Honestly, most people who try forty thieves solitaire online free for the first time end up quitting within five minutes. It’s not because the game is boring. It’s because it is absolutely, unapologetically difficult. While your standard Klondike game (the one you probably played on old Windows PCs) has a win rate that feels pretty generous, Forty Thieves sits at a humble 10% win rate for most players. Even if you're a pro, you’re looking at maybe a 30% chance of victory.
But that’s exactly why people get hooked. It’s the "Dark Souls" of the solitaire world.
What Really Makes Forty Thieves Different?
If you’ve spent any time looking for forty thieves solitaire online free, you've probably noticed it looks a bit crowded. That’s because it uses two full decks. That is 104 cards in total. The name comes from the "forty" cards dealt face-up into ten columns at the start. These are your "thieves," and they are actively trying to stop you from winning.
Unlike many other versions of solitaire, every single card in the tableau is dealt face-up. You can see everything. There are no hidden surprises lurking under a pile. You’d think this would make it easier, right? Wrong.
The catch—and it’s a big one—is that you can only move one card at a time.
In Klondike or Spider, you can often move entire stacks of cards if they’re in the right order. In Forty Thieves? No way. If you have a 7, 6, and 5 of Hearts in a row and you want to move them to an 8 of Hearts, you have to move them one. by. one. This means you need an empty column or a lot of luck to rearrange your board.
👉 See also: When Was Monopoly Invented: The Truth About Lizzie Magie and the Parker Brothers
The Basic Rules (The Simple Version)
- The Goal: Build eight foundation piles (two for each suit) from Ace all the way up to King.
- The Setup: 10 columns with 4 cards each. All face up.
- Building Down: In the columns, you can only place a card on another card if it’s the same suit and exactly one rank lower. (Example: 6 of Spades goes on a 7 of Spades).
- The Stock: You draw cards one by one. In the standard version, you only get one pass through the deck. Once those cards are gone, they’re gone.
Strategy: What Most People Get Wrong
Most beginners jump into forty thieves solitaire online free and start moving every card they can. They see an Ace and fly it to the foundation. They see a 3 that can go on a 4 and they click it instantly.
Stop doing that.
The biggest mistake is "over-clearing." Because you only get one pass through the stockpile, those cards are precious. If you move a card from the waste pile to the tableau just because you can, you might be blocking a card you actually need later.
Why Empty Columns Are Your Best Friend
In this game, an empty column is more valuable than almost any single card. Since you can only move one card at a time, an empty space acts like a temporary parking spot.
If you have a Jack blocking a 2 that you desperately need, you can move that Jack to the empty spot, grab the 2, and then hopefully move the Jack back later. Expert players will often refuse to move a card to the foundation if it means they lose their only empty column. It sounds counterintuitive, but sometimes holding back is the only way to win.
✨ Don't miss: Blox Fruit Current Stock: What Most People Get Wrong
The "Low Card" Priority
You’ve got to get those Aces and 2s out as fast as possible. Because everything builds up from the bottom, a 2 buried under three or four cards is basically a death sentence for your game. If you see a low card at the bottom of a pile, do whatever it takes to get to it.
Where to Play Forty Thieves Solitaire Online Free in 2026
You don't need to pay for this game. Ever. There are dozens of high-quality sites where you can play forty thieves solitaire online free without even creating an account.
- Solitaire Bliss: Kinda the gold standard for clean interfaces. They have a "Big Forty" version which is slightly more forgiving if you're just starting out.
- Arkadium: If you like a bit of polish and maybe some background music, this is a solid choice. They often have daily challenges.
- MobilityWare: Usually found as an app, but they have web versions too. They’re famous for making sure every game is actually solvable (though Forty Thieves might test that claim).
- AARP Games: Don't let the name fool you; their solitaire collection is top-tier and totally free for everyone.
The Many Faces of the Thieves
The "Forty Thieves" family is actually pretty huge. If the standard game is making you want to pull your hair out, you might want to try one of these variations:
- Josephine: This is basically Forty Thieves but you can move sequences of cards. It makes the win rate jump up significantly. It's much more relaxing.
- Forty and Eight: You get 8 cards per column instead of 4, and usually two passes through the deck.
- Emperor: Similar setup, but some cards start face down, which adds that element of "lucky draw" back into the mix.
- Lucas: All Aces are removed and put in the foundations before you even start. It gives you a massive head start.
Is It All Just Luck?
Kinda, but not really.
Statistically, about 10-12% of random deals in Forty Thieves are winnable by a human. However, if you use an "undo" button—which almost all forty thieves solitaire online free platforms provide—that number shoots up.
🔗 Read more: Why the Yakuza 0 Miracle in Maharaja Quest is the Peak of Sega Storytelling
Purists will say that using "undo" is cheating. I say it’s the only way to stay sane. Because you can see all the cards in the tableau, you can technically map out moves in your head, but the moment you start drawing from the stock, the math changes.
Practical Steps to Improve Your Win Rate
If you're ready to actually beat the thieves, follow this checklist next time you open a game:
- Scan for Aces: Before you make a single move, find all eight Aces. If six of them are at the very bottom of columns, you might want to just hit "New Game" right then and there.
- Don't fill empty spots with Kings immediately: It’s tempting to put a King in an empty spot to start a long chain, but once that King is there, that spot is "heavy." It’s harder to move a King later. Keep the spot open for as long as possible.
- Watch the Waste Pile: Since you only get one pass, look at the card under the top card of the waste pile if the site allows it. Knowing what's coming helps you decide if you should play the current card or leave it.
- Same-Suit Chains: Always try to build in the same suit within the tableau. It’s the only way to keep things organized.
Forty Thieves isn't just a card game; it's a logic puzzle that happens to use a deck of cards. It requires a level of patience that most modern games just don't ask for. But when you finally clear that last King into the foundation and the screen does that little victory animation? It feels a lot better than winning a "normal" game of solitaire.
To start your first real session, look for a version that offers an "Easy" mode first. This usually allows you to move groups of cards, which helps you learn the patterns of the 10-column layout without the frustration of the "one card only" rule. Once you've won a few games there, move up to the classic "Hard" rules to see how you truly rank against the forty thieves.