Penguin Solitaire

Why players like Penguin

Penguin keeps all cards face-up like FreeCell but adds stricter same-suit builds and a beak-driven structure. That mix rewards deliberate planning and careful use of temporary space.

Core rules

• Penguin deals seven tableau columns of seven cards and starts foundations from the beak rank.
• Tableau builds down by suit, and valid same-suit runs can move together as a single unit.
• Empty tableau columns only accept the rank directly beneath the beak (or a run that starts there).

Strategy tips

• Keep flipper cells available so you can expose buried cards without freezing your board.
• Prioritize freeing the beak card early so all four foundations can start building.
• Preserve empty columns for the beneath-beak rank because they are your most constrained targets.

Read the full Penguin strategy guide

Best related variants

• FreeCell Solitaire for similar open-information planning with fewer cells.
• Yukon Solitaire if you like long stack movement with visible cards.
• Canfield Solitaire for another base-rank variant with wraparound foundations.