Accordion Solitaire deals the whole deck into a single row and asks you to squeeze it flat. A card may be folded onto the card immediately to its left, or onto the card three places to its left, provided the two match in suit or in rank. The gap closes behind every move, so the row shortens and completely different pairs slide next to each other — which is where the game gets its name and its reputation. Compress all fifty-two cards into one pile and you have won, something published sources put at roughly one game in a hundred. Twelve levels start with a twenty-card row so the folding instinct has somewhere to develop before the full deck arrives. No download, no account.
How to play Accordion Solitaire
- The deck is dealt into one long row of single cards. On this site the row wraps across several lines so the whole board stays readable.
- Tap a card to pick up its pile, then tap the card one place to its left or three places to its left to fold onto it.
- The two cards must match in suit or in rank. Either is enough — the 9♠ can fold onto any other spade, or onto any other 9.
- Only the top card of a pile counts. Once cards are stacked, whatever is buried underneath no longer affects what is legal.
- The gap closes after every fold and everything to the right shifts left, so new neighbours appear constantly. That reshuffling is the whole game.
- Compress the row down to a single pile to win the level. Levels 1 to 8 use a shorter row; level 9 onward is the full 52-card deck.
Tips
- Prefer the three-place jump when you have the choice. It folds more of the row at once and tends to leave more pairings alive than the short fold.
- Look one move ahead at what closing the gap will put next to what. A fold that looks free can silently separate two cards that were about to combine.
- Kings and Aces are worth attention early. They match only by suit or by their own rank, so they strand more easily than middling cards.
- The Hint button looks one move deep and prefers the fold that leaves the most options open afterwards — useful when the row is long and every option looks equivalent.
- Losing is normal. Published odds for the full deck are around one in a hundred, so a dead board after a dozen good folds is the expected outcome, not a mistake.
- Play the shorter levels for the mechanic. A twenty-card row rewards the same instincts and finishes often enough to actually teach them.
FAQ
Is Accordion Solitaire free to play?
Yes. Accordion Solitaire is completely free to play online with no download, no account, and no in-game purchases.
Does Accordion Solitaire work on mobile?
Yes. Cards respond to tap and the row wraps to fit the screen, so it plays the same on phones, tablets and desktop.
What are the odds of winning Accordion Solitaire?
Roughly one game in a hundred with the full deck, which is why it has a reputation as one of the hardest patience games. Modern rules — dealing the whole row at once and letting you choose freely between available moves — are noticeably kinder than the original, where cards were dealt one at a time and you could only move when nothing else was possible.
Can I move a card to the right in Accordion Solitaire?
No. Every fold goes leftward, either one place or three places. That one-directional squeeze is what compresses the row and what gives the game its name — the row pleats together like the bellows of an accordion.
Why can I move some piles three places but not two?
One and three are the only legal distances in Accordion; two is not. The rule comes from the physical layout, where a card could reach its immediate neighbour or hop the two cards between it and the pile beyond them.
Do the cards buried under a pile matter?
No. Only the top card of each pile is ever compared, so a pile of six cards behaves exactly like the single card showing on top of it. It still moves as one unit, though — the whole stack travels together.
How many levels does Accordion Solitaire have?
Twelve. Levels 1 to 8 deal a shorter row, from twenty cards up to forty-eight, which is the only honest way to ease into a game whose rules cannot be simplified any further. Level 9 onward is the full 52-card deck.