FreeCell
In FreeCell you have eight columns, four free cells, every card visible from the start. Free, no install, no sign-up, works offline in your browser.
In FreeCell, eight columns, four holding cells and four suit slots — and unlike most patience games, every card is face up from the first moment. Nothing is hidden and nothing is left to luck.
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Works offline after the first visit. No install, no sign-up.
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How to play FreeCell
Everything is visible from the start
All 52 cards are dealt face up into eight columns, four of seven cards and four of six. There is no pile to turn over and no hidden card, so at every point you can see the whole position.
Columns build down in alternating colours
A card goes onto another one rank higher and of the opposite colour, so a red six goes on a black seven. A correctly ordered run can be moved as a group, but only if you have room for it — see the moving limit below.
Empty columns accept anything
This is where it differs from the seven-column patience game, where only a king may start an empty column. Here any single card can be placed on an empty column, which makes empty columns far more valuable as working space.
The four holding cells
Each cell takes one card and you can take it out again at any time. They exist to park a card that is in the way; using all four for storage is usually a mistake, because they also determine how much you can move at once.
How many cards you can move at once
The limit is (empty columns + 1) x 2 raised to the number of empty cells. With four cells free and no empty column that is 16 cards; with no cells free it drops to a single card. The current limit is shown above the board so it is never a guess.
No deal is guaranteed to be winnable
The cards are shuffled at random and a round is not guaranteed to be solvable. FreeCell has a famously high success rate, but a high rate is not a guarantee, and this page will not claim one.
FreeCell Tips and Strategy
Super-moves need empty columns
The limit on how much you can lift at once is the number of empty columns plus one, multiplied by two for every holding cell you leave free. With one empty column and all four cells free that is thirty-two cards, but with the cells full it drops to two. An empty column is the cheapest multiplier you can gain.
Black on black, red on red
Wherever a card can go onto another of its own colour, take that move first. Such a move needs no free cell and no empty column, because a correctly ordered run can be lifted again under the same conditions it was built. Only moves that change colour spend your movement budget.
Keep one cell in reserve
Parking cards in all four holding cells is how most rounds are lost. Fill a cell only when the card has nowhere better to go, and empty one the moment a suit slot or an empty column will take it. Three free cells give you eight times the movement of none at all.
Measure the run before you commit
Before you lift a long run, work out how far it can actually travel. A run of eight needs three free cells, and a run of nine needs all four, because each empty cell doubles what you can carry. If the numbers do not work, break the run into pieces instead of starting a move that cannot land.
FreeCell — Frequently Asked Questions
How is this different from the seven-column patience game?
Two ways: every card is face up from the start, and an empty column will accept any card rather than only a king. That is what makes the game more about planning and less about luck.
Why can I not move a whole run?
Because of the moving limit: (empty columns + 1) x 2 to the power of empty cells. A long run needs free cells or an empty column to travel through. The limit is written on screen at all times.
Can I take a card back out of a holding cell?
Yes, at any time, onto a column that accepts it or into a suit slot. Cells are not one-way.
Does it need installing or an account?
No. It runs in the browser on a phone, tablet or computer and works offline after the first visit.
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