Pyramid Solitaire
Clear a twenty-eight card pyramid by removing pairs that add up to thirteen. Kings go on their own. Choose how forgiving you want the stock to be — three passes, two, or a single unforgiving run.
Dealing…
Stock
Waste
Ace counts 1, Jack 11, Queen 12, King 13. Tap two exposed cards that add to thirteen, or a single exposed King.
How Pyramid Solitaire works
Twenty-eight cards are dealt into a seven-row pyramid, each row overlapping the one above it, and the remaining twenty-four become the stock. A pyramid card is exposed — and therefore usable — only once both of the cards overlapping it from below have been removed. At the start, that means the seven cards along the bottom row.
Remove cards in pairs whose ranks add up to thirteen: Ace counts 1, numbers count face value, Jack is 11 and Queen is 12. So Ace pairs with Queen, 2 with Jack, 3 with 10, and so on up to 6 with 7. A King is worth thirteen on its own, so an exposed King can be removed by itself with a single tap.
When the pyramid offers nothing, turn a card from the stock onto the waste pile. The top waste card can be paired with any exposed pyramid card, or with nothing at all — it simply waits. Clear all twenty-eight pyramid cards to win.
Three difficulty settings
The real difficulty in Pyramid is not the arithmetic, it is how many chances you get at the stock. Ours is a straightforward choice:
- Relaxed — recycle the stock three times. Forgiving, good for learning the shape of the game.
- Classic — recycle twice. The traditional setting and the default here.
- Hard — a single pass, no recycling at all. Every draw counts.
An honest note about winnable deals
Our Klondike Solitaire, FreeCell and TriPeaks all deal from pools checked by a solver, so every board is winnable. Pyramid here does not do that — it shuffles honestly, and some deals cannot be cleared however well you play. That is the traditional game, and we would rather say so than imply a guarantee we have not built. If you want the guarantee, the three games linked above have it in writing.
The difficulty setting is the lever we do give you: Relaxed makes far more deals clearable than Hard, because most Pyramid deals turn on whether you get another look at the stock.
Prefer a different shape of game? Try TriPeaks Solitaire, Golf Solitaire or Spider Solitaire — or take today's daily set.
Common questions
What adds up to 13 in Pyramid Solitaire?
Ace + Queen, 2 + Jack, 3 + 10, 4 + 9, 5 + 8, and 6 + 7. A King is 13 on its own and is removed with a single tap.
Why can't I select a card?
It is still covered. A pyramid card only becomes usable once both cards overlapping it from below have been removed. Covered cards are dimmed.
Are all Pyramid deals winnable?
No, and we do not pretend otherwise. Pyramid deals here are shuffled honestly and some cannot be cleared. Choosing Relaxed, which allows three recycles of the stock, makes far more deals clearable than Hard.
Can I pair two cards from the waste pile?
No. Only the top card of the waste is available, so it can be paired with an exposed pyramid card but never with another waste card.
What is the Daily deal?
Turn on Daily and everyone playing that day gets the same pyramid, so results are comparable. Starting a new deal leaves Daily mode.
Can I play offline?
Yes. Once the page has loaded it works without a connection and can be installed to your home screen. The free Snackpack Brain Games Vol 3 app also includes Pyramid.
