Play Links Solitaire Online for Free (No Signup Required)

Pair cards that add up to thirteen, ace with queen, six with seven, and clear all fifty-two before the stock runs out. Kings vanish solo.

Links Solitaire is a matching solitaire in the Pyramid tradition, where the goal is not to build sequences but to clear the whole deck by pairing cards that add up to thirteen. Seven tableau rows are dealt entirely face-up in a 4-5-5-5-5-5-4 pattern, and the remaining cards wait in a stock you turn one at a time.

The counting is the heart of the game: an Ace pairs with a Queen, a 2 with a Jack, a 3 with a Ten, and so on down to a 6 with a 7. Kings count as thirteen on their own and are simply removed by themselves. Because you only get a single pass through the stock, you have to look ahead and free the right cards before the pile you need slides out of reach.

It is played with a single deck, and your odds of victory lean on planning as much as luck. Clear every card and the deal is won.

The pairs-to-thirteen hook runs through Pyramid Solitaire and Thirteens Solitaire too, if you want more of it. Fans of the format should also try King Tut 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 Links Solitaire

Layout:

Goal: Remove all 52 cards by pairing any two exposed cards whose ranks add up to thirteen. Kings are worth thirteen and are removed on their own.

7 tableau piles: Dealt face-up in a 4-5-5-5-5-5-4 pattern for 33 cards in total. Only the top card of each pile is available. There is no building, and empty spaces stay empty.

Stock: Turn over cards one at a time to the waste. There are no redeals.

Waste: The top card of the waste is available for pairing.

Foundation:

Cards you match are cleared straight off the table into the discard, so there are no foundation piles to build up. Winning simply means emptying the tableau and stock entirely.

Tableau:

Seven tableau piles totalling 33 cards, dealt in a 4-5-5-5-5-5-4 pattern. Every card is dealt face-up.

The exposed top card of any tableau pile can be paired with another exposed card, from the tableau or the waste, whose rank adds up to thirteen with it. Ace-Queen, 2-Jack, 3-Ten, 4-9, 5-8 and 6-7 are the valid pairs.

A King is worth thirteen by itself, so an exposed King is removed with a single click and needs no partner.

Empty tableau spaces are not refilled. Only matched pairs are removed; no cards are built or stacked.

Stock and waste:

There is one waste pile and the remaining cards make up the stock.

When you click on the stock, one card from the stock is dealt to the waste. You get only one pass through the deck.

The top card of the waste can be paired with any exposed tableau card, or with a King in the tableau, to be removed.