Pyramid Solitaire looks gentle — a tidy triangle of 28 cards — but it punishes careless play faster than almost any other patience game. The rules are simple enough to learn in a minute, yet the difference between clearing the pyramid and stalling out usually comes down to a handful of early decisions. This guide explains how to make those decisions, and why they matter. If the game is new to you, the quickest way to learn is to play a hand and follow along.
The goal, in one sentence
Remove every card from the pyramid by pairing two exposed cards whose values add up to 13. Ace counts as 1, Jack as 11, Queen as 12, and King as 13 — so a King is worth 13 on its own and is removed alone. Every other pair sums to 13: A+Q, 2+J, 3+10, 4+9, 5+8, 6+7. A card can only be used once both cards covering it from below have been removed, so the bottom row is free to play immediately and everything above it is locked until you dig it out.
The principles that clear the pyramid
1. Play to expose cards, not just to score points
Every removal is also an unlock. Because each card sits on top of two cards in the row below, taking a card off the board can open up two new cards at once. Before you make a pair, look at what it reveals: a move that frees two useful cards is worth far more than one that clears a corner you didn't need. Think of the pyramid as a sequence of locks, and plan the order that opens the most doors.
2. Don't grab the first 13 you see
The most common way to lose is taking an easy pair that strands a card you'll need later. Each rank appears a limited number of times in the deck, so spending a partner too early can leave an orphan with no match. If you remove both low cards a buried high card depends on — say, clearing both 6s early when a 7 still sits deep in the pyramid — that 7 can become impossible to pair. Before you commit a card, ask whether anything still on the board needs its partner.
3. Work the pyramid and the stock together
You're not limited to pairing pyramid cards with each other. The card on top of the stock, and the top of the waste pile, are both fair game. Many deals are only solvable because you match a stubborn pyramid card with a card you turn up from the stock. Treat the stock as a supply of partners, not just a fallback — sometimes the right move is to flip a card specifically to free a pyramid card you've been stuck on.
4. Kings are free removals
A King equals 13 by itself, so it never needs a partner and never costs you another card. The moment a King is exposed — on the pyramid, the stock, or the waste — take it. Leaving a King in place only blocks the cards beneath it for no reason.
5. Manage your stock passes
You have a limited number of trips through the stock, so don't burn it thoughtlessly. Each time you turn a card you can't immediately use, you push it onto the waste and bring up the next one; spend those flips with a target in mind. If you're cycling the stock just to "see what's there" without a plan, you'll often exhaust your passes before the pyramid is clear.
Common mistakes that lose games
- Stranding a needed rank — removing both partners of a card that's still buried, leaving it with nothing to pair.
- Burning the stock without a plan, flipping cards aimlessly until your passes run out.
- Ignoring that a card unlocks two below it, so you clear the wrong side of the pyramid and freeze the cards you actually needed.
- Leaving a King on the board instead of removing it the instant it's exposed.
- Forgetting undo exists — on CardHearth, undo is unlimited, so try a line and take it back if it dead-ends.
Some deals can't be won — and that's fine
Pyramid is partly a game of the shuffle. Because a buried card can only be cleared with its partner, some layouts are impossible by nature of the deal, no matter how perfectly you play. That isn't a failure on your part. On CardHearth, every deal is numbered and shareable, so you can replay the exact same pyramid to try a different order, or pass it to a friend. Paired with unlimited undo, that makes it easy to test lines, spot where a deal goes wrong, and learn the planning habits above far faster than grinding random hands.
Frequently asked questions
Are all Pyramid Solitaire games winnable?
No. Whether a deal can be cleared depends entirely on the shuffle — some layouts trap a needed card under cards that can only be removed with it, so they are impossible no matter how well you play. That is normal for Pyramid. On CardHearth, unlimited undo and numbered, replayable deals let you experiment and learn which lines work without losing progress.
What do Kings pair with in Pyramid?
Nothing. A King already equals 13 on its own (A=1, J=11, Q=12, K=13), so it is removed by itself the moment it is exposed. There is never a reason to leave a King sitting on the pyramid — take it whenever you can.
How does clearing and scoring work?
You clear the board by removing every card from the pyramid in pairs that add up to 13, plus Kings removed alone. You win when the pyramid is empty. Most scoring rewards clearing the full pyramid (and sometimes the stock too); the practical goal is simply to empty the pyramid before you run out of usable stock passes.
Keep going
Ready to put it into practice? Play Pyramid Solitaire now, or branch out: our guide to winning Klondike Solitaire rewards a different kind of forward planning, and our roundup of the best free solitaire and puzzle games points you to what to try next. The full guides hub covers the whole CardHearth library.