Top 20 Online Card Games to Play by Yourself

Card games are some of the best-known social games in the offline world. 

But you don’t necessarily need an opponent to play. In the digital sphere, there are plenty of card games to choose from even if you’re short on company. 

Here are the best online card games to play by yourself and their rules.

Let’s dive in.

20 Online Card Games To Play By Yourself

Card games that you can truly play by yourself (as opposed to those you can play against a bot or a computer online) are known as Solitaire games. 

The objectives of these games are similar and they share some rules, but the gameplay is different enough that you would have to play at least a couple of games of each to get the hang of it.

These include: 

1. Klondike

Klondike is one of the best-known single person card games that belong to the Solitare family. The game, which is also known as Patience, has one of the lowest rates of success among games of this type.

The objective of the game is to stack the cards from the tableau in a specific order and move them to the foundation spaces, starting from Ace and going up, of the same suit.

In Klondike you play with one deck of 52 cards with no Jokers. 28 of them are dealt in seven piles to form the tableau. The first pile has one card, and every next pile has one more card than the previous one. The first card in each pile is turned face up. 

2. Canfield

Canfield or Demon (as it’s known in the UK) is a one person card game that’s similar to Klondike.

In Canfield, the player deals 13 cards face down in one packet, also called the “reserve,” and turns the top card up.

One card is placed in the first of the four foundation spaces and four more cards are dealt in the four piles under the foundation piles, which form the tableau. The remaining cards are in the “stock” pile, which is located under the reserve pile.

On the tableau, the player has to build down the cards, by alternate colors. In the foundation spaces, the cards are built up by suit. The cards from the stock are dealt to the “waste” pile in packets of three and face up. They can be played on the tableau or moved to a foundation pile.

The cards from the reserve pile can also be played to the foundation piles or the tableau. 

The player wins the game when all the cards are in the foundation pile.

3. Forty Thieves

Forty Thieves is one of the most popular 2-deck card games for one person that’s also known under the name of Napoleon at St Helena after the French Emperor who was believed to have played it during his exile on the island of St. Helena.

The game is difficult to win (the odds of winning are around 1 in 10 games). What also makes it stand out among the game of its type is that luck of the draw is a significant factor in Forty Thieves.

The game starts by dealing 40 cards (thus Forty Thieves) to 10 columns of four cards that form the tableau. Unlike in Klondike and Canfield, there are eight foundation spaces, but the objective is the same: to build up a pile of the same suit, from Ace to King.

4. FreeCell

FreeCell is an open solitaire game (meaning all cards are dealt face up).

It’s one of the card games you can play by yourself that’s played with a full, 52-card deck and one of the games of this type where the deals are rarely unsolvable.

The game features four open cells, four open foundations, and eight cascades– four of which consist of seven cards and another four with six cards.

The tableaus are built down in alternate colors and the foundations are built up, from Ace to King, by suit.

The player can move any top card or cell card to build on a tableau or to an empty cascade, empty cell, or its foundation. The game is won once all the cards are in the foundation piles in the correct order.

5. King Albert

King Albert is an open-packer type of solo card game that’s named after King Albert I of Belgium. It’s the most popular game in the category of the so-called “Idiot’s Delight,” alongside Aces Up and Perpetual Motion.

In this game, the cards are dealt into nine columns, the first of which has nine cards, and every next one has one card less than the one before it. The cards that don’t end up in the columns form the reserve, which the player can use at any point of the game, provided that they can play it.

Aces are moved to one of the four foundation piles once they come up. The player can build the cards up in the foundation but only of the same suit.

In the tableaus, the cards are built down in alternate colors. The game ends when all the cards are moved to the foundation piles.

6. Clock Solitaire

If you’re looking for one person card games where luck determines the outcome of the game, then Clock Solitaire might be the right choice.

Clock or Sundial features a layout that’s unlike any other from the solitaire family games. The format resembles a clock with 12 piles of four cards in a circular pattern. The thirteenth four-card pile is placed in the middle of the circle.

The objective of the game is to turn all the cards face up. To start the game, turn over the first card from the pile in the middle and place it face up under the pile with the corresponding hour. Aces are at one o’clock and queens are at 12 o’clock. If a King comes up, it is placed under the central pile.

The only way to lose the game is to draw all four Kings before the rest of the cards are revealed. 

7. Pyramid Solitaire

Pyramid is one of the most interesting card games to play by yourself.

It’s still a game from the solitaire family, but from the Simple Addition, where instead of singles, players remove a pair of cards from the pyramid-like layout.

The pyramid of cards is built in seven rows, with all the cards facing up. The remaining cards are moved to the stock, face down.

To win, the player needs to move the cards to the foundation. But, Pyramid has strict rules on how to do that.

You can only remove uncovered cards of the foundation if their values total 13. The cards cannot be removed if they’re covered by another card, regardless of their total. 

Players can draw cards from the stock, but only one at a time, to form a pair; If they don’t, the card is moved to the waste pile, where the top card can be paired with the next card drawn from the stock, if necessary for the gameplay.

The game ends if the player has no more pairs to make.

8. Golf Solitaire

Golf Solitaire, or One Foundation, is an excellent choice for beginners who prefer strategy games.

The game has simple rules and is easy to follow, regardless of whether you’ve played any type of solitaire games or card games for 1 person. More importantly, skill plays a more significant factor than luck, so there’s enough space for strategic plays.

In Golf Solitaire, the tableau features 35 cards, all face up and arranged in seven columns. The remaining cards from the stockpile are all face down, and there’s also only one card dealt in one of the foundation spaces.

Only the topmost card in each column can be moved to the foundation and only if they’re one rank lower or higher than the card that’s at the top of the foundation pile, regardless of suit.

The goal is to earn the lowest number of points over nine deals. Every card that’s not in the foundation after the stockpile has been exhausted is one point. 

9. Spider Solitaire

Spider Solitaire is one of the popular single-player card games that requires two decks to play.

The “spider” in the name of the game is a reference to the eight foundation spaces in the game (spiders have eight legs) that the player needs to fill to win the game.

However, before the player moves the cards to the foundations, they need to assemble the cards in the tableau. At the start of the game, the tableau consists of a total of 54 cards spread across 10 piles.

The player needs to build down the piles by rank and can move them in-suit sequences from one place to another. The remaining cards are dealt to the tableau ten at a time and only when there are no piles empty.

10. Wish Solitaire

Wish Solitaire is a game for people of all ages.

It uses 32 standard playing cards from the sevens upwards, plus the aces. The game starts with all cards dealt in piles of four, with a total of 8 piles in one row. Once that’s done, the top card of each pile is turned up.

The goal is to clear all the cards from the table by matching two cards the same in rank, regardless of the suit. 

11. Beleaguered Castle

Beleaguered Castle is one of the most challenging solo card games to play.

The game is similar to FreeCell and some players refer to it as “FreeCell with no cells” because it doesn’t have any extra spaces where you can maneuver your moves.

To start the game, the player needs to remove the Aces from the deck and place them vertically in the middle to form four foundation spaces, where you build up to kinds by suit.

The rest of the cards are dealt on either side of each ace in rows of six, all face-up. The card that’s the last on the row can be played on the foundations or any other row. In these rows, you can build down cards in sequences, regardless of suit.

Card Games To Play By Yourself Other Than Solitaire

Just because a game was originally designed for two or more players, it doesn’t mean that you need another person to play it. There are many online versions of multiplayer games where you can play against a bot.

The most popular are:

12. Crazy Eights

Crazy Eight is a shedding-type of game, where the goal is to be the first player to discard all of their cards. It’s typically played with 2-7 players, but you can play the game online against a bot.

At the start of the game, you’re dealt eight cards, with the remaining deck face down at the center of the table as the “stock” pile. The top card of the deck is then turned up and is the first card that’s moved to the discard pile.

You can only discard a card from your hand if it matches the rank or suit of the top card of the discard pile. If you can’t, you need to draw from the “stock” pile until you can make a play.

13. Blackjack

In blackjack, you don’t need another player (though there may be more than one) but you do need a dealer. 

This game is the most popular banking casino game in the world (and probably the best-known card game on this list of solo card games) that uses decks of 52 cards.

The objective is simple: You need to get as close as possible to 21 without going over and have a higher hand than the dealer. If the dealer goes over 21, they bust and lose the game. The same applies to you (and any player in the game).

14. Poker Squares 

Whether you miss your regular poker table or are looking to practice your poker skills, you should consider giving poker squares a go.

The goal of the game is to form the best possible hand in a five-by-five grid. You can assign points to each hand and play to a certain number of points, depending on the scoring system you opt for.

In the game, you draw cards one at a time and choose where you place them. Once you put a card on the grid, you can no longer move it. When you’ve filled out all 25 places in the grid, read the cards in columns and rows and assign points based on how well you did.

15. Hearts

Hearts is an “evasion-type” card game that’s mainly played among three to six players. 

It is one of the most enduring card games in existence that is great fun, regardless of whether you’re playing against friends or bots online, but the rules can be tricky for beginners. 

To win, you’ll have to incur as few penalty points as possible. In the game, the heart cards captured in tricks result in a penalty point, meaning there are thirteen penalty points in total. The number of deals after which each player counts their penalty points depends on where you play it. Some sites have a target score instead.

16. UNO

Uno is a shedding-type card game, whose gameplay is similar to that of Crazy Eights.

Unlike Crazy Eights, UNO is played on a specially printed deck. This deck has a total of 108 cards, 76 are Number cards, 24 are Action cards, and 8 are Wild cards. Instead of suits, the cards are divided by color: red, yellow, blue, and green.

The objective of the game is to be the first player to get rid of all the cards in your hand. Online UNO games allow you to play against a bot or other enthusiasts from around the globe.

On most sites, you can pick the number of players in the game, as well as the level of difficulty.

17. Gin Rummy

Gin Rummy is one of the card games you can play by yourself against a bot online.

To win, you’ll need to be the first one to reach a predetermined number of points; In most games, the goal is to collect 100 points.

The only way to go out in Gin Rummy is to put most or all of your cards into combinations, also called melds. 

A meld is a combination of three or more cards of the same rank (for example: Queens) or in a sequence. Any card that you hold in your hand that’s not in a combination is called deadwood. These count too, according to their numerical number, but there is a twist.

If your opponent puts all of their cards into a combination, he gets all of your deadwood points.

You can count them in your favor if you reach the pre-agreed number of points. 

18. Euchre

If you’re a fan of trick-taking card games, then Euchre is the right card game for you.

The game is most popular in the US and Canada and is one of the most customizable card games out there, especially if you play any of the online variants. 

Euchre is usually played with a deck of 24 standard playing cards, including the A, K, Q, J, 10, and 9 of each of the four suits. 

The goal is to reach 10 points first. In some games, the players agree to play “win by two” where a team needs to have at least 10 points and 2 points more than the other team. 

In the US, winning a game 10–0 is called "skunking.”

19. Bridge

Bridge is not quite a solo game but you can play it against bots or other players online.

The game is extremely popular and there’s even a World Bridge Federation that organizes tournaments all over the world. 

One part of the gameplay is based on the concept of bidding in an auction. 

Players are in teams of two and they compete to take a contract that specifies the number of tricks they will need to earn points. In the second part of the game, the players play their cards, with the defending side trying to prevent the team from the declaring side to achieve their goal.

20. Go Fish

Go Fish is one of the most fun card games you can play with a regular 52 deck and one of the simplest card games to play alone online, against other players or bots.

At the start of the game, players are dealt 5 cards each and the rest are placed in the center of the table and spread in a disorderly pile, also called “pool.”

The objective of the game is simple: You need to collect as many matching sets of cards as possible, also called “books.” 

To do that, players turn to other players and ask them for cards that they have in their hands to form runs. If you ask a player for a card (for example, Queens), they have to give you every Queen they have. If they don’t have it, they tell you to “Go fish,” in which case you draw a card from the pool.

Where To Play Card Games Online

Solitaired: Explore classic card games like Solitaire and Spades or try newer games such as Freecell and Pyramid. Solitaired offers these games for free with detailed rules and history.

Hearts.land: The online trick-taking card game offers both single and multiplayer modes, along with illustrated guides for mastering optimal strategies.

Cribbage Online: Cribbage Online offers a free card game recognized for fast-paced and captivating gameplay, featuring various difficulty modes, greatly enhancing the experience for players.

Bottom Line

There are many online card games to play by yourself from the Solitaire family. But, if you’re not a fan of the games like Klondike and FreeCell, you can always play the classics, like Crazy Eight, Blackjack, and Even Bridge online, against bots or other players.