How to Play Spider Solitaire

Remove all 104 cards from the table by assembling eight complete sequences that run from King down to Ace in a single suit. Each time you finish a full King-to-Ace run of one suit, it flies off to the foundation automatically. Clear all eight and you win.

• Spider uses two standard decks – 104 cards in total.
• 54 cards are dealt into 10 tableau columns: the first 4 columns get 6 cards each, the remaining 6 columns get 5 cards each.
• Only the top card of each column is face up; everything underneath is hidden.
• The remaining 50 cards form the stock. Whenever you're stuck, clicking the stock deals one new face-up card onto every column — five deals in total.

1. Build downward. A card may be placed on any card exactly one rank higher — a 7 goes on any 8, a Queen on any King. Suit doesn't matter for a single card.
2. Move groups only in suit. You can pick up and move several cards at once only if they form a descending run of the same suit (for example ♠9-♠8-♠7). A mixed-suit run is stuck: only its bottom cards can move individually.
3. Uncover hidden cards. When a face-down card becomes the top of its column, it flips face up — revealing hidden cards is how you gain new options.
4. Use empty columns. Any card or movable run may be placed on an empty column. Empty columns are the most powerful resource in the game.
5. Deal from the stock when no useful moves remain. Every column receives one card, which can bury your sequences — deal deliberately, not reflexively.
6. Complete a suit run (King through Ace, all one suit) and it is removed from play automatically.

1. Reveal hidden cards first

Face-down cards are unknown information. When choosing between two moves of equal value, always prefer the one that flips a hidden card. Prioritize digging out the columns that started with 6 cards — they hide the most.

2. Build in suit whenever possible

Placing a ♥6 on a ♥7 keeps the run movable; placing it on a ♠7 creates a block you'll later need an empty column to fix. Off-suit moves are sometimes necessary — just treat them as loans you will have to repay.

3. Empty a column early, then guard it

An empty column lets you re-sort mixed stacks, relocate kings, and unbury key cards. Getting one column empty should usually take priority over everything except revealing cards. Don't refill it casually — use it as working space.

4. Don't deal until you must

Each stock deal drops a random card on all ten columns and can wreck organized stacks. Before dealing: complete every safe move, tidy runs into suit order, and try to leave no column empty (the game requires all columns occupied to deal — plan for it rather than being forced into a bad fill).

5. Move kings deliberately

A King can never be placed on another card, so a King sitting mid-column is a wall that blocks everything beneath it. Move kings to empty columns only when doing so unblocks something concrete — parking one "just in case" wastes your most valuable resource.

6. Use undo as an analysis tool

Unlimited undo isn't cheating — it lets you peek at the consequences of a line and back out. Serious players use it to test which column to dig before committing.

Can every game be won?

No. Some deals are mathematically unwinnable, particularly at 4 suits. Good players win most 1-suit games, roughly half at 2 suits, and a minority at 4 suits — so a lost game isn't necessarily a mistake.

How is Spider different from Klondike (classic solitaire)?

Klondike uses one deck, builds alternating colors, and sends cards to foundations one at a time. Spider uses two decks, builds in the tableau regardless of color, and removes complete King-to-Ace suit runs all at once.

When should I deal new cards?

Only when you've exhausted every useful move. Dealing buries the board under ten new cards — the fewer messes it lands on, the better.

Which difficulty should I start with?

Start at 1 suit until winning feels routine, then move up. Jumping straight to 4 suits mostly teaches frustration.