Accordion Solitaire starts as a row of face-up cards and ends, if successful, as one pile. A pile may move onto the pile immediately to its left or the third pile to its left when the two top cards share a rank or a suit. After every move, close the gap and recount the pile positions.
This guide follows the physical-card rules published by Bicycle Cards. Accordion belongs to the piling family of solitaire games: the objective is to combine piles rather than build four suit foundations, as the Pagat solitaire overview explains.
Accordion rules at a glance
| Item | Rule used in this guide |
|---|---|
| Cards | One standard 52-card pack |
| Layout | A face-up row dealt from left to right |
| Legal destination | The next pile left or the third pile left |
| Match condition | Top cards have the same rank or the same suit |
| What moves | The entire source pile |
| After a move | Close the gap; every later pile may receive a new position number |
| Win | Combine all 52 cards into one pile |
How to deal Accordion
- Shuffle one standard 52-card pack.
- Deal cards face up from left to right in a row, stopping whenever you want to inspect or make a move.
- After a move, resume dealing from the deck if cards remain.
When table space is limited, the row can turn onto a second physical line, but it should still be treated as one continuous left-to-right sequence. A visual line break must not reset the left-one or left-three count.
The two legal distances
Move one pile left
Compare the top card of a pile with the top card immediately to its left. If the ranks match or the suits match, move the entire right-hand pile onto the left-hand pile.
Move three piles left
Count three current pile positions to the left. If the source top card and destination top card match by rank or suit, move the entire source pile onto that destination.
Only the top cards decide legality, even when either pile contains many cards. The lower cards travel with the source pile but do not participate in the match test.
Why positions must be recounted
Removing a source pile closes one gap. A pile that was four positions away can become three positions away, and a new legal move may appear immediately. Labeling the current piles 1, 2, 3, and so on after each merge is a reliable way to avoid using a stale count.
Worked five-pile example
Suppose the five current top cards, from left to right, are 8 of hearts, queen of clubs, 5 of spades, 8 of spades, and queen of spades.
- The 8 of spades is on pile 4. It may move three piles left onto pile 1 because both top cards are eights.
- Close the gap. The four top cards are now 8 of spades, queen of clubs, 5 of spades, queen of spades.
- The queen of spades is now on pile 4. It may move three piles left onto the 8 of spades because both cards are spades.
- Close the gap again. The three top cards are queen of spades, queen of clubs, 5 of spades.
- The queen of clubs may move one pile left onto the queen of spades because their ranks match.
- Two piles remain in this miniature example. No further move is implied unless their current top cards satisfy the rule.
This is an editorial example rather than a recorded deal. It demonstrates how one merge changes the distance between the remaining piles and can create the next move.
A move-checking routine
- Read only current top cards. Ignore buried ranks and suits when testing legality.
- Check the immediate-left destination. Compare both rank and suit.
- Check the third-left destination. Count current piles, not original card positions.
- Preview the new top card. The source pile’s top card becomes the receiving pile’s top card after the move.
- Close the gap and recount. Do this before evaluating another move.
Choosing between two legal moves
A top card can sometimes move both one left and three left. Neither distance is automatically better. Before choosing, compare the new adjacency each option creates, which top card will remain visible on the destination, and whether the move removes a useful matching pile too early.
That is a planning heuristic, not a guaranteed solution method. The cited rules allow a player to decline a legal move, and a legal choice can still lead to a position that cannot be reduced to one pile.
Common Accordion rule mistakes
- Moving only the top card: the entire source pile moves.
- Matching any pile to the left: only the immediate-left and third-left destinations are eligible.
- Checking buried cards: legality depends on the two top cards.
- Keeping old position numbers: close every gap and recount before the next move.
- Forcing every available move: Bicycle’s rules do not require a particular legal move when alternatives exist.
Accordion’s piling objective differs sharply from the foundation-building structure in the site’s Klondike guide and the run-building rules in the Spider Solitaire guide.
Related reading
Editorial note: This independent guide explains the cited Bicycle Cards rules and a clearly labeled hypothetical example. No first-hand play test is claimed. It is not affiliated with Google, Bicycle Cards, Pagat, or a game platform. Corrections can be sent to blog@solitairegoogle.com.
Where to play Accordion Solitaire online
This site provides the rules and worked example rather than a playable board. We checked the external page and its visible game interface on August 13, 2026, but did not complete a full cross-device play test.
- Play Accordion at Solitaire 365 — its page documents the one-position or three-position-left match rule.
- Return to the verified solitaire entrance directory for Klondike, Spider, FreeCell, Pyramid, and other versions.