Eight Off Solitaire
How to play Eight Off
Eight Off is a one-deck solitaire game dealt face up into eight columns of six, built down by suit, with eight free cells, four of them filled by the deal.
Eight columns built down by suit, with eight free cells, four of them dealt full, and only a King to fill an empty column.
The goal of Eight Off
Move every card onto the four foundations, building each one up by suit from Ace to King.
How to set up Eight Off
The first 48 cards are dealt face up into eight columns of six, and the last four go into four of the eight free cells, leaving the other four empty. The four foundations start empty, and there is no stock.
Eight Off rules
Columns build down one rank at a time in the same suit. The top card of a column, or a card in a free cell, can move onto its foundation, onto a column where it builds, or into an empty free cell.
Only a King can move into an empty column, on its own or at the head of a run. A run already built in order moves as one move if it is at most one card longer than the number of empty free cells; empty columns do not add to that limit. A card on a foundation never comes back into play.
Click a card to play it: to its foundation if it fits, otherwise onto a column, otherwise into an empty free cell, and a King last of all into an empty column. Drag a card or a run to choose where it goes yourself. With Autoplay off in Settings, only a drag moves a card.
How to win at Eight Off
You win when all 52 cards are on the foundations. Once every column is in descending order, Auto complete, on by default in Settings, moves the remaining cards up for you. The game is stuck when no card has a legal move left.
Eight Off strategy tips
Eight free cells leave plenty of room, but each card parked in one shortens the longest run you can move by a card. Empty the cells again as soon as their cards can build or go home.
With four cells empty at the start, a run of five cards in one suit can already move in one go, and with all eight empty, a run of nine. That is most of a column, so a long run built in suit costs less here than in a game with four cells.
A King already at the bottom of a column never needs an empty one, so build its suit down on it. A King higher up holds every card beneath it until a column is cleared for it; choose that column early, ideally the one whose cards already have somewhere else to go.
Eight Off questions and answers
How do you play Eight Off solitaire?
Eight Off deals eight columns of six and puts the last four cards into four of its eight free cells. Build the columns down in suit, move cards up to the foundations by suit from Ace to King, and park single cards in the free cells. Only a King may start an empty column.
What is the difference between Eight Off and Baker's Game?
Both build their columns down in suit. Eight Off has eight free cells instead of four and starts with four of them full, deals eight columns of six instead of four of seven and four of six, and lets only a King fill an empty column.
What is the difference between Eight Off and Seahaven Towers?
Both build down in suit and keep empty columns for Kings. Eight Off deals eight columns of six and has eight free cells, four of them dealt full. Seahaven Towers deals ten columns of five and has four free cells, two of them dealt full. With more cells to spare, Eight Off moves longer runs at once.
Can every Eight Off deal be won?
In testing, every one could be. Of 100 shuffled Eight Off deals, the solver proved all 100 winnable within the short search it runs while dealing. A sample is not a proof for every possible shuffle, so a deal that will not come out is still possible. Winnable in the menu beside New deal reshuffles until the solver proves a win, and the Hint button asks a deeper search for a winning line before it suggests a move.
Is there a daily Eight Off game?
Yes. Eight Off has a daily board, the same deal for everyone that day, dealt the way a Winnable board is. You need to be logged in to play it.