Pyramid Solitaire
How to play Pyramid
Pyramid is a one-deck solitaire game in which you clear a pyramid of 28 face-up cards by removing pairs that add up to 13, with Kings removed on their own.
Pair cards that add up to thirteen to clear the pyramid.
The goal of Pyramid
Clear all 28 cards from the pyramid. Cards left over in the stock or waste don't count against you.
How to set up Pyramid
The pyramid is seven rows of face-up cards, from one card at the top to seven at the bottom, and each card is partly covered by the two below it. The other 24 cards form the face-down stock.
Pyramid rules
A card is free once both cards covering it are gone. Aces count 1, Jacks 11, Queens 12 and Kings 13; number cards count their value. Remove any two free cards that add up to 13, such as a Six and a Seven or a Queen and an Ace. A King makes 13 alone and is removed by itself.
Turn the stock one card at a time onto the waste. The top waste card is free and can pair with a free pyramid card or, if it is a King, be removed. When the stock runs out you may turn the waste back into the stock twice, so you get three passes in all.
Click a free card and then its partner to pair them, or drag one onto the other. A free King goes with a single click. With Autoplay on in Settings, a card that has only one possible partner pairs with it straight away.
How to win at Pyramid
The game ends when no pair, no King and no turn of the stock is left. It then shows No moves left with the number of pyramid cards remaining, and you can play the same deal again, take a new deal, or step back with Undo and try another line.
Pyramid strategy tips
A card can never pair with a card that covers it, so each of the two needs a partner from somewhere else.
When several cards could pair with the same card, choose the one that frees more of the pyramid.
Plan ahead with the waste: the stock comes round three times in all, so a card you pass now may be the partner you need later.
Take a free King at once: it pairs with nothing, and removing it only uncovers more cards.
Pyramid questions and answers
Is every Pyramid solitaire deal winnable?
No. Over 300 shuffles, a long search by the game's solver proved 216 winnable and 68 impossible to clear, and could not settle the other 16, so at least seven deals in ten can be cleared and more than one in five cannot. To get only boards that can be won, open the menu beside New deal and switch on Winnable; each new board is then shuffled until a shorter search proves it can be cleared, unless it runs out of tries. That search proved 60 of 100 shuffles, so it skips some winnable boards rather than make you wait. The daily Pyramid board, the same for everyone each day, is dealt that way too, and the Hint button follows a winning line whenever its search finds one.
Which cards add up to 13 in Pyramid solitaire?
In Pyramid, the pairs that make 13 are Ace and Queen, Two and Jack, Three and Ten, Four and Nine, Five and Eight, and Six and Seven. Aces count 1, Jacks 11 and Queens 12. A King counts 13 on its own, so it is removed by itself rather than paired.
How many times can you go through the stock in Pyramid?
Three times. In Pyramid you turn the stock one card at a time onto the waste, and when it runs out you may turn the waste back into the stock twice. After the third pass the stock stays empty, and only the top waste card and the free pyramid cards remain in play.
Can you pair two cards from the waste in Pyramid?
No. In Pyramid only the top card of the waste is in play, so it can pair with a free pyramid card but never with the waste card beneath it or with the face-down stock. Pairing it off brings the card under it back into play.
Does Pyramid solitaire keep score?
Not in points. Pyramid on this site counts your moves and your time and shows how many pyramid cards are left. You win by clearing all 28 pyramid cards; whatever is left in the stock or waste at the end does not matter.