Russian Solitaire - Play Online Free
Russian Solitaire is a challenging variant of Yukon that requires same-suit building instead of alternating colors. While you retain the powerful ability to move any face-up card (and everything on top of it), the same-suit restriction makes finding valid placements much more difficult.
How to Play Russian Solitaire
Setup
Deal all 52 cards into 7 columns. The first column gets 1 card, the second gets 6, the third gets 7, and so on up to 11 cards in the seventh column. In each column (except the first), the top 5 cards are face-up and the rest are face-down. There is no stock pile.
Rules
- Build tableau columns in descending order with same-suit cards only (e.g., 7 of hearts on 8 of hearts).
- Any face-up card — and all cards stacked on top of it — can be moved to a valid target, regardless of whether the group forms a proper sequence.
- Only Kings (or groups headed by a King) can fill empty tableau columns.
- No stock pile — all cards are dealt to the tableau at the start.
- Build foundation piles from Ace to King by suit.
- When a face-down card is uncovered, it is automatically flipped face-up.
Strategy Tips
- The same-suit rule makes valid moves scarce — scan all columns before moving.
- Prioritize uncovering face-down cards to create new opportunities.
- Use the free-movement ability to reorganize cards strategically, even if the moved group is not in sequence.
- Empty columns are extremely valuable — fill them only with Kings that will unlock progress.
- Work on all four suits simultaneously to avoid getting stuck.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is Russian Solitaire different from Yukon?
The only difference is the building rule. Standard Yukon uses alternating colors (red on black), while Russian Solitaire requires same-suit building (hearts on hearts). This makes Russian Solitaire significantly harder.
What is the win rate for Russian Solitaire?
Russian Solitaire has a much lower win rate than Yukon — approximately 25-30% of deals are solvable with perfect play, compared to roughly 85% for standard Yukon.
Why can I move cards that are not in sequence?
Russian Solitaire (like Yukon) allows moving any face-up card along with all cards on top of it, regardless of order. The sequence validity is only checked at the destination — the moved card must be same-suit and one rank lower than the target card.