standard deck, except Spider, which needs two.
1. Klondike — The Solitaire Everyone Means
Also called: Solitaire, Patience
Klondike is the game most people call “solitaire.” Deal seven piles, build them down in alternating colors, and move every card up to four foundation piles, ace to king by suit. Wikipedia puts the odds of winning between 18 and 43 percent, depending on the rules you use.
The biggest rule choice is whether you turn the stock one card at a time or three. One at a time is easier and friendlier.
Who should skip it: anyone who already plays it on their phone and wants something new.
2. Spider — The Long Game With Two Decks
Also called: no common other name, though Spiderette is a one-deck cousin
Spider uses two decks shuffled together and ten piles. Build down in any suit, but only a full run of one suit from king to ace leaves the table, and clearing all eight runs wins. Per Wikipedia, the chances with good play are about one game in three.
Play with one suit while you learn, then two, then all four. Four suits is a real puzzle.
Who should skip it: anyone with a small table. Ten piles of two decks spread out.
3. FreeCell — The One You Can Almost Always Win
FreeCell deals the whole deck face up into eight columns, with four empty “free cells” to park cards in. Because you can see everything, Wikipedia notes that very few deals are unsolvable, so a loss is almost always your own mistake.
That makes it the least frustrating solitaire here, and the best for anyone who likes a puzzle more than a gamble.
Who should skip it: players who enjoy the luck of the draw.
4. Pyramid — Pairs That Add Up to 13
Pyramid lays 28 cards out as a pyramid, and you remove pairs that add up to 13, with jacks worth 11, queens 12 and kings 13 on their own. Wikipedia says that under the strictest rules the odds of winning are about one in 50.
It plays in a few minutes, and it doubles as arithmetic practice for kids learning their sums.
Who should skip it: anyone who hates losing. It is mostly luck.
5. Golf — One Up or One Down
Also called: One Foundation
Golf deals seven columns of five cards. Turn a card from the stock, then move cards from the bottom of the columns onto it if they are one rank higher or lower, and try to clear every column. Wikipedia’s entry covers the scoring for a nine-hole round.
It is fast, simple and has just enough choice to feel like a game.
Who should skip it: players who want a long sit-down puzzle.
6. Clock — No Decisions at All
Also called: Clock Patience
Clock deals thirteen piles of four, one for each hour plus one in the middle. Turn a card, put it under the pile that matches its rank, and turn the next card from that pile. You win if every card is turned before the fourth king comes up. Wikipedia has the layout.
There is nothing to decide, which is exactly why some people find it relaxing. Our card games with a deck of cards page calls it pure luck, perfect for killing ten minutes.
Who should skip it: anyone who wants a game rather than a ritual.
7. Accordion — Down to One Pile
Also called: The Idle Year, Tower of Babel, Methuselah, Leapfrog
Accordion deals the cards out in a line. You can move a card onto the card next to it, or onto the card three places back, if they share a suit or a rank, and the goal is to finish with the whole deck in one pile. Wikipedia’s entry covers the rules.
It is very hard to win, which is the appeal for some players and the reason others quit after one try.
Who should skip it: anyone who wants to win occasionally.
8. Regicide — A Boss Fight With a Standard Deck
Regicide is a cooperative card game where the players fight their way through twelve royals, jacks first and kings last, using the rest of the deck as their hand. Each turn you play cards to attack, and the enemy hits back, forcing you to discard. Badgers From Mars publishes a boxed version, but the game can be played with any standard deck, and it supports one to four players.
A game takes about 20 minutes, and Meeple Mountain’s review calls it a real challenge. We have not scored it; if you like it, our best cooperative board games has more games where you play against the box.
Who should skip it: players who want a relaxing solitaire. Regicide fights back.
Five More Classic Solitaires
These five need nothing but a deck, and each goes by more than one name.
Aces Up — Four Aces Left Standing
Also called: Idiot’s Delight, Firing Squad
Deal four cards face up in a row. Whenever two of the top cards share a suit, discard the lower one. Move any card into an empty column, then deal four more across the top. You win by finishing with only the four aces left. It’s quick and simple but rarely won, about one game in 35 with normal play.
Canfield — The Gambler’s Solitaire
Also called: Demon, Demon Patience
Deal a 13-card reserve, four tableau cards and one foundation card that sets the starting rank for all four foundations. Build the foundations up in suit, wrapping from king to ace, and the tableau down in alternating colors, turning the stock three at a time. It has a very low chance of winning. The American name comes from a story that casino owner Richard Canfield turned it into a gambling game, though his casino may actually have played Klondike.
Monte Carlo — Matching Pairs in a Grid
Also called: Good Neighbours, Weddings
Deal 25 cards in a five-by-five grid and remove any two touching cards of the same rank, diagonals included. Close up the gaps, keeping the cards in order, and refill from the stock. You win by pairing off the whole deck, and despite the name it has nothing to do with casinos.
Calculation — The Thinking Player’s Solitaire
Also called: Broken Intervals, Hopscotch, and La Plus Belle in France
Take out an ace, a two, a three and a four as foundations. The first builds up by ones, the second by twos, the third by threes and the fourth by fours, each wrapping around to a king. Every card you turn goes onto a foundation or one of four waste piles. It’s almost all skill, and skilled players win more than 80 percent of the time.
Forty Thieves — The Big Two-Deck Challenge
Also called: Napoleon at St Helena
Shuffle two decks together and deal ten columns of four cards face up. Build eight foundations up in suit from ace to king, and build the columns down in the same suit, moving one card at a time. Winning chances are estimated at about 1 in 10, and clearing a whole column is usually the key.
Boxed Solo Card Games
These three were built for one player from the start, with a theme and a lot more decisions than solitaire. We have not scored any of them yet.
9. Friday — A Deck-Builder for One
Friday puts you in the role of Robinson Crusoe’s companion, helping him survive the island and two pirate ships. You fight hazard cards with your deck, add the hazards you beat to make your deck stronger, and lose health when you fail. It is designed by Friedemann Friese and published by Rio Grande Games.
Retail listings put it at one player, ages 13+, under 30 minutes, with a suggested price of $19.95.
Who should skip it: anyone who wants a quick game with no setup to learn.
Check Friday price on Amazon →
10. Sprawlopolis — A City in 18 Cards
Sprawlopolis is a city-building card game in an 18-card wallet. Each card shows a city block with four zone types, and you overlap them to score against three randomly chosen goals each game.
Button Shy lists it at 1–4 players, ages 14+, and 15 to 20 minutes, at $15. The random goals mean no two games score the same way.
Who should skip it: players who want something to hold and shuffle. It is a spatial puzzle.
Check Sprawlopolis price on Amazon →
11. Onirim — Escape the Dream
Onirim casts you as a dreamwalker lost in a labyrinth, racing to find eight door cards before the deck runs out. You earn doors by playing three cards of one color in a row, or by spending a key at the right moment.
It plays solo or with two in about 15 minutes, from Z-Man Games, and the second edition box includes seven small expansions. We have not scored it.
Who should skip it: players who dislike luck. The deck can turn against you.
Check Onirim price on Amazon →
Also Worth Knowing
Marvel Champions, Arkham Horror: The Card Game and The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game are expandable card games that many players run solo. We have not reviewed them, and each is a bigger commitment than anything above.
Bigger Solo Games We Have Scored
These three are full board games, but each is driven by cards and each has a solo mode we cover in our reviews.
12. Wingspan — The Solo Mode We Rate Highest
Wingspan is an engine-building game about attracting birds to your preserves, and solo you play against the Automa, a deck of cards that competes for goals. We scored Wingspan 3/5 Bamboo and 5/5 Pandas in our Wingspan review, which calls the Automa one of the better solo systems in its weight class.
It is 1–5 players and 40 to 70 minutes. The first game takes longer while the rules sink in.
Who should skip it: anyone who wants a solo game under half an hour.
Check Wingspan price on Amazon →
13. Heat — Racing Against Bot Cars
Heat is a car-racing game where your hand of cards is your speed. Solo, the Legends module in the advanced rules runs bot cars with a simple deck. We scored Heat 4/5 Bamboo and 5/5 Pandas in our Heat review, which calls the solo mode good but says the game is at its best racing real people.
It is 1–6 players and 45 to 60 minutes.
Who should skip it: players who only ever play alone. Heat shines with a table.
14. Spirit Island — The Hardest Solo Game on the List
Spirit Island is a cooperative game where you play island spirits driving off colonizing invaders, and it works fully solo with one or two spirits. We scored it 2/5 Bamboo and 5/5 Pandas in our Spirit Island review.
It is 1–4 players and 90 to 120 minutes, and our Spirit Island solo guide covers which spirits can hold the island alone and how to set the difficulty.
Who should skip it: anyone new to board games. It has the hardest teach on this page.
Check Spirit Island price on Amazon →
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the easiest card game to play by yourself?
Clock is the easiest, because it has no decisions at all: deal thirteen piles and follow where the cards send you. Golf is the easiest one with real choices. Klondike is the one most people already know from computers.
Which solitaire game can you win most often?
FreeCell. All the cards are dealt face up and very few deals are unsolvable, according to Wikipedia, so a loss is almost always a mistake rather than bad luck. Klondike, by comparison, is won somewhere between 18 and 43 percent of the time depending on the rules.
What is the hardest solitaire game?
Of the classics here, Pyramid under strict rules is won about one game in 50, per Wikipedia, and Accordion is famously difficult to finish. Spider played with all four suits is a long, hard game too.
What solo card games can kids play?
Clock and Golf are the easiest for kids, because the rules fit in a sentence and a game takes five minutes. Pyramid is good practice for adding to 13. Klondike works once a child can follow alternating colors.
What is the best solo card game for travel?
Sprawlopolis is the smallest, at 18 cards in a wallet, and Onirim and Friday both come in small boxes. Among the free games, Golf needs the least table space; Spider needs the most, with ten piles from two decks.
What are the other names for solitaire games?
Klondike is usually just called Solitaire in the US and Patience in the UK. Canfield is called Demon in Britain, Aces Up is also Idiot’s Delight, Accordion is also The Idle Year, Monte Carlo is also Weddings, and Forty Thieves is also Napoleon at St Helena.
Want card games for more than one? Our best 2-player card games is the next step, and our card games with a deck of cards covers the classics for a group.