1

Shuffle your deck of cards before setting up the game. Use a standard deck
of 52 cards.
● Set aside the two Joker cards, as you'll not need them at all during
this game.

2
Start placing the cards in eight piles. All of them should be face up (four of the
piles will have seven cards and the rest will have six). These columns are called
your "tableau".
● There is no reverse deck like in Klondike Solitaire. All of your cards
are on the playing area at all times.

3 . Leave room for the four "foundation" piles where you'll end up placing
your cards from Aces to Kings. Also leave room for your four "free cells" where
you will be able to temporarily store any one card while playing the game.

​ 4
​ Start your foundation piles when you get the chance. Move any Aces
when they become available.

● Your goal will be to build up these foundation piles, one for

each suit, from Ace to King, in order.
● Make sure that you will not need a given card before placing
it on the foundation. Once you place a card on a foundation
pile, you cannot put it back in your tableau or in your free
cells.
 5
Move cards from one column of the tableau to another, if the opportunity
arises. You can do this in order to strategically free up cards that are currently
stuck behind others. Unless you have open free cells (see below), move just one
card at a time.
● The cards in the columns must be placed in descending order.
They must also alternate between black and red (suits do not
matter in the columns). For example, you can place a black 9 on a
red 10 or a red Jack on a black Queen.

6
Keep an eye open for any empty columns in the tableau. If there are any, then
you can move a card to the free space (or potentially a stack of cards, if you have
open free cells, according to the rules below).

7. Move cards into the free cells strategically, too. Each of the four free cells can
hold one card, no more. You can move a card from the tableau to a free cell at any time,
and, if the opportunity arises, you can later move it back to the tableau or to the
foundation (from which if can’t be moved).

8. 8
Move one card at a time, unless you have open free cells. You can normally
move a single card at a time between the columns. However, if you want to move
a sequence of cards (in descending order), you can move them depending on
how many free cells you have:
● If you have four empty free cells, you can move five cards.
● If you have three empty free cells, you can move four cards.
● If you have two empty free cells, you can move three cards.
● If you have one empty free cell, you can move two cards.

Work Cited
“How to Play FreeCell Solitaire: 9 Steps (with Pictures).” wikiHow,

https://www.wikihow.com/Play-FreeCell-Solitaire. Accessed 20 December 2023.