How to Play Alternations Solitaire

Alternations uses two decks across eight foundation piles and a 7x7 tableau where every other card in each pile is face-down. Build the foundations while moving card sequences in alternating colors through the tableau.

Setup

1. Two full decks (104 cards) are shuffled together
2. Deal 7 cards to each of 7 tableau piles, alternating face-up and face-down (1st card up, 2nd down, 3rd up, etc.)
3. 8 empty foundation piles wait to receive Aces
4. The remaining 55 cards form the stock, dealt one at a time to a waste pile

How to play

• Click the stock to deal one card at a time to the waste pile; only the top card of the waste can be played
• Cards automatically move to the foundations when no other moves are available for them; you can change this behavior in Settings
• In the tableau, build down in alternating colors (a red 5 goes on a black 6, or vice versa)
• Move one card or an entire sequence of alternating-color cards together when each card in the sequence is one rank lower than the card it covers
• Face-down cards become face-up when they are uncovered
• Empty tableau spaces can be filled with any card or valid sequence
• When the stock runs out, you cannot redeal

How to win

Objective: Move all 104 cards to the 8 foundation piles, built up by suit from Aces to Kings.

You win when all 104 cards are moved to the foundations in proper suit sequence. You're stuck when the stock is exhausted and no valid moves remain.

Tips

• Expose face-down cards as quickly as possible to increase your move options
• Plan ahead before breaking up sequences, as reassembling them in alternating color is challenging
• Creating empty tableau spaces early gives you flexibility to maneuver long sequences

Play Alternations free on Windows

CardTray is a free solitaire app for Windows that includes Alternations alongside 300+ other games. It saves every move as you play, so you can close the window and pick the game up later, replay any deal, and take on a new Daily Challenge deal every day. Browse every game in the Game Gallery.

Related games

More games from the Klondike family:

• Brazilian — A two-deck variant where cards are dealt to the tableau in a pyramid pattern instead of a waste pile, offering more control and visibility over future plays.
• Bristol — A three-waste-pile game where you build the tableau regardless of suit and use the stock strategically to access cards.
• Bureau — A two-deck Klondike relative with 13 tableau piles, where foundations build in opposite colors and you get one extra pass through the stock.
• Cassim — A flexible tableau-building game where you can recycle through the stock as many times as needed, making it more forgiving than traditional Klondike.
• Double Easthaven — This larger take on Easthaven mixes two decks together across eight tableau piles and eight foundations.