I’m trying to learn how to properly set up a standard Solitaire (Klondike) game with a real deck of cards, but I keep getting confused about how many cards go in each pile, where the stock and waste should be, and how the tableau is supposed to look before starting. Online guides seem to skip steps or assume I already know the basics. Can someone walk me through the exact setup process so I know I’m doing it right from the start?
Here is the standard Klondike layout with a real deck, step by step, no fluff.
- Deal the tableau piles
You will make 7 piles from left to right.
• Pile 1: deal 1 card face down, then flip it face up.
• Pile 2: deal 1 face down to pile 1, then 1 face down to pile 2, then flip top of pile 2 face up.
• Pile 3: deal 1 face down to piles 1 and 2, then 1 face down to pile 3, then flip top of pile 3 face up.
• Pile 4: deal 1 face down to piles 1, 2, 3, then 1 face down to pile 4, then flip top of pile 4 face up.
• Pile 5: same idea, end with 5 cards in pile 5, top one face up.
• Pile 6: end with 6 cards in pile 6, top one face up.
• Pile 7: end with 7 cards in pile 7, top one face up.
Shortcut if you keep losing track:
Pile numbers match total cards in that pile. Only the top card is face up. So the piles from left to right have 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 cards.
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Stock and waste placement
• Put the undealt cards in one face-down stack at the top left. That is your stock.
• Leave a small space to the right of the stock for the waste pile.
• When you draw, move cards from the stock to the waste, face up. Most people place each new waste card on top of the old one, slightly fanned. -
Foundations
• Leave 4 spaces at the top right for the foundations.
• These will start with Aces as they appear, then build up by suit: A, 2, 3, …, K. -
Basic play reminder
• Tableau builds down in alternating color. Example: place a black 7 on a red 8.
• You move single cards or whole sequences that follow that alternating-color, descending rule.
• Empty tableau spaces take only a King or a sequence starting with a King.
• On the foundations you go up in the same suit only. -
Stock draw rules
Common versions:
• Draw 3 cards from stock to waste, play from the top waste card. When stock is empty, turn the waste over to form a new stock.
• Or draw 1 at a time from stock, same idea.
If you keep messing up the dealing count, do this quick check at the start:
• Total cards in tableau should be 28.
1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 = 28
If your piles do not add to 28, redeal, you missed a card somewhere.
Once you do this a few times, your hands remember the pattern and the confusion goes away.
The dealing steps @mikeappsreviewer posted are solid, so I’ll skip re-teaching that pattern and focus on how to see the layout and remember it without thinking so hard every time.
Think of the table as a 3‑zone map:
1) Bottom: “Working area” (tableau)
This is the 7 piles where you actually play most of the game.
Visual rule:
- From left to right: piles have 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 cards total.
- Only the top card of each pile is face up at the start.
- If you look across the top row of the tableau, you should see 7 face‑up cards in a row.
If you don’t see exactly 7 face‑up cards in the bottom area, something got messed up.
Memory hack:
Picture a staircase: the left pile is the first step, the right pile is the 7th step. You are basically dealing yourself a diagonal staircase of face‑down cards, then flipping the top one on each pile.
2) Top left: “Draw area” (stock & waste)
A lot of people confuse where these go. Easiest rule:
- Stock: always top left, small neat face‑down pile.
- Waste: just to the right of that stock. Face‑up, slightly fanned.
Every time you draw, you are literally moving cards left to right: stock → waste → potentially down into tableau or up to foundations.
If it helps, think of “reading order” in English:
- Top left: start (stock).
- Slightly right: next (waste).
- Then your eyes drop down to the tableau.
3) Top right: “Goal area” (foundations)
- Leave space for 4 foundation piles on the top right.
- These will start empty.
- Aces go here whenever they appear, then you build them up by suit.
So the whole table looks like:
- Top left: stock + waste
- Top right: 4 foundation spots
- Bottom: 7 tableau piles in a staircase of 1–7 cards
Quick sanity checks so you know if the setup is right:
- Count the tableau cards if you’re unsure:
- 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 = 28 cards on the table.
- If you count and get anything other than 28, redeal.
- You should always have:
- 28 cards in the tableau
- 24 cards left in the stock (52 − 28 = 24)
- One and only one face‑up card per column at the very start.
Little disagreement with @mikeappsreviewer on dealing complexity:
You don’t have to deal it in that “pile 1, then 1–2, then 1–2–3” pattern if it keeps frying your brain. A simpler method:
- Place 7 face‑down piles in a row: 1 card in pile 1, 2 in pile 2, … 7 in pile 7.
- Then just flip the top card of each pile face up.
You end up with the exact same layout, but you avoid mentally tracking the sequence while dealing.
Where people usually get confused:
- Putting the stock at the bottom or middle: always move it to top left.
- Forgetting the waste space: always leave a gap next to the stock.
- Turning too many cards face up: at the start, 7 total face‑up cards in the tableau, that’s it.
Once you’ve done this a few times, you won’t even be thinking “how many go here,” your hands will just autopilot it.
Quick way to lock this into muscle memory without re-reading rules every time:
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Think in totals, not dealing patterns
Instead of tracking the 1-then-1-2-then-1-2-3 pattern that @viaggiatoresolare and @mikeappsreviewer described, memorize only this checklist after you’re done dealing:- Bottom row: 7 piles
- Pile sizes left to right: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7
- Exactly 7 face up cards, one on top of each pile
If any pile has the wrong count or you see more or fewer than 7 face up cards, something went wrong. Redeal and move on.
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Table map in your head
Forget the “where does this go?” confusion by using a fixed mental map:- Top left: stock (face down)
- Beside it to the right: waste (face up, fan)
- Top right: 4 foundation spots (start empty)
- Bottom: 7 tableau piles in a staircase
Every single Klondike game you set up, keep this exact shape. No exceptions. After a few games you will feel weird if the stock is anywhere but that top left corner.
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How to check your setup in 5 seconds
After dealing:- Count one pile only: the rightmost. It must have 7 cards.
- Glance across the tableau: one visible card per pile, no gaps in the row.
- Rough count of the leftover deck in your hand / stock: should be a little under half the deck. Exact number is 24, but you do not need to count; you will recognize the “chunk size” after a few deals.
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Where I slightly disagree with the others
They focus on the precise dealing pattern, which is correct but can be overkill when you are still fumbling. I would:- Toss cards down into piles 1 through 7 in a row, starting each pile with the correct total (1 to 7) face down.
- Then flip the top card of each pile.
Same end result, less mental load. The official pattern is nice once you are comfortable, but not required for a valid Klondike layout.
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Common gotchas to avoid
- Do not flip more than 1 card per pile at the start.
- Do not mix the foundations and waste area. Leave a clear gap.
- When you draw from stock, cards go only one way: stock → waste → either tableau or foundation. Never put cards back from tableau into the waste.
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Pros & cons of sticking to this strict layout “product”
Think of the “standard Klondike layout” as the product you are learning to use:Pros
- Universally recognizable, so any Solitaire guide or app translates 1 to 1.
- Easy to troubleshoot: 28 cards down, 24 in stock, 7 face up.
- Once memorized, you can shuffle and set up in under 20 seconds.
Cons
- First few times feel rigid and fiddly, especially the spacing.
- Slight variations you might see elsewhere (different draw rules or stock placement) can be confusing until you are solid on this version.
- If you are sloppy with pile spacing, foundations and waste can feel cramped on a small table.
If you use the mental map (“top left draw area, top right goals, bottom staircase”) and the 3 quick checks (1–7 piles, 7 face up, chunky stock), you will stop second‑guessing yourself and just start playing.