How to Play Pyramid Solitaire

Pyramid Solitaire is a card game where the objective is to demolish a pyramid of 28 cards by removing pairs that add up to 13. Unlike most solitaire games that require building ordered sequences, Pyramid is fundamentally about arithmetic: find two exposed cards whose values total 13, and they are both removed from the board.

The game uses a single standard 52-card deck. Twenty-eight cards are dealt face-up in a triangular pyramid of 7 rows, and the remaining 24 cards form a stock pile that you draw from when you run out of moves. The pyramid layout means most cards start trapped beneath other cards, and you must work from the base upward, uncovering higher rows as you clear the cards below.

Pyramid Solitaire has been popular since at least the early 1900s and is known by several other names, including Solitaire 13, Pile of 28, and Pyramid 13. It was included in early Windows Entertainment Packs and remains one of the most widely played solitaire variants today. The game is quick to play (a typical round takes 3 to 8 minutes) but surprisingly difficult to win — only about 1 in 30 random deals can be solved with a single pass through the stock.

Setting up a game of Pyramid Solitaire takes about 30 seconds with a physical deck. In digital versions the deal is instant, but understanding the layout helps you read the board better.

Building the Pyramid

Deal cards face-up in a triangular formation of 7 rows. Row 1 (the apex) has 1 card, row 2 has 2 cards, row 3 has 3, and so on. Row 7 (the base) has 7 cards. Each card in rows 2 through 7 is positioned so it partially overlaps two cards from the row above. This overlapping creates the core constraint of the game: a card in the pyramid cannot be removed until both cards covering it have been cleared.

In total, the pyramid uses exactly 28 cards (1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 = 28). This is a triangular number, which is why the pyramid shape works so neatly with 7 rows.

The Stock and Waste Piles

The remaining 24 cards are placed face-down in a single stack called the stock pile. When you draw from the stock, the card goes face-up onto a waste pile next to the stock. The top card of the waste pile is always available for pairing. In standard Pyramid rules, you work through the stock once — when all 24 cards have been drawn and you run out of moves, the game is over.

Every card in Pyramid Solitaire has a fixed numerical value. Two cards are removed together when their values add up to exactly 13. The only exception is the King, which equals 13 on its own and is removed without a partner.

There are only 6 unique pair combinations to remember, plus the King rule. Once you have these memorized, you can scan the board quickly without doing mental arithmetic each time.

Here is exactly how a game of Pyramid Solitaire unfolds, from the first move to the final card.

Most of Pyramid Solitaire is straightforward, but a few rules catch new players off guard.

The Overlap Rule

A card in the pyramid is "covered" if either of the two cards below it (in the next row) is still present. Both covering cards must be removed before the covered card becomes available. This is the single most important rule in Pyramid Solitaire because it determines which cards you can actually use at any given moment.

Kings Are Self-Sufficient

Kings equal 13 by themselves and are removed without a partner. This makes Kings uniquely valuable — each one is a free removal that opens up the cards above it. When you have a choice between removing a King and removing another pair, think about which removal uncovers more useful cards.

Waste Pile Access

Only the top card of the waste pile is available. Once a card is buried under subsequent draws, it is gone for the rest of the game (in single-pass rules). This means drawing from the stock has a cost: the previous waste card becomes inaccessible. If the current waste card could pair with a pyramid card, you should almost always make that pair before drawing again.

No Suit Restrictions

Unlike FreeCell or Spider Solitaire, suits are completely irrelevant in Pyramid Solitaire. A 9 of Hearts pairs with a 4 of Clubs just as validly as a 4 of Hearts. The only thing that matters is that the two values sum to 13.

Common Variants

Some popular rule variations change the difficulty significantly:

• Relaxed Pyramid: allows 2 or 3 passes through the stock pile, significantly increasing the win rate to around 25-30%
• Par Pyramid: instead of clearing the entire pyramid, you try to remove as many cards as possible and compare your score to a "par" target for each deal
• Tut's Tomb: a harder variant using a larger layout with additional reserve cards alongside the pyramid
• Giza: all pyramid cards are dealt face-up with no hidden information, turning the game into a pure logic puzzle

Pyramid Solitaire rewards careful play more than most people expect. While luck plays a large role (many deals are simply unsolvable), smart decisions on winnable deals make the difference between a 2% and a 5% win rate — which is a massive improvement in a game this difficult.

For a deeper dive into strategy, including card counting techniques and advanced decision frameworks, see our Pyramid Solitaire Strategy Guide.

If you are coming to Pyramid from other solitaire variants, here is how it differs in feel and strategy.

Pyramid's low win rate can be frustrating if you are used to FreeCell's near-perfect solvability. The trade-off is that Pyramid games are short and quick to set up, so you can play many rounds in the time it takes to finish one FreeCell game. Think of it more like a slot machine than a chess puzzle — your skill improves the odds, but the deal has the final say.