FreeCell
The solitaire where skill decides almost every game: all 52 cards face up, four free cells, and the same numbered deals as Microsoft FreeCell.
At a glance
- All 52 cards are dealt face up into eight columns (four of seven, four of six). Four free cells each hold one card; the foundations build up by suit from the ace.
- Columns build down in alternating colours. Runs move together through the free cells and empty columns: up to (free cells + 1) × 2 to the power of empty columns cards at once.
- Deals use Microsoft FreeCell’s numbering, 1 to 1,000,000 — type a number to play the same game as on Windows. Game #11982 is the only one of the original 32,000 that can’t be won.
- Almost every deal can be won: one 2018 study found just one impossible deal in about 84,000. A built-in solver gives hints and can solve the game for you.
- Tap a card to send it to its foundation, a column or a free cell, or drag runs. Safe cards go up by themselves; undo has no limit.
- Paul Alfille created FreeCell on the PLATO system in 1978. Stats, streaks, shareable deals and your game in progress are saved on this device — free, no sign-up.
Step by step
How to play FreeCell
- 1
Free the aces
Move cards off the aces and twos so they can go up to the foundations, built by suit from ace to king.
- 2
Build down in alternating colours
Put a card on one a rank higher of the other colour — a black 7 on a red 8.
- 3
Use the free cells
Park any single card in one of the four free cells. Use them sparingly: each empty cell lets you move longer runs.
- 4
Empty a column
An empty column takes any card or run and doubles how many cards you can move together.
- 5
Finish
Win by moving all 52 cards to the foundations. Safe cards go up by themselves.
Features
Everything you need, nothing you don’t
Microsoft-numbered deals
Game #1 here is game #1 on Windows — play famous deals or share any game by its number.
Smart moves
Tap a card and it goes to the best place; runs move in one go, as many as the free cells allow.
A solver that helps
Hints come from a real search, and it tells you when a position can no longer be won.
Undo without limits
Step back as far as you like and try another line.
Left- or right-handed
Put the foundations on the side you prefer.
Streaks and stats
Win rate, fastest win and your best streak, saved in your browser.
How many cards can I move at once?
A “supermove” is a shortcut for moving the cards one at a time through the free cells and empty columns — the game does it for you, so you only drag the whole run.
| Free cells | Empty columns | Run you can move |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | 0 | 5 cards |
| 3 | 0 | 4 cards |
| 2 | 1 | 6 cards (3 into the empty column) |
| 4 | 1 | 10 cards (5 into the empty column) |
| 0 | 0 | 1 card |
FreeCell tips
- Look before you move. Every card is visible, so plan where the low cards will go.
- Keep free cells empty as long as you can — each one adds a card to the runs you can move.
- Aim for an empty column; it is worth more than a free cell.
- Dig out aces and twos first, especially those deep in a column.
- Don’t fill the last free cell unless it wins you something right away.
About FreeCell
FreeCell grew out of Baker’s Game, which Martin Gardner described in Scientific American in 1968; Paul Alfille changed it to build in alternating colours and wrote the first computer version on the PLATO system in 1978. Microsoft’s version numbered its deals, and of the original 32,000 only game #11982 has no solution. Across billions of deals, about one in 84,000 can’t be won.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Is every FreeCell game winnable?
Are these the same games as Microsoft FreeCell?
Why can’t I move a long run?
What do the free cells do?
Can the computer solve it for me?
Is it free?
Keep going
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