Pyramid Solitaire
Pyramid solitaire is arithmetic, not sequence-building. Twenty-eight cards form a seven-row pyramid; remove pairs that add up to thirteen. Ace counts one, Jack eleven, Queen twelve, and a King is thirteen on its own so it leaves alone. A card can only be taken once both cards resting on it have gone. Clear the pyramid to win.
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Today’s deal
Everyone playing Pyramid Solitaire today gets deal #636309125. It changes at midnight UTC.
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Replay a deal
Every deal is a pure function of its number, so deal #20260726 is the same shuffle on any device, any time.
Keyboard
- U / Z
- Undo
- R
- Redo
- H
- Hint
- N
- New deal (asks first)
- F
- Full screen
- Space
- Turn the stock
- Esc
- Deselect, or leave full screen
- Pyramid
- 28 cards, 7 rows
- Stock
- 24 cards, 3 passes
- Pair to
- 13
- Kings
- Removed alone
Which cards add up to 13 in pyramid solitaire?
| Card | Value | Partner |
|---|---|---|
| Ace | 1 | Queen |
| 2 | 2 | Jack |
| 3 | 3 | 10 |
| 4 | 4 | 9 |
| 5 | 5 | 8 |
| 6 | 6 | 7 |
| King | 13 | None — removed alone |
Suit is irrelevant. A red Four pairs with a black Nine exactly as happily as with a red one.
When is a pyramid card playable?
Only when it is fully uncovered — both of the two cards resting on its lower edge must already be gone. The bottom row of seven is available from the start; the single card at the apex is the last card you can reach. The top of the waste pile is always available and can pair with any exposed pyramid card.
Why is pyramid solitaire so hard to win?
Because a card you need can be permanently unreachable. If both Kings you needed to clear are buried under cards that require each other, the position is dead and no amount of play fixes it. Published win rates for the three-pass version sit in the single digits to low teens. The board here tells you the moment no legal pair remains, so you are not left hunting a move that does not exist.
If you want a clearing game with a much friendlier failure mode, TriPeaks solitaire plays on the same instinct with far more forgiveness.
How many times can you go through the stock?
Three times total — the initial pass plus two recycles. The pass counter under the stock tells you where you are. A single-pass variant exists and is much harder; three passes is the version almost every computer implementation uses.
How do you get better at pyramid?
- Take pyramid pairs over waste pairsClearing two pyramid cards uncovers up to two more. Clearing one pyramid card with a waste card uncovers less, and clearing two waste cards is impossible anyway.
- Count your Kings before you startThere are four Kings and they must all be reached. If two sit deep in the same branch of the pyramid, plan the whole excavation before spending stock cards elsewhere.
- Do not burn the stock earlyEach pass through the stock is a resource. Take every free pyramid pair first, then use the stock to break the deadlock.
- Watch for the pair you will need twiceThere are only four cards of each rank. If both Sixes are buried and you have three Sevens exposed, one of those Sevens is never coming off.
Pyramid Solitaire questions people ask
- Does the King pair with an Ace in pyramid solitaire?
- No. The King is already worth thirteen, so it is removed by itself. The Ace pairs with the Queen (1 + 12 = 13).
- Can you pair two cards from the waste pile?
- No. Only the top card of the waste is exposed, so it can only pair with an uncovered pyramid card.
- How many cards are in pyramid solitaire?
- One 52-card deck: 28 in the pyramid and 24 in the stock.
- What percentage of pyramid solitaire games are winnable?
- Far fewer than most solitaires. Studies of the three-pass game put solvable deals in the low double digits at best, and human win rates are lower still.
The rules in six lines
- 1Build a pyramid of 28 cardsSeven rows, one card in the top row down to seven in the bottom, each card overlapping two below it. The remaining 24 cards form the stock.
- 2Remove pairs that total thirteenAce 1, numbers at face value, Jack 11, Queen 12. Any two exposed cards adding to thirteen come off together.
- 3Kings leave on their ownA King is worth thirteen by itself, so click an exposed King to remove it.
- 4Only uncovered cards can be usedA pyramid card is available once both cards resting on it have been removed.
- 5Turn the stock for more cardsClick the stock to turn one card face up onto the waste. The top of the waste can pair with any exposed pyramid card.
- 6Recycle twice, then that is thatWhen the stock empties, the waste turns back over. You get three passes in total.
The long version, with worked examples and the questions beginners actually ask, is on how to play pyramid solitaire.
Put Pyramid Solitaire on your own site
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<p style="font:14px system-ui;margin:6px 0 0"><a href="https://www.cardgamenook.com/pyramid-solitaire">Play Pyramid Solitaire</a> at Card Game Nook</p>