How to play FreeCell

The aim of FreeCell

FreeCell is a one-player card game with all 52 cards visible from the start. Your aim is to move every card into the four suit foundations. Each foundation begins with its Ace and rises through 2, 3 and the other ranks to King. There is no stock and no hidden information. Eight columns hold the deal: the first four contain seven cards each, and the last four contain six. Four free cells sit above the columns and can each hold one card temporarily. Plan how to uncover the low cards before you move anything.

Building columns and using empty spaces

Build a column down by rank, alternating red and black. For example, a black 8 may accept a red 7, followed by a black 6. A card can go into an empty free cell when you need to get it out of the way. Any card or correctly ordered run may fill an empty column. Empty columns are particularly useful because they can hold several cards instead of one. A foundation accepts only the next rank of its own suit. Cards placed on a foundation stay there in this version, so delay a move if you still need that card to support another run.

Why a run sometimes will not move

Moving a run is a shortcut for moving its cards one at a time through spare spaces. With F empty free cells and E empty columns, you can usually move up to (F + 1) times 2 to the power E cards. If the destination is an empty column, leave that column out of E because it is receiving the run. For example, two empty cells and one spare empty column let you move six cards onto an occupied column, or three cards into that empty column. Filling every cell removes flexibility even if the board looks tidier.

The daily week and numbered deals

Monday and Tuesday bring Easy deals, Wednesday and Thursday Medium, and Friday and Saturday Hard. Sunday uses only three free cells. Every daily has a complete legal solution, checked before publication. The Easy, Medium and Hard labels come from search effort and solution length, calibrated against 2,000 shuffled deals. In free play, choose a tier pack or enter a deal number from 1 to 1,000,000. These are our own numbered shuffles, so a number identifies the same FreeCell deal here every time. They do not use another programme’s numbering system, and a numbered random deal is not promised to be winnable.

FreeCell strategy

Find the Aces and twos and count the cards above them. Try to open one column early, then keep it available for rearranging runs. Before filling a free cell, decide how that card will come out again. Prefer a move that uncovers a low card over one that merely shifts a long stack sideways. It often helps to work backwards: identify the card needed on a foundation, then find a space for each card blocking it. Keeping one cell empty can be more valuable than putting one extra card into a neat-looking column.

Playing with touch, mouse or keyboard

On a phone, drag a face-up card towards a destination and release it over the pile. When you pick up an ordered run, the whole run follows your finger. An illegal drop returns the cards to their original place. You can also tap a card to send it to a useful legal destination. Tap it again to try another destination when more than one is available. A double tap sends an eligible card to its foundation. Check the corners of overlapping cards before lifting a run: the first card you touch determines how many cards you are trying to move.

With a keyboard, use the arrow keys to focus cards and piles. Press Enter or Space to pick up the focused card and the run below it, move focus to the destination, then press Enter again to drop. Escape cancels a selection. Press Z, or Control and Z, to undo; H asks for a hint. In free play, N opens another game. A bright outline shows the current keyboard focus. You can switch between keyboard, mouse and touch during a game.

Undo, hints and finishing

Undo takes back your most recent action, including a stock draw where applicable. There is no limit on how many earlier actions you may undo while a game is in progress. An action you undo still counts towards your total moves: undo changes the position, rather than erasing the time you spent exploring it. A hint points out a legal source and destination. It can help you find a route, but following a single hint does not promise that every later choice will work. Once the remaining cards can all be safely moved home, a Finish button completes that final sweep.

Daily scoring and saved progress

Every daily begins at 1,000 points. The score loses half a point for each second, one point for each move made and 25 points for each hint. A completed game always earns at least 100 points. Giving up records zero. Time starts when you press Start and continues on the server while you are away, so refreshing or closing a tab does not pause the daily. Your progress is saved on this device. Reopening the same game lets you continue. The result also shows your time, moves, hints and variant, so there is more to compare than points alone.

Make the table comfortable

Open Cards & table to choose large-print faces, four-colour suits, three original card backs or a different felt. Four-colour mode gives each suit a distinct colour, while the suit symbols remain visible. Large-print cards keep a bold index and a clear central suit symbol. Your choices stay on this device. The table fits narrow phones and larger desktop screens, and follows your device’s reduced-motion preference. There are no sounds. Free play keeps separate local statistics for each rules variant: games played, wins, win rate, current and best streak, best time, fewest moves and average winning time.

More games at your own pace

Use Free play for unlimited tables with no daily score. Choose Winnable deals for a starting position that has been completed by our solver, or Random deal for a fresh shuffle which may be impossible. A proved starting deal can still become difficult after your own moves; undo gives you a way to explore another line. New game replaces the current free-play table. Local statistics belong to this browser and are not shared between devices. Return to the daily using the link below the table. You can find more card and logic puzzles on our daily games page.

Frequently asked questions

Is every FreeCell daily winnable?

Yes. Our solver completes each daily from its starting position before it is published. Random and numbered free-play deals are not guaranteed.

Why can I not move a whole run?

A run needs enough empty cells and spare columns to be moved one card at a time. The receiving empty column does not count as a spare space.

What happens on Sunday?

Sunday uses three free cells instead of four. It still has a proved legal solution.

Are these the familiar numbered FreeCell deals?

These are our own deterministic numbered deals. The same number gives the same deal here, but numbers do not match other games/apps.

Can I play FreeCell for free?

Yes. The daily and unlimited free play are free in your browser, with no account required.