How to Play Outback Solitaire

Outback deals two decks across eight tableau piles, where every pile builds in a single suit instead of alternating colors, and you can relocate any run of face-up cards as a group as long as the bottom card fits. The goal: Move all 104 cards to eight foundation piles, building each suit from Ace to King.

Setup

1. Eight tableau piles are dealt: 7 cards to each pile, all face up.
2. Eight foundation piles build from Ace (base) to King, one suit per pile.
3. A stock pile contains the remaining cards. Click to deal one card at a time to a waste pile.
4. Only the top card of the waste pile is playable; there is no redeal.

How to play

• Play Aces to start the foundations.
• Build on tableau piles by placing cards one rank lower in the same suit (e.g., a 9♠ on a 10♠).
• Move any group of face-up cards together to another tableau pile, even if they aren't in order among themselves—only the bottom card of the group needs to fit where it lands.
• Play cards from the waste pile or tableau directly to the foundations.
• Empty tableau piles can only be filled by a King (or a group of face-up cards whose bottom card is a King).
• Matching cards move to the foundations automatically once no other card could be built on them; you can adjust this behavior in Settings.

How to win

Objective: Move all 104 cards to eight foundation piles, building each suit from Ace to King.

You win when all 104 cards are stacked on the eight foundation piles in their correct sequences. You're stuck when no more moves are available and the stock is exhausted (no redeal).

Tips

• Same-suit building means each suit develops independently on the tableau—track which suits are advanced.
• Since you can move an out-of-order run as long as the bottom card fits, look for chances to relocate a whole group onto a King you've exposed.
• Empty tableau piles are reserved for Kings; plan carefully to create space when you need it.

Play Outback free on Windows

CardTray is a free solitaire app for Windows that includes Outback 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 Forty Thieves family:

• Quadrangle — A challenging two-deck game from the Forty Thieves family.
• Robie — A two-deck game where the tableau begins empty and fills as you play, giving you maximum flexibility from the start since you can place any card from the stock or waste to open up space.
• Sixty Thieves — A large-scale Forty Thieves relative played with three decks.
• Thieves Rush — A two-deck variant of Forty Thieves with three trips through the stock.
• Three Pirates — A two-deck variant of Forty Thieves featuring three waste piles instead of one.