There is no single score that means the same thing in every Solitaire game. Some games award points for moving cards to the suit piles, called foundations. Others combine time and moves. Vegas-style systems use a pretend cost and return. A score of 200 can be good in one system and poor in another.
The winning condition is a separate matter. In Klondike, you finish by placing all 52 cards on the four suit foundations. Scoring records your progress; it does not change which moves between the playing columns are legal.
How points work on PlaySolitaire
The rules guide’s scoring section describes this site’s system. These values were checked against the Klondike game code for this article. They apply to classic Klondike here, not automatically to every variant.
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Waste card to a tableau column | +5 |
| Tableau card to a foundation | +10 |
| Waste card directly to a foundation | +15 |
| Expose and flip a face-down tableau card | +5, in addition to the move’s points |
| Recycle in Draw 3 | −20, stopping at zero |
| Recycle in Draw 1 | No point deduction |
| Undo | Restores the score before that action |
For example, move an exposed tableau Ace to its foundation and uncover a face-down card beneath it: that action earns 10 + 5 = 15 points. Moving an Ace directly from the waste also earns 15, for a different reason: 10 for its foundation destination plus 5 for leaving the waste.
If you put a waste card on the tableau for 5 points and later move it to a foundation for 10, those two steps total the same 15. Adding a detour just to perform more actions is not a useful strategy.
How time and moves can change a score
Consider a hypothetical scoring rule that adds moves to elapsed seconds and rewards a lower total. Under that rule, 110 moves in 150 seconds produce 260. A player with 100 moves in 180 seconds gets 280 despite using fewer moves. The faster finish wins this comparison, even though it takes more moves.
This example illustrates the arithmetic; it is not PlaySolitaire’s scoring formula. Compare leaderboard scores only when they use the same game, mode and rules.
How Vegas-style points add up
A common convention starts at −52 and returns 5 units per foundation card. Under that stated convention, ten cards give −2, eleven give +3, and all 52 give +208: calculate 5 × foundation cards − 52. Pass limits and other conditions vary between implementations.
Those are illustrative scoring units. PlaySolitaire does not offer this as a wagering mode or pay out these amounts. Our ordinary Klondike score starts at zero, so the Vegas arithmetic is not a way to calculate your result here.
Use the score after checking the position
A higher foundation count can remove a tableau landing card you still need. Read the strategy guide before treating every available point as a good move. To see the distinction, practice a scored game of Solitaire and compare the benefit of a move with the points it earns.
Record the scoring system alongside any personal target. “Finish this Draw 1 deal with fewer unnecessary moves” is a clear goal. “Beat 500” means little until you specify where and how the score is calculated.