TriPeaks Solitaire is won by clearing all 28 cards from a three-peak tableau. Play only an exposed card that is one rank higher or lower than the current waste card; suit and color do not matter. Under the one-pass baseline used here, turn a stock card onto the waste when the visible sequence ends.
This guide uses a common baseline with 18 face-down upper cards, 10 face-up bottom cards, a one-pass stock and no Ace–King wrap. Digital versions differ: some show every tableau card from the start or allow King and Ace to connect. The setup and comparison below identify those differences instead of presenting one provider’s settings as universal rules.
TriPeaks rules at a glance
| Question | Baseline used in this guide |
|---|---|
| What is the goal? | Remove all 28 tableau cards. Stock cards may remain when you win. |
| How is the tableau arranged? | Four rows containing 3, 6, 9 and 10 cards. |
| Which cards can move? | Only exposed cards—those with no tableau card covering them. |
| What can go on the waste? | An exposed card exactly one rank higher or lower than the waste top. |
| Do suit and color matter? | No. |
| How many stock passes are allowed? | One pass, with no redeal, in the rulesets compared here. |
| Do Ace and King connect? | No in this baseline; some implementations explicitly allow the wrap. |
How to set up the 3/6/9/10 tableau
Use one 52-card deck. Arrange 28 tableau cards in four connected rows:
- Place three separated cards in the first row to form the peak tops.
- Place six cards in the second row, two below each peak.
- Place nine cards in the third row to extend and connect the three peaks.
- Place 10 cards in one continuous bottom row.
The covering direction matters: cards in a lower row partially cover cards in the row above. An upper card becomes exposed only after every lower card covering it has been removed. The bottom row begins uncovered.
In the face-down baseline used here, the upper three rows contain 18 face-down cards and the bottom row contains 10 face-up cards. Put the 24 undealt cards in the stock, then turn its top card face up to start the waste or discard pile. That leaves 23 face-down stock cards. The current Solitaired TriPeaks guide documents this hidden-card setup and the goal of clearing the tableau.
Diagram viewing tip: On a narrow screen, scroll horizontally to inspect the layout at full size.
Face up does not always mean playable
“Exposed” describes whether another tableau card covers a card; it does not merely describe which side is visible. In the hidden-card baseline, an upper card is turned face up only after all of its covering cards are gone. In the current Solitaire Bliss implementation, all 28 tableau cards are visible from the start, but a visible card still cannot move until it is no longer covered.
How legal moves and the stock work
Compare each exposed tableau card with the top of the waste pile. A 7 can take an exposed 6 or 8; a Queen can take a Jack or King; and a 2 can take an Ace or 3. The card played becomes the new waste top, so the direction may change during a sequence. The current CardGames.io Tri Peaks instructions also document exposed-card and adjacent-rank play, although that provider uses its own Ace–King setting.
- You cannot move tableau cards between positions or fill an empty space.
- You cannot retrieve an older waste card after another card covers it.
- A newly exposed face-down card is turned over before it can be evaluated.
- The compared rulesets use the stock once; exhausted stock cards are not redealt.
Saving the stock until the visible tableau route ends is a useful baseline strategy because each stock card is a limited chance to change the active rank. It is not a universal legality rule. If a particular game lets you draw while a tableau move remains, the early draw may be legal but still consume an opportunity; follow that game’s Help or Rules panel.
Does an Ace go on a King?
TriPeaks implementations do not share one Ace–King rule. This guide does not allow the wrap: Ace connects to 2, and King connects to Queen. CardGames.io permits “turning the corner,” while Solitaire Bliss forbids the connection in its standard rules and permits it in the Easy variation.
| Ruleset or implementation | Starting visibility | Ace–King wrap | Stock |
|---|---|---|---|
| This guide’s baseline | Upper 18 face down; bottom 10 face up | No | One pass |
| Solitaired | Upper rows face down; bottom row face up | Check the current game rules | One pass |
| CardGames.io | Upper cards face down; bottom row face up | Yes | One pass |
| Solitaire Bliss standard | All 28 face up; covered cards remain unavailable | No | One pass |
| Solitaire Bliss Easy | Use the selected variation’s displayed tableau | Yes | Check the selected variation |
Check visibility, Ace–King wrapping and stock behavior separately. One product’s visible-card layout does not establish another product’s wrap, hints, undo, scoring or guaranteed-deal rules.
A worked route using only visible information
Suppose the waste top is 7 and the exposed tableau cards include 6, 8 and 9. There is no exposed 5 or second 7, and none of these candidate moves immediately uncovers another card.
- Playing 6 is legal because it is one rank below 7.
- After 6, the visible route stops because no exposed 5 or 7 is available.
- Return to the original choice: playing 8 is also legal because it is one rank above 7.
- After 8, the exposed 9 is legal, producing
7 → 8 → 9.
The 8 route clears two cards using information already visible. This is an editorial rules example, not a recorded game or proof of a globally optimal move. If either first move had uncovered a face-down card, the correct next step would be to reveal it and reassess rather than assume its rank in advance.
A practical TriPeaks decision routine
- Name both neighboring ranks. If the waste is 10, look for an exposed 9 and Jack.
- List only playable cards. Ignore cards that remain covered, even when an all-face-up game lets you see their ranks.
- Compare visible continuations. Check whether each candidate leads to another currently exposed card.
- Prefer useful progress. A longer visible run or a move that removes a blocker usually preserves more options. Recalculate whenever a hidden card is revealed.
- Use the stock deliberately. When the visible route ends, spend one stock card to establish a new active rank.
This routine follows from adjacent-rank play and a limited stock. It is a decision aid, not a promise that every deal can be won.
How the game ends and which mistakes to avoid
You win as soon as all 28 tableau cards have moved to the waste; unused stock cards do not prevent a win. You lose when tableau cards remain, no playable route is available and the stock is empty.
- Remove an upper card only after every lower card covering it has been cleared.
- Do not play a visible but still covered card in an all-face-up version.
- Do not match suits or colors; rank adjacency determines the ordinary move.
- Do not assume King and Ace connect without checking the named ruleset.
- Do not plan around the value of a face-down card before it is exposed and turned over.
TriPeaks also differs from related solitaire games. Golf Solitaire uses seven columns rather than a three-peak tableau, while Pyramid Solitaire removes exposed cards by pairing values that total 13.
Scoring, multipliers and win rates depend on the app
The movement rules do not define one universal score or multiplier. A named app may reward consecutive cards, speed or another product-specific condition, with its own trigger and reset behavior. Microsoft’s current Solitaire Collection page describes TriPeaks as selecting cards in upward or downward order to earn points and clear the board, but that summary does not establish a cross-platform multiplier formula.
There is likewise no single defensible TriPeaks win-rate percentage without a defined ruleset and sample. Ace–King wrapping, deal generation, guaranteed-winnable modes, undo, hints and result-counting methods can all change the figure. A provider’s percentage should be treated as a claim about that provider’s rules and method, not every TriPeaks game.
Where to play TriPeaks online
Choose a provider that states or visibly demonstrates the settings that matter to you, then keep those rules consistent throughout the deal. The site’s browser Solitaire directory includes TriPeaks entrances and access notes. External providers can change advertising, sign-in, JavaScript, device and regional requirements.
Method and scope: This independent guide was checked on September 21, 2026 against the published Solitaired, CardGames.io, Solitaire Bliss and Microsoft pages linked above. The comparison covers setup, visibility, legal moves, stock use, win conditions and documented rule conflicts. It did not include a recorded full-game playthrough, so no personal score, win rate or complete platform test is claimed.