How to Play Lanes Solitaire

A streamlined Klondike variant played on just six lanes of three cards each. The compact tableau and strict alternating-color rule make this an accessible game with balanced difficulty.

Setup

1. Deal four Aces face up to the foundations (dealt automatically at the start)
2. Deal 3 cards face up into each of the 6 tableau lanes (18 cards total)
3. The remaining 30 cards form the stock

How to play

• Click the stock to draw one card at a time to the waste pile
• Build the foundations up from Ace to King in matching suits
• Cards move automatically to the foundations when they can no longer be built on the tableau
• In the tableau, build down one rank in alternating colors (so a 6♠ goes on a 7♥)
• Only single cards move, never stacks together
• Any card can go into an empty lane
• You get one pass through the stock with no redeal

How to win

Objective: Move all 52 cards to the four foundations, building from Ace to King in each suit.

You win when all four foundations are complete. You're stuck when the stock and waste are empty and no more moves are available.

Tips

• Build on alternating colors aggressively—this is the heart of the strategy
• Keep lanes open by uncovering low cards and Aces
• Use the single-card-only movement to your advantage for precise control

Play Lanes free on Windows

CardTray is a free solitaire app for Windows that includes Lanes 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:

• Lily — Lily challenges you to sort two decks into 13 tableau piles, each building down into one complete King-to-Ace run of alternating colors.
• Manx — Build complete 13-card runs in descending rank order across four tableau piles, using a single spare cell to help maneuver cards.
• Pantagruel — Pantagruel is a two-deck Klondike variant with nine tableau piles, giving you a bit more room to maneuver while you build in alternating colors and work through a single-pass stock.
• Rouge Forty — Ten tableau piles are dealt four cards deep with only the top card showing, and you dig through them to feed four color-based foundations and four complete-run foundations.
• Single Interchange — A tough single-deck game that keeps every tableau build strictly within one suit, easing the pressure a little with unlimited stock redeals.