How to play Pyramid Solitaire
The setup
- 28 cards are dealt face up in a pyramid of seven rows: one card at the top and seven in the bottom row. Each card is overlapped by two cards in the row below.
- The other 24 cards form the stock. Next to it is the waste, where stock cards are turned face up one at a time.
Card values
| Card | Value | Pairs with |
|---|---|---|
| Ace | 1 | Queen |
| 2 | 2 | Jack |
| 3 to 6 | Face value | 10, 9, 8, 7 |
| Jack | 11 | 2 |
| Queen | 12 | Ace |
| King | 13 | Removed alone |
Step by step
- A pyramid card is available only when both cards covering it from the row below are gone. At the start, only the bottom row is available.
- Select two available cards that add up to 13 to remove them.
- Tap an available King to remove it on its own.
- The top card of the waste is also available and can pair with a pyramid card.
- Need new options? Click the stock to turn one card onto the waste.
- When the stock runs out, click it again to turn the waste back into the stock. You get 3 passes in total, and a small label under the stock shows how many redeals are left.
- You win as soon as every pyramid card is cleared, even if cards remain in the stock.
Rules and scoring
This version uses the standard rules: you can go through the stock three times, so the waste can be turned back over twice. The score shows how cleanly you played:
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Pair that adds up to 13 | +20 |
| King removed | +10 |
| Waste turned back into the stock | -20 (never below zero) |
Stuck? Press Hint and the game highlights a King or a pair that adds up to 13, or points to the stock when drawing is the only option. When the last pass is used up and no King or pair of 13 is left, the game ends and tells you no moves are left; the deal counts as a loss. Before that point, Undo a few steps to try a different order, or press New Game. Timer and moves sit above the table, and finished pyramids count toward your profile and the leaderboard.
Pyramid Solitaire tips
- Look at what each pair uncovers. Removing two bottom cards may free one card above, or none. Prefer pairs that open new cards.
- Clear Kings right away. They need no partner and always open space.
- Spot blocking pairs. If a card overlaps the only partner you have left for it, the covered card can never be freed while its partner sits on top, so they can never pair. You will need a partner from elsewhere or from the stock.
- Count partners. Each value has four partners in the deck (four Queens for the Aces). When three are gone, the last one is precious.
- Open both sides. Working the left and right halves evenly gives you more available cards to choose from.
- Do not spend stock cards carelessly. If a waste card could match a pyramid card that will be uncovered soon, keep it for that pair.
- Learn the stock order. Cards come out in the same order on every pass, so remember where the ones you need appear. With only three passes, the last one should be planned, not hoped for.
- Plan your route to the peak. The top card is covered by everything below it, so think about how to reach it early.
Pyramid duels
Pyramid is short and sharp, which makes it a good race. Choose Play online to play whoever is available, or Play with a friend for a private link.
- Both players get the same deal, including the same stock order.
- Live progress counts the pyramid cards each player has cleared.
- The first to clear the pyramid wins. If nobody does within 8 minutes, the player who cleared more pyramid cards wins, and fewer moves breaks a tie.
- Hint and Undo are off during the duel.
History of Pyramid
Pyramid belongs to the family of adding patience games, where cards are removed in combinations that reach a target total. It has been a familiar one-player card game for many decades, and its inclusion in Microsoft Solitaire Collection, alongside Klondike, Spider, FreeCell and TriPeaks, introduced it to millions of new players.
Its appeal is the quick arithmetic: you see a 6 and immediately look for a 7. That small mental math habit is why many players use it as a warm-up for the brain.
Pyramid on your phone
Pyramid plays well one-handed. The cards scale to the width of your screen and every action is a single tap: tap two cards to pair them, tap a King to clear it, tap the stock to draw. It works in any mobile browser, and you can install NitroPlayer to open it from your home screen like an app. Your game is saved as you play.
Like pairing? Mahjong Solitaire uses the same match-and-remove idea with tiles, and classic Klondike is there when you want a longer deal.
