How to Win Pyramid Solitaire
When several pairs are on offer in Pyramid, compare what each one uncovers and which partners it uses up. A 6 and a 7 from two different spots may free 2 blocked cards, while a Queen and an Ace elsewhere leave those same cards covered. Both pairs take 2 cards off the pyramid, but the games that follow can look very different.
This guide assumes you know the pair-to-13 rule and the stock controls. If those are new, start with how to play Pyramid Solitaire. The advice follows the rules on our Pyramid table: remove all 28 pyramid cards, with a single pass through the stock.
Read the covered cards before you pair
Start at the bottom row, but look a row or two above it. Every covered card waits on the 2 cards resting on its lower corners. At the start, a pair of neighbors in the bottom row frees just the one card they hold up together. Later, once a few bottom cards are gone, a pair taken from two different spots can free 2 cards at once, which gives you more ways to continue.
The ranks on show count too. If an exposed 4 covers a Jack and the only 9 in reach is needed elsewhere, that corner may have to wait for the stock to turn up another 9. Before taking an easy pair, note which partners the newly exposed cards will need.
Pairs that free 2 cards at once
The strongest early removals often take cards from separate spots. When each card is the last one holding up a different card above it, the pair frees 2 new cards. Those two might pair with each other, match another exposed card or open two separate ways into the next row.
A pair that frees only one card can still be right when that card is a King or matches another exposed card straight away. Count the cards each removal leaves free to play, and check whether it helps a corner that would otherwise have to wait for the stock.
Work both sides toward the center
Clearing only the left edge can feel productive because each new card is easy to see, yet the center cards usually depend on progress from both sides. A branch that climbs to the fourth row stalls when its next card still rests on a card from the side you have not touched.
You do not need perfect symmetry. When two choices are close in value, take the one on the side you have neglected, so the central cards come free while enough outside cards remain to pair with them. A narrow tunnel up one edge can leave the middle with no exposed partner.
Choosing between two cards of the same rank
Two exposed 5s are worth the same, but they hold up different cards. If a waste 8 could take either one, look at what each 5 is covering. Take the 5 that is the last thing covering a useful card, or the one in the more crowded branch. The other 5 stays put for a later 8.
The same goes for any rank. When several copies are exposed, don't just grab the nearest one. Check what each copy is covering first.
Check every pyramid pair before you draw
Each draw puts a new card on the waste and covers the one that was there. Before drawing, compare every exposed pyramid card with the current waste card and with the other exposed pyramid cards, and remove any free King. That way a playable waste card does not disappear under a new draw.
A covered waste card is not gone for good. If the new top pairs with a pyramid card, the card underneath comes back into play. A partner deeper in the waste is reachable only once every card above it has been removed. So before drawing, ask whether the current top could help after one more pyramid pair exposes another card.
Kings leave without a partner
An exposed King is removed by itself. It cannot pair with anything, so leaving it in place gains you nothing. Remove it and look at what it uncovers. If it was the last card covering another, the new card may pair with the current waste.
A King that uncovers nothing still has to go before the pyramid is clear. There is no trade-off here like there is with other ranks, so take the free removal and then turn to the pairs that need a real decision.
Count partners in the last few rows
As the pyramid shrinks, each remaining card has fewer possible partners. If 2 Queens remain, each needs an Ace. If the Aces in the pyramid are gone and the stock has already passed the others, the deal is effectively over. Before you spend a scarce partner, check whether another copy could do the job later.
The pairs never change: Ace with Queen, 2 with Jack, 3 with 10, 4 with 9, 5 with 8 and 6 with 7. Near the top, note which ranks still cover the cards you must remove. A partner needed by the last 2 cards is worth more than an equal-looking pair in a branch that has other options.
You do not need to empty the stock
The stock is there to supply partners. A deal can finish with stock cards unused, because the win comes from the 28 pyramid cards alone. Keep your attention on how those cards cover each other, and take a pair with the waste card when the pyramid card it removes opens something up or would be hard to pair later.
TriPeaks is different. There you build one long chain on the waste, so a long run is the goal. Pyramid has no chain, only pairs, and each one is judged by the card it uncovers and the partner it uses up.
Look again after every removal
One pair can expose a King, create a new pyramid pair and give the waste card a partner all at once. Playing the first thing you notice may miss the better order. After each removal, scan the newly exposed cards, then the rest of the bottom edge, then the waste.
Near the end, this short pause often decides whether you finish or hit an avoidable dead end. The last card needs nothing special, just its partner or to be a King, so keep that partner available until the card comes free.
Common questions
Should I always take a pair as soon as I see one?
No. Compare the legal pairs by the cards they uncover and the partners they use up. A pair that frees 2 cards is often stronger than one that frees nothing.
Is it better to pair 2 pyramid cards or use the waste?
Pick whichever opens more of the pyramid. A pyramid pair can save the waste card for later, while a waste pair may be needed when the 2 pyramid cards are holding up different branches.
Should I remove every King immediately?
Yes. An exposed King needs no partner and cannot help another card, so removing it shrinks the pyramid at no cost.
Why do Winnable deals still get stuck?
Because a different legal choice can spend a scarce partner or draw past a waste card you needed. Every Winnable deal on the site has a known solution, so a stuck game usually means an earlier choice went wrong, and Undo is there for testing another line. How we check that a deal can be won.
What should I check before drawing from the stock?
Check every pair among the exposed pyramid cards, any free King and every pyramid card that pairs with the current waste card. Draw only when none of those helps.
The Klondike strategy guide deals with a different kind of decision: keeping landing spots open while you build the foundations. For another game with an overlapping layout, try TriPeaks, where you remove cards one at a time by adjacent rank.