FreeCell vs. Solitaire: Gameplay and Strategy Differences

FreeCell is a single-player card game that is relatively similar to Klondike Solitaire. Both are played with a standard 52-card deck, and FreeCell only differs from the classic game in two key ways—you get four free spaces to temporarily hold cards, and all cards are dealt into the tableau face up.

To win either Solitaire variation, you must clear the tableau by arranging all the cards into four foundation piles, sorting them by suit and arranging them in ascending order from ace to king.

FreeCell is not only an easier version to play, it’s also easy to learn if you already know how to play Solitaire. You just need to understand the differences in rules and how those impact your overall strategy.

This post helps you better understand the differences of each game so you can practice strategies and techniques the next time you play FreeCell or try your hand at Klondike Solitaire.

Similarities Between FreeCell and Solitaire

Not only is FreeCell an easier game than Solitaire, you can also learn how to play FreeCell easily because it’s so similar to Klondike Solitaire. Although its tableau looks vastly different, FreeCell shares some of the same Solitaire rules.

• Objective: To win, you must arrange all the cards into four foundation piles—one for each suit—ascending in order, beginning with an ace and ending with a king.
• Arranging sequences in the tableau: You place cards in descending order and alternating in color (red/black).
• Cards eligible to be played: Only available, face-up cards or properly sequenced cards can be moved. So a card must be face up and not overlapped by out-of-sequence cards to be moved. For example, the top card of the waste pile or the bottom card of a column can be moved.

Main Differences Between FreeCell and Solitaire

Despite their similarities both types of Solitaire do have a few differences, and they not only impact how you play but also how often you might win. These sections explore the key differences in detail so you can adjust your gameplay for each variation.

	FreeCell	Klondike Solitaire
Tableau setup	All cards are dealt face up into eight tableau columns.	Cards are dealt into seven tableau columns with only the last card face up.
Stockpile	Although you have no stockpile, you can use four free cells to help arrange cards.	You have a stockpile to draw from when you’re stuck.
Sequence movement	Sequences are moved based on the number of free cells plus one, so if three cells are open you can move a sequence of four.	Sequences of any length can be moved as long as they are in alternating color and descending order.
Empty columns	Place any card or sequence in an empty column.	Only place kings or sequences starting with kings in an empty column.
Difficulty	33% win rate	10% win rate (Solitaire Turn 3)

1. FreeCell Uses a Face-Up Tableau

Because all the cards are visible in FreeCell and none are hidden like in Klondike, this version offers some advantages. You have an easier time planning how to arrange the cards into descending order and alternating colors and strategizing how to reach cards you need.

Klondike Solitaire has a tableau of seven columns, and each column has the same number of cards as its column number (column 1 has one card, column 2 has two cards, and so on). But only the last card in each column is turned face up, giving this variation a lot of hidden cards on the tableau.

However, in a game of FreeCell, the tableau uses eight columns and deals all the cards into the tableau with the first four columns using seven cards and the last four columns using six cards. All cards are face up in the tableau.

2. FreeCell Has No Hidden Cards in a Stockpile

Not only does the FreeCell tableau have no hidden cards, FreeCell also has no cards hidden in a stockpile. You can see all the cards and make extensive plans to move and arrange cards so you win the game.

Klondike, however, has a facedown stockpile. You can only reveal its cards by turning them over into a waste pile, which you use during gameplay if you get stuck. For Solitaire Turn 1, you turn over one card at a time, and for Solitaire Turn 3, you turn over three cards at a time. But you can only play the top card of the waste pile in both versions.

With FreeCell, it may seem like a disadvantage to have no stockpile to use if you’re blocked from play. But the upside is that all cards are dealt into the game area, and because they’re face up, you can make extensive movement plans. While you don’t have a new card to draw when you get stuck, you still get four open cells to help move play along. You can use them to move a card when you’re stuck or need a temporary placeholder to arrange cards.

3. FreeCell Has Four Open Spaces to Use

FreeCell offers a major advantage with four open spaces—called free cells—that you can use to temporarily hold cards while rearranging the tableau. These cells add a layer of flexibility that you don’t get in Klondike Solitaire.

Klondike has no free cells to use. If you get stuck playing classic Solitaire, you can turn cards over from the stockpile into the waste pile. Then you can use the top card of the waste pile in your tableau or foundation piles. However, if you don’t turn up a card you can use, you have to turn over more cards.

FreeCell, on the other hand, reserves four spaces at the top of the tableau for players to use as holding spaces. These spaces allow you to move cards in your tableau more freely to access cards you need. Although you can only move a single card to one single free cell, you can still move a sequence of cards by placing single cards from the sequence into single cells.

The number of cards you’re allowed to move depends on the number of free cells that are open. You can move one more card than the number of open free cells. So if all four free cells are open, for example, you can move five cards or a sequence of five cards. If only three cells are open, you can only move four.

4. FreeCell Allows Any Card to Be Placed in Empty Columns

FreeCell has even more flexibility than Solitaire when you consider empty columns. In Klondike, kings or a sequence beginning with a king are the only cards you can play in an empty column. However, FreeCell allows you to place any card or any properly sequenced cards in an empty column. That gives you even more spaces to move cards in addition to the free cells.

5. FreeCell Has Limited Sequence Movement

Both versions have you sequencing cards in the tableau in descending order and alternating by color, and you can build the sequences as lengthy as you like. In Klondike, you can move a properly built sequence around the tableau no matter how long it is. However, FreeCell has limitations on movement, which could force you into building shorter sequences.

In FreeCell, you can only move cards based on the amount of empty free cells plus one. So if you have a sequence that is five cards long and only three cells open, you can only move four cards. So you either must move just four cards of your sequence or move another set of cards. Because of this difference, you might use empty columns to your advantage and dedicate one or two columns to building lengthier sequences that don’t need to be moved.

6. FreeCell Is Easier to Win

When you consider these differences, FreeCell has more flexibility for card movement and no surprises with hidden cards compared to Klondike. So FreeCell not only seems like an easier Solitaire variation, the data confirms it as well. FreeCell has a win rate of 33% compared to Klondike, which is also called Solitaire Turn 3. It only has a win rate of 10%.

Prioritizing Strategies Between FreeCell and Solitaire

Because both variations share a lot of the same rules, both games use some of the same Solitaire strategies, such as studying the tableau before making moves, but because of the setup and gameplay differences, not all strategies work as well in both variations all the time.

Most FreeCell strategies focus on its unique points, such as free cells and all face-up cards, that don’t exist in Klondike. So these sections point out how to adjust your strategies and prioritize the most effective ones to use for each variation.

Strategies to Avoid Blocking Movement

For any Solitaire game, if you get stuck with no way out but the undo button, that could turn into a losing game quickly. So use these strategies to keep cards moving on your tableau and into your foundation piles.

Plan Moves to Create Chain Reactions

Making a single card movement that unlocks subsequent movements is a chain reaction, and it gives you the most bang for your card movement buck.

• For Solitaire, you have a lot of hidden cards to deal with, so prioritize moves that will free facedown cards or help you organize long sequences.
• For FreeCell, planning is much easier. Not only can you see all the cards on the tableau, you also don’t have to deal with hidden cards in a stockpile. So use this to your advantage and study the tableau to plan moves that will create the biggest chain reactions.
• For both games, the tableau will always be changing, so be sure to continue to assess the entire tableau before a move. If you have the chance to move a black seven onto a red eight, but two black sevens are available, move the seven that can lead to the most possible moves.

Get Cards into Play

You can’t move a card if it’s not available, and only face-up cards that are available can be played in each variation. So getting cards into play is a priority for both games.

• For Solitaire, you need to focus on revealing as many hidden cards as possible. This means cycling through the stockpile to discover what cards are hidden there and arranging cards in the tableau to reveal hidden cards underneath face-up ones. So focus on columns with more hidden cards when choosing cards to move. For example, if two black tens are available to move onto a red jack, select the ten that has the most hidden cards under it.
• For FreeCell, you can see all the cards in the tableau, but unsequenced cards are locked underneath others similar to the hidden cards in Solitaire. So arranging cards into sequences helps you make more cards available, and emptying tableau columns gives you even more space to move cards since any card in FreeCell can move into an empty column.

Waste Not Want Not: Using Waste Piles and Free Cells Strategically

Free cards in the waste pile of a Solitaire game and free spaces in FreeCell can offer a way out if you hit a snag in card movement. But while these elements could help you unlock plays, you can also waste them if you use them without strategy.

• For Solitaire, turning cards over from the stockpile into the waste pile should be your last resort. Instead, prioritize cards in the tableau over ones in the waste pile. For example, if you have an open red six and a black five is both in your waste pile and in the tableau, you should move the black five from your tableau to reveal hidden cards. However, when you are truly stuck, using the waste pile can help you get moving again.
• For FreeCell, those empty cells may seem advantageous, but you only have four. If you’re moving cards and leaving them in free cells, you’ll run out of space quickly. Instead, think of the free cells as temporary placeholders. Move cards into them out of the tableau to free up cards underneath. But be sure that the cards you’re freeing help to create connections for sequences, and plan for a way to move that card in the free cell back into the tableau.

Strategies to Build Foundation Piles

Building foundation piles is the key to winning a game of Solitaire and FreeCell, but that doesn’t mean that building them is the game. To efficiently build these piles, you can use these strategies.

Put Aces and Twos into Foundation Piles Immediately

You can’t build a foundation pile without starting it, so for both variations, get aces and twos into their piles as soon as they are available. Aces start piles, and twos won’t help you build sequences in your tableau. So moving them to foundations right away gets them out the tableau, leaving space for more card movements. Leaving these two ranks in the tableau just blocks you from moving.

Build Tableau Piles Effectively

Both games require you to build tableau piles in descending order and alternating colors, but both variations need a different strategy so that these piles feed your foundation stacks.

• For Solitaire, you need to build long sequences in the tableau. Building sequences helps get cards into play, and getting cards into play means you’re revealing hidden cards. You can’t build foundation piles without these elements working together.
• For FreeCell, building sequences helps you get cards organized and into play, but building lengthy sequences like you would in Solitaire can block play. You can’t move longer sequences because you’re limited by the amount of empty spaces available. However, if you’ve cleared some columns, you can dedicate them as spaces to build long sequences.

Watch the Ranks in Your Foundation Piles

As you build foundation piles in both games, you need to keep track of the ranks in each pile to ensure you’re not putting cards into piles that you need in the tableau.

• For Solitaire, you definitely should avoid having any foundation pile more than two ranks higher than any others. You only have two options for a card since they have to alternate in color. So, if you’ve placed the 6♦ into its foundation pile but all others are only built to three, then you’ve cut your chances in half of getting a red six for a black seven because only the 6♥ is still out there and if you need the 5♦, it’s locked underneath the six.
• For FreeCell, you have a bit more flexibility. Because you know where all the cards are located, you can afford to build piles unevenly, as long as you have a plan to get the cards you need. For example, if you know you can easily access the red cards you need, then having the 6♦ in its foundation pile and locking in other diamonds under it isn’t a problem.

The Benefits of Solitaire

From practicing self-control to protecting against cognitive decline, the benefits of playing Solitaire and FreeCell are wide ranging.

• Protects against cognitive decline: Playing card games like Solitaire and FreeCell can help boost and preserve cognitive function, even lowering the risk of dementia over time. The game engages multiple mental skills—like memory, attention, and strategic planning—which work together to keep your brain active and sharp.
• Manages stress: Solitaire and its many variations like FreeCell require patience, focus, and strategic thinking. Playing regularly not only helps you to relax but also gives you a safe place to practice these skills and manage the stress that accompanies gameplay. The more you play, the more you make stress-management skills a habit you can rely on.
• Develops better self-control: Everyone knows how to make decisions, but Solitaire and FreeCell offer opportunities to practice making decisions that delay gratification, which helps build inhibition control and patience. Playing these games help you control your emotions and impulses, a skill that is useful in everyday life, especially as you age.

How to Build Solitaire Skills with Game Variations

Playing FreeCell and Solitaire gives you different avenues to enhance your gameplay skills and strategies. But expanding to even more types of Solitaire games, can build your skills even further.

• Use FreeCell to practice keeping cards moving. Keeping the cards moving is a helpful strategy for all Solitaire games, but if you find it to be a struggle, FreeCell is a great game to practice with. Because you can see all the cards, have the empty spaces for movement, and can use any card to fill empty columns, FreeCell gives you the flexibility you need to practice keeping cards in play.
• Use Solitaire to develop strategies to unlock unavailable cards. Solitaire is a great game to play if you need more practice with getting cards revealed. First, Solitaire has a lot of hidden cards to deal with, so you have many opportunities to practice how to make single moves that unlock chain reactions. Plus, Solitaire has two versions. If you find that Solitaire Turn 3 is a bit too difficult, you can level down and practice with Solitaire Turn 1 until you feel you’ve strengthened your skills.
• Use Canfield to create strategies for sequencing cards. If you find yourself wasting the stockpile or free cells in Solitaire games, try a more difficult version of Solitaire, like Canfield. Canfield has fewer columns than Solitaire (only four), so you must be thoughtful about sequencing cards to ensure you don’t get stuck making moves.
• Use Yukon to improve planning your moves. Another difficult version of Solitaire, Yukon requires you to plan far ahead to make moves in the tableau. Unlike Canfield, you have more columns but no stockpile to pull from. So you must plan several moves ahead to create sequences and unlock hidden cards in the tableau without getting stuck.

FreeCell vs. Solitaire: Find Your Favorite

Whether you want to build skills, boost your brain benefits, or simply relax and have fun, FreeCell and Solitaire both have a lot to offer. You can find more than one favorite Solitaire card game by trying these and other variations for free with no downloads at Solitaire Bliss.