Play Spider Solitaire 1 Suit Online for Free
Spider Solitaire uses two full decks and ten tableau columns. This is the 1-suit level - every card is a spade - which makes it the perfect introduction to the game. Build complete King-to-Ace runs to clear them from the board.
How to Play Spider Solitaire
- Ten columns are dealt: the first four get 6 cards each, the remaining six get 5 each. The top card of every column is face up. The leftover 50 cards form the stock.
- Build the tableau down in rank regardless of suit - in the 1-suit game any descending sequence works, since all cards share one suit.
- You can move any face-up card together with the valid run beneath it, as a group.
- Complete a run from King down to Ace to clear it automatically off the board. Eight full runs win the game.
- When stuck, click the stock to deal one new card onto every column. Every column must have at least one card before you can deal.
- Any card or valid run may be placed in an empty column.
- Clear all eight King-to-Ace runs to win.
Spider Solitaire Rules
Objective
Assemble eight complete runs from King down to Ace within a single suit, clearing them from the tableau.
Setup
Two decks (104 cards, all spades in this level). Ten tableau columns - four of 6 cards and six of 5 - with top cards face up. The remaining 50 cards are the stock, dealt in five waves of ten.
Tableau
Build down in rank regardless of suit in the 1-suit game. A card plus its descending run beneath it moves together. Empty columns accept any card or run.
Stock
Clicking the stock deals one card face up onto each of the ten columns. A deal is only allowed when no column is empty.
Completed Runs
When a column contains a full face-up King-to-Ace run of one suit, it flies off the board automatically. Eight cleared runs win.
Scoring
Classic Spider scoring starts at 500 and subtracts 1 point per move, adding 100 per completed suit run. Higher is better.
Strategy
One-suit Spider is the easiest version of the game and the right place to learn it, because every card is a spade: any descending run you build is automatically a same-suit run, so it will move as a group and eventually clear. Open with the goal of emptying one column as early as possible, since in Spider an empty column accepts any card and is the most useful space on the board. Work the columns with the most face-down cards first - the deal leaves 44 of the 54 tableau cards face down, and every card you uncover is a new option. Do not deal a new wave while a column is empty: the stock button refuses, because a wave onto an empty column would strand cards you can no longer reach. Finally, remember you only need eight King-to-Ace runs, so building in suit from the moment a card appears costs nothing extra.
Common Mistakes
The classic error is dealing a new wave too early. A wave adds one card to each of the ten columns and buries ten more cards under them, so dealing before you have made progress simply hides the board again - and the game will not let you deal at all while any column is empty. Players also break up a good in-suit run to make a cheap one-card move, which costs a point and usually costs the run. The third mistake is ignoring the empty-column rule: Spider lets any card fill an empty column, unlike Klondike, so the moment a column clears you should be deciding what to park there rather than filling it automatically.
Winning
All 104 cards cleared in eight complete King-to-Ace runs.
Tips & Strategy
- Never deal from the stock while a column is empty - fill it first with any card or run.
- Expose face-down cards constantly; hidden cards are the real enemy in Spider.
- Try to build partial runs toward a King whenever possible - a King heading a run is your future cleared column.
- Use empty columns as building sites for long runs before the stock runs out.
- In 1-suit Spider every descending move is legal, so focus purely on order and uncovering, not colors.
- A wave costs you nothing in points but buries ten cards - only deal when every column still has work in it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the 1-suit level mean?
All 104 cards are spades. This removes the suit-matching restriction, making it the easiest Spider level and the best place to learn the flow of the game.
How many decks does Spider Solitaire use?
Two full decks, 104 cards. You need to complete eight full King-to-Ace runs to win.
Why can't I deal from the stock?
Every column must contain at least one card before a new wave can be dealt. Move something into the empty column first.
When does a run clear off the board?
The moment a single column holds a complete face-up King-to-Ace run of one suit, it is removed automatically.
Should I play 1, 2 or 4 suits?
Start with 1 suit to learn the mechanics, then move to 2 suits for the real challenge. We also offer a 2-suit version on this site.
Do I have to match suits in one-suit Spider Solitaire?
No, because every card in the deck is the same suit - a completed King-to-Ace run always counts. You still have to build strictly downwards to move cards as a group: a mixed pile has to be taken apart one card at a time.
Why does the game refuse to deal me a new row?
All ten columns must contain at least one card before a new wave can be dealt. That is the classic Spider rule, and it stops you from using the stock to dig out of a board you have emptied. Fill the empty columns first, then deal.
How many times can I deal the stock in Spider?
Five times. Fifty cards sit in the stock and each wave deals one card to each of the ten columns, so you get five waves and no recycling after that.
How to win spider solitaire 1 suit?
Aim for an empty column early, uncover face-down cards before anything else, and build descending runs that stay in one suit so they can move as a group and clear when they reach King-to-Ace. Deal a new wave only when every column has a card and you have run out of useful moves. Because all 104 cards are spades, almost every deal here is solvable - close to 99% - so patience and undo matter more than luck.
How long does a game of Spider Solitaire take?
Ten to twenty minutes for a one-suit deal, and longer if you are using undo to explore lines rather than playing the first move you see. Two-suit and four-suit games take considerably longer because runs break constantly, and many of them end in a loss rather than a win.
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