By Online Solitaire Free Editorial Team · Editorial Standards
Explore 15 rare Solitaire variants you've probably never played. Discover unique, challenging games beyond the most popular classics.
Named after a 19th-century casino owner who allegedly sold players a deck and let them win $5 for each card they moved to the foundation. With a win rate under 20%, it's one of the hardest standard solitaire games. A 13-card reserve pile feeds a 4-card tableau — deceptively simple rules, brutally difficult execution.
Also called "Fan" solitaire, La Belle Lucie deals all 52 cards into 17 fans of 3 cards plus one single card. You can only play the top card of each fan. With two redeals allowed, it's meditative and challenging — win rates hover around 10% even with good play.
Accordion deals all 52 cards in a horizontal row. Cards can be moved left by one or three positions if they match the suit or rank of the card they'd land on. The goal is to compress the entire row into a single pile. Near-impossible — but when it works, deeply satisfying.
Combines solitaire mechanics with cribbage scoring. Players draw cards and form cribbage hands (pairs, runs, 15-combinations) to score points rather than building foundations. Requires knowledge of cribbage but plays quickly and rewards card counting ability.
A highly strategic variant where four foundation piles build in different increments: one pile goes A-2-3...K, another A-3-5...Q, another A-4-7...J, and the last A-5-9...K. Requires careful planning about which cards go where — skill matters more than luck.
Uses two decks and places the King of Hearts in the centre. All other Kings surround it, and the goal is to build each suit up to Queen. Unlike most solitaire, the foundation starts at the King and builds up — the game has a unique backwards feel.
All 52 cards are dealt face-up in four rows. Remove the Aces, leaving four gaps. Cards can slide into a gap if they're one rank higher and the same suit as the card to the gap's left. Gaps after Kings can't be filled. Two reshuffles allowed — strategic and unusual.
More complex than Spider, Scorpion deals 49 cards in 7 columns with specific rules about which face-down cards can be accessed. Three cards remain as a reserve. Sequences must be same-suit. Win rate is around 30% — accessible but challenging.
A Klondike variant where the starting card of the foundations is determined randomly. The tableau is built on cards one rank lower than the foundation's base card. Adds a layer of uncertainty that significantly changes strategic planning.
Uses two decks with 40 cards dealt into 10 columns of 4. Only one card can be moved at a time (no sequences), making it extremely difficult. Win rate is under 10% without optimal play. Based on the Ali Baba story — each column is a "thief."
Seven columns of 5 cards each, with a single waste pile built in sequence regardless of suit. Cards can be played up or down — King to Ace wraps if allowed. Fast, strategic, and excellent for short gaming sessions. Win rates depend heavily on the specific rule variant.
Similar to Yukon but requires same-suit sequences rather than same-color. More restrictive, more strategic, and significantly harder. Popular in Eastern Europe and worth trying once you've mastered Klondike and Spider.
Cards are arranged in a pyramid and paired by cards that sum to 13. The unique visual layout and pairing mechanic make it unlike any other solitaire variant. Win rates around 12% — heavily influenced by the initial deal.
The British version of Canfield with slightly different rules around the foundation starting position. Demon has inspired entire books of strategy and remains one of the most analysed patience games. Notoriously difficult with win rates under 10%.
Twelve cards are arranged in a clock face, each placed on the matching clock position (A=1, 2, 3... Q=12). The remaining 40 cards form the tableau. The goal is to build each clock position up to the correct rank. Unusual, charming, and much more achievable than most rare variants.