Spiderette

How to Play Spiderette

What Is Spiderette?

Spiderette is Spider Solitaire squeezed into a single deck of 52 cards. It keeps everything that makes Spider fun, the long same-suit runs, the dramatic deals from the stock, the satisfying moment when a finished King-to-Ace run flies off the table, but it plays faster and fits neatly into a coffee break. Do not let the smaller size fool you, though. With only one deck and seven columns, every card matters, and a careless deal from the stock can bury the exact card you were about to use. Your goal is to build four complete runs, one for each suit, from King down to Ace. Each finished run is removed from the table automatically, and when all four are gone, you win.

The Layout

Spiderette borrows its opening layout from Klondike, so it will look familiar right away:

• The tableau. Seven columns across the middle of the screen. The first column gets 1 card, the second gets 2, the third gets 3, and so on up to 7 cards in the last column, for a total of 28 cards. Only the top card of each column is face up; everything underneath is face down and hidden.
• The stock. The remaining 24 cards sit face down in a pile, usually in a corner of the table. You do not draw from it one card at a time. Instead, each click deals a fresh face-up card onto every column at once.
• The foundation area. Unlike Klondike or FreeCell, you never place cards here yourself. When you complete a full run of one suit from King down to Ace in the tableau, the game removes it to the foundation automatically.

Building in the Tableau

In the tableau you build down by rank, regardless of suit or color. Any card that is one rank lower can be placed on top of another. A 7 of clubs can go on an 8 of hearts, an 8 of spades, or any other 8. For example, if a column ends with the 9 of diamonds, you may place any 8 on it: the 8 of diamonds, the 8 of clubs, it makes no difference for the placement itself.

It makes a very big difference for what happens next, though, and that brings us to the most important rule in the game.

Moving Groups: Same Suit Only

A single card on top of a column can always move to any legal spot. But a group of cards can move together only when it is a descending run of the same suit. This is the heart of Spiderette:

• The 9, 8, and 7 of spades stacked in order form a same-suit run. You can pick up all three and drop them on any 10 in one move.
• A 9 of spades with a red 8 on it is still a legal stack, but it is frozen as a unit. To move the 9 you must first find another home for that red 8, one card at a time.

Mixed-suit building is a tool for emergencies; same-suit building is how you actually win. Whenever you have a choice between placing the 8 of hearts or the 8 of clubs onto the 9 of hearts, take the heart. Future you will be grateful.

Dealing from the Stock

When you run out of useful moves, click the stock. One face-up card is dealt onto every column, landing on top of whatever is there, in order or not. This is both a lifeline and a hazard: new cards mean new options, but they also bury your tidy runs under random arrivals.

Two details to remember:

• You cannot deal while any column is empty. Fill every gap first, then the stock will respond.
• The last deal is partial. The stock holds 24 cards: three full deals of 7 cards each, and a final deal of just 3 cards that land on the first three columns only.

Empty Columns

When you clear a column completely, that empty space accepts any card or any movable run, not just a King. An empty column is the most powerful tool in the game. Use it to park a card that is blocking a run, to rebuild a mixed stack into a same-suit one, or to relocate a long run piece by piece.

How to Win

Assemble a complete King-through-Ace run in a single suit and it is swept off to the foundation automatically. Do that four times, once per suit, and the game is won. It is a tall order in one deck, so do not be discouraged if your first few games end in a tangle. That is normal, and it is exactly what makes a win feel earned.

Playing on This Site

Drag and drop cards or same-suit runs wherever they can legally go, or double-click (double-tap on a touch screen) a card to send it to the best available spot. The buttons above the table offer a New deal, Undo, Redo, a Hint when you are stuck, and Auto-finish to complete a clearly won game. Undo is unlimited, so you can rewind a bad deal and try a different plan. Every deal has a seed number too, so you can replay the exact same shuffle or share it with a friend.

Spiderette Strategy & Tips

Turn Over Face-Down Cards First

Twenty-one of your 28 starting cards are face down, and every one of them is a mystery that could help or hurt you. Early in the game, the move that flips a hidden card is almost always the best move on the table.

• When two moves are otherwise equal, choose the one that uncovers a face-down card.
• Favor the long columns on the right early on; they hide the most cards and take the longest to dig out.
• A flipped card is pure profit: more information, more options, and one step closer to an empty column.

Build Same-Suit Runs Early

Any card one rank lower can sit on any card, but only same-suit runs can travel together. Every mixed-suit placement you make is a small loan you will have to repay later, one card at a time.

• Given a choice of equal moves, always join cards of the same suit. Put the 6 of hearts on the 7 of hearts, not on the 7 of spades.
• Use off-suit moves deliberately, to free a buried card or open a column, and plan how you will unpick them afterward.
• Long same-suit runs are not just progress toward a win; they are mobility. A seven-card heart run moves as easily as a single card.

Tidy Up Before Every Deal

Each click of the stock drops a random card on every column, burying whatever was on top. Never deal casually.

• Before dealing, make every safe move available: extend runs, gather same-suit sequences, and flip any face-down card you can reach.
• Try to leave each column ending in a card you would not mind burying, low cards and awkward orphans, rather than the open end of a beautiful run.
• Remember the last deal covers only the first three columns, with just 3 cards. If you can, keep your most delicate work out of columns one to three when that final deal is coming.

Empty a Short Column as Soon as You Can

An empty column in Spiderette accepts any card or run, and it is worth more than any single move.

• The first column starts with just one card, and the second with two. Clearing one of them early should be a priority.
• Use an empty column as a workbench: park a blocking card there, move a run onto its proper suit, then reclaim the space.
• The catch: you cannot deal from the stock while a column is empty. Squeeze all the value out of the space first, then fill it with your most awkward card just before you deal.

Use Undo as a Planning Tool

With so many cards hidden, some risks only reveal themselves after the fact. Undo is unlimited here for a reason. Flip a card, see what it is, and if the position turns sour, rewind and choose a different line. Playing the same seed again after a loss is one of the fastest ways to sharpen your Spiderette instincts.

Frequently Asked Questions

More Solitaire Games