Card Games to Play by Yourself

A simple deck of cards can provide endless entertainment for families and friends, but it can also offer fun and distraction for individuals. When you can’t get the players you need together for a Spades game, a solo game can provide a different kind of fun. Some of the best card games to play by yourself are Klondike and Spider Solitaire.

Whether you're waiting for an appointment, unwinding after a long day, or looking for a way to challenge yourself, solo card games can be the perfect pastime. Patience games are one of the most popular kinds of card games, and this article will teach you to play two of the most popular versions.

Klondike Solitaire

Create seven piles of cards by adding cards from left to right. Deal one card face up then six cards face down. Then, deal a card face up on the second pile, followed by five cards face down, and so on.

When you’re finished, the piles should be as follows: the first pile has one face up card, the second pile has one face up card with one face down card under it, the third pile has one face up card with two face down cards under it, and so on, until the seventh pile, which has one face up card with six face down cards under it.

You can move any face up card to any pile as long as it is in descending value and alternating colors. For example, if there is an eight of Spades and seven of Hearts showing, you can move the seven to the eight. Whenever the top card of a pile is moved so a face down card is showing, flip that card face up.

You can also move chains of cards in this way. For example, in the above example, if you flipped the face down card and revealed a red nine, you could move both the eight and the seven to the nine. If a pile is depleted, only a King can be moved to that space, where it will be the highest value card of a chain.

Once you are out of plays, you may flip over a card from the stack of cards that was left over when dealing. If that card does not create any plays, you may flip over another card. When you reach the bottom of this stack, flip it back over without shuffling. In some variations, you can go through the stack in this way three times.

If, at any time, an Ace is revealed, place it into its own stack. This will ultimately create four piles, or foundations. The goal of the game is to transfer the entire deck into these four foundations in ascending order according to suit. The bottom card is always an Ace, followed by a two, three, and so on, ending with the King on top.

Spider Solitaire

Shuffle together two fifty-two card decks. Deal ten piles of cards face down–the first four piles with six cards, the other six piles with five. Then, flip up the top card of each pile. Place the remaining cards face down to the side.

Sequences are built like in Klondike, descending from King to Ace. There are multiple variations of Spider, but the most common is one in which the suit doesn’t matter as the sequences are built. As with Klondike, whenever the top card of a pile is face down, it is flipped face up.

When a player has no more moves to make, they use the stack of remaining cards to add a face up card to each of the ten piles. If there is an empty space left by a depleted pile, the player must put at least one card there from the cards already on the board.

Once a sequence from King to Ace is complete, that sequence is removed from the game. Unlike in Klondike, any chain of cards can be moved to an empty space once a pile is depleted. The player wins the game when every card is compiled into a sequence.

Two’s a Crowd

Solo card games provide an easy, travel-friendly way to pass the time, challenge the mind, and relax. Classic games like Klondike and Spider Solitaire are even more accessible these days, as there are plenty of websites providing online games to pass the time. So, grab a deck of cards and dive into the world of solo card games–or try your hand at Spades online and try to beat the computer!