History of Pyramid Solitaire
Pyramid belongs to the family of patience games where cards are removed by numeric rule rather than sequenced to foundations. The triangular layout — one card at the apex, expanding to seven cards at the base — gives the game its name and its distinctive challenge: cards in upper rows are blocked by all the cards in the rows below them.
The most widely played version pairs cards totaling 13, using Jack as 11, Queen as 12, King as 13, and Ace as 1. Win rates for casual play typically fall between 5 and 15 percent; deliberate strategy pushes that to roughly 20–25%.
Full rules
The 52-card deck is split into a 28-card pyramid (rows 1 through 7) and a 24-card stock. Cards in the pyramid start face-up but are only available when both cards overlapping them from the row above have been removed.
Available cards are: any uncovered pyramid card, the top waste card, and the top stock card. Pairs totaling 13 are removed together. Kings (value 13) are removed alone. Draw one card at a time from the stock to the waste; the stock recycles once when exhausted. Win by clearing all cards.
Key strategic concepts
Upper-row priority: removing a card from row 3 uncovers two row-4 cards, which uncover four row-5 cards, and so on. Each upper-row removal produces an exponentially larger gain in future available cards.
Pyramid pairs outvalue stock pairs: a pair using two pyramid cards removes two blockers simultaneously. Use stock cards as pairing partners for pyramid cards, not to pair with each other.
Read the full Pyramid strategy guide →
How it differs from other solitaires
Most solitaire games ask you to build sequences toward foundations. Pyramid asks you to destroy the layout entirely by pairing. Suit is irrelevant — only card values matter. The strategic tension is unique: the pair that looks useful now may be the only pair available for a critical removal three moves later.
Pyramid variants
All six variants are available from the Rules button above. A brief summary of what each changes:
- Relaxed Pyramid — win by clearing only the pyramid; stock and waste cards don’t need to be removed
- Tut’s Tomb — pyramid bordered by extra cards; draw-three stock
- Apophis — three simultaneous waste lanes instead of one
- Giza — three side-by-side pyramids; no stock; fully open information
- Triangle — inverted layout; pairs total 12 instead of 13
Related games and reference
- Golf Solitaire — rank-adjacency removal with a moving foundation
- Tri Peaks — three-pyramid sequential rank removal
- Pyramid strategy guide
- Solitaire glossary
- All solitaire games