Play Block Ten Solitaire Online for Free (No Signup Required)

Pair cards that add up to ten, or match two jacks, queens, or kings, but never touch a ten: it blocks its pile for good. Roughly a 25% win rate.

An old pairing game in which you remove two cards at a time whose ranks add up to ten — an ace and a nine, a two and an eight, a three and a seven, a four and a six, or two fives. Jacks, queens, and kings cannot make ten, so they leave in equal pairs instead: jack with jack, queen with queen, king with king. The tens themselves can never be removed, and that is where the game gets its name: a ten dealt to the layout blocks its pile for the rest of the game.

Only nine cards are face-up at any moment, and each pile you empty is immediately refilled from the top of the face-down stock. You win by whittling the whole deck away until only the four tens are left staring back at you. Expect to win roughly 25% of the deals you play, which is why this one is rated difficult. It is played with a single deck, and your odds of victory are mainly determined by chance — though choosing the right pair when several are available can save a deal.

Other solitaire games comparable to this one include Simple Pairs Solitaire, Patient Pairs Solitaire, and Pyramid Solitaire.

If you run into anything odd or have an idea that would make the game better, please contact me.

Enjoy playing!

How to play Block Ten Solitaire

Layout:

4 foundation piles: Removed pairs are placed here. They take no further part in the game.

9 tableau piles: Drop one card onto another to discard pairs that add up to ten, or two matching face cards. Emptied spaces are immediately refilled from the stock. At the start of the game, each pile is dealt one card, face-up.

Stock: Face-down. Its only role is to refill empty tableau piles; it cannot be dealt by hand.

Foundation:

There are four foundation piles on which removed cards are arranged.

Two cards may be removed together if their ranks add up to ten — ace and nine, two and eight, three and seven, four and six, or five and five — or if they are two jacks, two queens, or two kings. Suits do not matter.

Tens can never be removed.

Tableau:

Nine tableau piles of one card each. Every card is dealt face-up.

No building is allowed on the tableau.

Any two available cards that form a valid pair may be removed together.

Whenever a pile is emptied, it is immediately refilled with the top card of the stock. Once the stock runs out, empty spaces stay empty.

You win when only the four tens remain.

Stock:

The stock is made up of leftover cards.

You can't deal from the stock by hand. Its only purpose is to automatically refill empty tableau spots.