Play British Canister Solitaire Online for Free (No Signup Required)

See every card from the very first deal, then out-think the tableau one card at a time, since only a King can fill an empty column. Single deck, 10% win rate, all skill.

British Canister Solitaire is a challenging solitaire variation dating back to the 1890s. It plays much like American Canister Solitaire, but two rules make it tougher: you can only move one card at a time, and only a King is allowed to fill an empty tableau space.

This one is sometimes just called "Canister Solitaire." It's played with a single deck, every card is dealt face up from the start, and the game is difficult, with a 10% chance of winning. Since nothing is hidden, how well you do comes down almost entirely to skill.

Canister, American Canister, and Scottish Canister are practically siblings, all built around the same open, face-up tableau.

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

Have fun!

How to play British Canister Solitaire

Layout:

4 foundation piles: Build up from Ace to King in the same suit.

8 tableau piles: Alternate-color build down, one card at a time. Only a King may fill an empty space. The first four piles get seven cards each at the start; the last four get six.

Foundation:

There are four foundation piles.

An Ace can go up to its foundation the moment it's exposed, whichever pile you find it in.

A card can be added to a foundation pile only if it's one rank higher and the same suit as the pile's current top card, so the only card that fits on a 9 of clubs is a 10 of clubs.

The top card of each foundation can be moved back into play if another pile will accept it.

Tableau:

There are eight tableau piles, with the first four holding seven cards each and the next four holding six. Every card is dealt face-up.

A card can be added to a tableau pile only if it's one rank lower and the opposite color of the pile's current top card, so the only cards that fit on the Jack of spades are the 10 of hearts and 10 of diamonds.

Cards on the tableau that are not covered by another card are free to move to the foundation or any other tableau pile.

Only Kings may fill empty spots in the tableau.

Only one card may be moved at a time; sequences are not permitted.