How to play Spider Solitaire
- Build down in the ten columns: any card goes on a card one rank higher, so a 7 goes on an 8 of any suit. Tap a card to move it to the best spot, or drag it.
- Cards of one suit in order move together. When a column holds a full run from King down to Ace in one suit, it clears off the table.
- Stuck? Tap the deck to deal one new card onto every column. Clear all eight runs to win.
Tips for winning Spider Solitaire
- Turn over face-down cards. Every hidden card you uncover gives you more choices, so a move that turns a card up usually beats one that doesn’t.
- Join cards of the same suit. Only runs of one suit move together and clear. When you can put a card on a same-suit card or a different suit, choose the same suit, even if it looks less useful right now.
- Empty a column early. An empty column takes any card or run, which makes it the most useful space on the table. Try to clear the shortest column first.
- Deal at the right time. A deal puts a card on every column and can bury a run you were building. Make the moves you can first, then deal when nothing useful is left.
- Kings are hard to move. A King can only go into an empty column. Don’t bury a long run under one if you can avoid it.
How Spider works
Spider uses two full decks, 104 cards. The game starts with 54 cards dealt into ten columns, four columns of six and six of five, with only the top card face up. The other 50 cards wait in the deck for five deals of ten. On the table, any card can go on a card one rank higher whatever its suit, but a group of cards only moves together when it’s one suit in order. A complete run from King to Ace in one suit leaves the table, and clearing all eight runs wins the game.
Microsoft first shipped Spider in Plus! 98, then put it in Windows Me and Windows XP, and it’s still part of Microsoft Solitaire Collection. This version keeps the classic rules and scoring, works with mouse, touch or keyboard, and saves your game so you can come back to it.