Play Las Vegas Solitaire free online, right in your browser, with no download and no sign-up. Choose Turn 1 for a friendlier draw or Turn 3 for the authentic Vegas challenge, and pick up where you left off on desktop, tablet, or phone.
✅ 100% Free · ✅ No sign-up · ✅ No download · ✅ Vegas scoring · ✅ Turn 1 & Turn 3 · ✅ Mobile-friendly
Las Vegas Solitaire is the high-stakes, casino-style twist on the classic card game you already love. Built on the same foundation as Klondike, this version replaces the standard point system with Vegas scoring — you "buy" the deck for 52 coins and earn 5 coins back for every card you bank to the foundations. The catch? You only get one pass through the deck, which makes every move count.
How Vegas scoring works
The defining feature of Las Vegas Solitaire is the money. Instead of counting time or moves, you play with a coin balance modeled on a Las Vegas casino table:
- You pay 52 coins to start a game — one coin for every card in the deck.
- You earn 5 coins for every card you successfully move up to a foundation pile.
- A perfect game banks all 52 cards, returning 260 coins — a net profit of 208 coins.
- To simply break even, you need to move at least 11 cards to the foundations (11 × 5 = 55 coins, covering your 52-coin buy-in).
This single rule changes how you think about the whole game. You're no longer just trying to clear the board — you're trying to maximize your return on a 52-coin investment, and even a "lost" game can be profitable if you bank enough cards.
Coin math at a glance:
| Action |
Coin change |
| Start a new game (buy the deck) |
−52 |
| Move 1 card to a foundation |
+5 |
| Break-even point |
11 cards (+55) |
| Win the whole game (52 cards) |
+260 (net +208) |
Vegas scoring vs Standard scoring
Most Solitaire apps default to Standard scoring, where you start at zero and accumulate points for productive moves. Vegas scoring flips the psychology: you start "in the red" and have to earn your way back to profit. Here's how they compare:
| |
Standard scoring |
Vegas scoring |
| Starting score |
0 points |
−52 coins |
| Reward per foundation card |
+10 points (typical) |
+5 coins |
| Mindset |
Build up a high score |
Recoup your buy-in, then profit |
| Risk |
None — score only goes up |
You can finish a game "down" |
| Deck passes |
Often unlimited |
Usually one pass (Vegas) |
| Best for |
Casual, relaxed play |
Players who want stakes and tension |
Vegas scoring rewards discipline and aggression at the right moments — it's the format for players who want every game to feel like it's on the line.
Las Vegas Solitaire rules
The rules are built on classic Klondike, with a few important differences. Here's everything you need to know:
- The goal is to move all 52 cards to the four foundation piles, building each suit up from Ace to King.
- The tableau has seven columns. The first column holds one card, the second two, and so on up to seven — with only the top card of each column face-up.
- Build down in alternating colors in the tableau (for example, a red 6 on a black 7).
- Move cards to the foundations in ascending order by suit, starting with the Ace.
- Draw from the stock to reveal new cards. In Turn 3 you flip three cards at a time (the classic Vegas rule); in Turn 1 you flip one at a time for easier play.
- One pass through the deck. This is the heart of Vegas Solitaire — once you've gone through the stock pile, you cannot recycle it. Choose your plays carefully.
- Coins, not points. You pay 52 to play and earn 5 per card banked, as described in the scoring section above.
How to play Las Vegas Solitaire
If you've never played, here's the simple step-by-step:
- Survey the board. Note which cards are face-up and look for any Aces or 2s you can move to the foundations right away.
- Free up buried cards. Move tableau cards onto each other (alternating colors, descending) to expose face-down cards and create options.
- Draw from the stock when you run out of tableau moves — remember, you only get one pass, so check the board fully before drawing.
- Bank cards to the foundations as soon as it's safe. Every foundation card is 5 coins in your pocket.
- Empty a column when you can — an empty tableau column is a powerful landing spot for a King.
- Keep going until you've cleared the board (a win) or run out of useful moves. Either way, your coins are tallied.
Turn 1 vs Turn 3 in Las Vegas Solitaire
The draw mode is the biggest difficulty lever in Vegas Solitaire. Authentic Las Vegas play uses Turn 3, but Turn 1 is a great way to learn or to chase a profitable run.
| |
Turn 1 |
Turn 3 |
| Cards drawn per flip |
1 |
3 |
| Difficulty |
Easier |
Harder (authentic Vegas) |
| Card access |
Reach almost any stock card |
Only every 3rd card is easily playable |
| Win rate |
Higher |
Lower |
| Best for |
Beginners, building coins |
Purists, maximum challenge |
Because Vegas only allows one pass through the deck, Turn 3 is genuinely demanding — you can't fish through the stock repeatedly to find the card you need.
Las Vegas Solitaire vs classic Klondike Solitaire
Las Vegas Solitaire is a variation of Klondike Solitaire — the gameplay and board setup are identical. What changes is how you score and how many times you can use the deck:
| |
Classic Klondike |
Las Vegas Solitaire |
| Board & objective |
Same (Ace→King foundations) |
Same (Ace→King foundations) |
| Scoring |
Points or move/time based |
Coins (buy-in 52, +5 per card) |
| Deck passes |
Often unlimited |
One pass only |
| Stakes |
None |
You can finish up or down |
| Difficulty |
Moderate |
Higher |
If you're new to the family, start with classic Klondike Solitaire to learn the mechanics, then come back to Las Vegas Solitaire when you're ready to play for coins.
Strategy to win more at Las Vegas Solitaire
Because you only get one pass through the deck, Las Vegas Solitaire rewards planning over speed. These tactics will help you bank more coins:
- Play the stock before you draw. Before flipping the stock, exhaust every useful tableau move. Once you pass a stock card in Turn 3, you may never see it again.
- Prioritize banking cards over a clean board. In Vegas, a foundation card is guaranteed money. When in doubt, take the 5 coins — even if you don't end up clearing the deck.
- Aim for the 11-card break-even first. Mentally, your first goal each game is 11 banked cards. After that, every card is pure profit.
- Don't rush Aces and 2s up too fast in Standard play — but in Vegas, bank them. The single-pass rule means hoarding low cards rarely pays off.
- Empty a column for a King. An open column lets you reposition a King and unlock a chain of buried cards.
- Use undo to test, not to cheat your stats. Planning a sequence in your head (or with undo where allowed) helps you avoid dead-end draws.
- Choose Turn 1 when chasing a profitable streak, and Turn 3 when you want the authentic challenge.
Common mistakes in Las Vegas Solitaire
Avoiding these errors is often the difference between a winning bankroll and a losing one.
1. Drawing from the stock too early
With only one pass, flipping the stock before you've made every tableau move wastes cards you can never reach again.
2. Chasing a full win instead of banking coins
A "loss" that banks 30 cards is far better than a near-win that banks 10. Always secure the coins on the table.
3. Ignoring color order in the tableau
Building down without alternating colors blocks your own sequences and strands cards you need.
4. Emptying a column with no King ready
An empty column is only valuable if you can fill it with a King. Clearing one with nothing to place wastes a move.
5. Passing on guaranteed coins
Holding back a card that could go to a foundation in the hope of a cleaner board is a gamble you rarely win — with one pass through the deck, banked coins are the only sure thing.
6. Playing Turn 3 like Turn 1
Turn 3 hides two of every three stock cards. Plan around the cards you can actually reach.
What are the odds of winning Las Vegas Solitaire?
Las Vegas Solitaire is genuinely hard to clear completely, mainly because of the single pass through the deck. Across large datasets of played games, the full-clear win rate sits in the low single digits — roughly 3% in Turn 3. But here's the key mindset shift: in Vegas Solitaire you don't need a full clear to "win." Banking just 11 cards returns your 52-coin buy-in, and anything beyond that is profit. Measured by profitability rather than full clears, a skilled player wins far more often than the headline number suggests.
History of Vegas-style Solitaire
Solitaire — known as Patience in much of the world — has been played since at least the late 18th century, and Klondike became its most popular form during the Klondike Gold Rush era. The "Vegas" variation emerged much later, as a way to bring casino-style stakes to the single-player game. The name reflects its scoring model: just like a gambler buying chips at a Las Vegas table, the player "pays" for the deck and earns money back based on results. The format gained mass popularity in the 1990s, when it shipped as a built-in scoring option in early desktop Solitaire programs, introducing millions of players to the idea of playing cards for virtual coins. Today, Vegas scoring remains one of the most beloved ways to add tension and stakes to a centuries-old game.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Las Vegas Solitaire?
Las Vegas Solitaire is a casino-style variation of Klondike Solitaire that uses Vegas scoring. You pay 52 coins to play a deck and earn 5 coins for each card you move to the foundations, with only one pass allowed through the stock pile.
Is Las Vegas Solitaire free to play?
Yes. On Solitaire 365 you can play Las Vegas Solitaire completely free online, with no download and no sign-up required.
How is Vegas scoring different from standard scoring?
In standard scoring you start at zero and accumulate points. In Vegas scoring you start "down" by paying 52 coins for the deck and earn 5 coins per banked card, so you need at least 11 cards to break even.
What is the difference between Turn 1 and Turn 3?
Turn 1 flips one card from the stock at a time, making more cards reachable and the game easier. Turn 3 flips three at a time — the authentic Vegas rule — which is more challenging because only every third card is easily playable.
How many coins do you start with in Vegas Solitaire?
Each game costs 52 coins to play, and you earn 5 coins for every card banked to a foundation. A complete game returns 260 coins, a net profit of 208.
What are the odds of winning Las Vegas Solitaire?
A full clear is difficult — around a 3% win rate in Turn 3 — because of the single deck pass. However, banking 11 or more cards already returns your buy-in, so profitable games are far more common than full clears.
Is Las Vegas Solitaire the same as Klondike?
The board, setup, and objective are identical to Klondike. The difference is the Vegas scoring system and the single pass through the deck.
Explore more Solitaire games
Enjoy Las Vegas Solitaire? Try the rest of our free collection: Classic Solitaire · FreeCell · Spider Solitaire · Pyramid · TriPeaks · Yukon Solitaire
