How Does Spider Solitaire Differ From Klondike Solitaire?

If there’s one truth about card games, it’s that any one “mode” will have endless variations to enjoy. Some of these alternatives may come from tradition, offering different formats to the same rule set, or they may be personal and specific to you.

Texas Hold’Em Poker, for instance, evolved after the French card game “Poque” made its way through North America, but determining linearity in how games evolve can be different given how often they’re played and who they’re played by.

Luckily, you never have to limit yourself to one variation. The joy and magic of card games is that they can be enjoyed at different times, with different people, expressing varied preferences, and with a very low entry fee. All you need is a pack of cards (or two), or a digital equivalent.

In some cases, as with solitaire, you can play alone.

At 24/7 Games LLC, we are proud to offer 247 Spider Solitaire, a game popular among all patience game enjoyers.

But how does spider solitaire differ from its more conventional alternative, klondike solitaire? In this post, we’ll analyze all the essential considerations and discuss how they influence the game.

Without further ado, please consider:

Deck Composition

Klondike Solitaire:

Klondike solitaire remains the most simple deck composition. This is because it’s traditional, using a standard deck of 52 cards. If you have one set of cards, and you know how to shuffle them well, you too can play Klondike solitaire. It’s a good place to start for newcomers learning the very beginnings of this traditional patience game. This can help them think more easily about matching suits and building columns.

Spider Solitaire:

Spider solitaire is considered more difficult because it doubles the challenge. By using two packs of 52 cards adding up to 104, more strategy is involved. It’s also easier to make mistakes or block yourself with a quick decision that you can’t undo, so players often try to think several steps ahead when matching suits. It’s a little harder to play for newcomers, but quite rewarding, and as the rules are quite similar between the two, both experiences can be played in exchange for one another.

This is the beauty of Spider solitaire - it offers a more stimulating challenge while also being functionally identical in scope to how regular solitaire plays. In other words, you don’t have to learn many new and complex rules to try it out, you can enjoy a game at any time, and switch between the game styles at your leisure.

As spider solitaire is often considered more challenging and strategic, it’s a favorite of those hosting tournaments.

Initial Setup

Klondike Solitaire:

In Klondike Solitaire, the layout of your cards is at the heart of the game's simplicity, and how every game starts. Your cards are laid out in a series of piles, commonly referred to as "columns" as mentioned above. Some even call this “the tableau,” referring to how cards can be arranged.

Each tableau starts with a face-up card, while the rest are face-down. Your task is to move cards between the columns, adhering to the game's rules of alternating colors in descending order. The goal is to build four columns, each starting with a descending from the King. It’s easy to pick up and organize. Depending on the game you play, colors may need to be alternated, suits matched, or more simply, you can ensure suits are irrelevant and simply play from the numbers.

Spider Solitaire:

Spider Solitaire can have variations in its rules, and different platforms or software applications may offer slightly differing versions of the game.

Usually, Spider solitaire requires building columns of cards in the same suit, but that’s not always 100% necessary depending on the scope of the game. In fact, playing a suitless match can be a great deal of fun, because it inspires you to think in a more focused manner and games can progress much more quickly.

Thanks to Spider Solitaire using two decks of cards, it’s true that the challenge of matching suits can at once be more challenging and simpler depending on how your luck runs. After all, there are more mistakes to make with two decks, but also more potential matches to find. This is where strategic and long-term decision-making comes into play.

Goal and Objectives

Klondike Solitaire:

There are many reasons to play Klondike Solitaire. You can time yourself to see how quickly you can complete all four suits in their respective tableaus. You can also compete against others to see if the game can be completed, and stage knockout rounds for those who fail to bring all the suits together.

However, for the most part, Klondike solitaire is a game about relaxing and taking your time, which is why solitaire is considered a “patience” game. For that reason, it can be played entirely alone and you can have a good time. Tired during a shift at work? Waiting in the airport with nothing but a table, a coffee, and a pack of cards to occupy your time? Solitaire is always a great choice.

Spider Solitaire:

All of the above applies to Spider solitaire as it does the original form, with the exception of another card pack. Spider solitaire, however, is known to be a little more strategic thanks to the number of cards. For that reason, eight tableaus are required, allowing multi-layered objectives.

Such complexity means every card move matters and can affect the next ten decisions you make. In some cases, you can lock yourself out from completing your tableau if you employ sloppy decision-making.

For this reason, Spider solitaire is often a favorite in tournaments and when playing against others, because like chess, strategic thinking will often win out. This way, it’s not just about how lucky you are with the card shuffle, but also how well you can think ahead, how many face-down cards you can reveal without taking another set of cards from the outside. This emphasizes clean and focused play, which can be great in group environments or competitions.

Number of Tableau Piles

Klondike Solitaire:

In regular solitaire, the tableau consists of seven piles, commonly referred to as tableau piles. Each tableau pile starts with one face-up card, and the rest are face-down.

This provides just enough maneuverability to give you options, while also providing parameters to ensure a challenge. You may think that this automatically means Spider solitaire is granted fourteen tableaus given the added deck of cards, but that’s not the case:

Spider Solitaire:

Depending on the kind of spider solitaire you’re playing, for the most part, this variant is limited to eight or nine tableau piles. Of course, eight is more difficult, while nine provides a decent balance for the step up in challenge.

But why isn’t there twice the number given twice the decks? Well, depending on the style you play, you might not match all suits. Moreover, you have more cards at the table, but the number of suits will always remain four. This means that even with more cards, you have more than enough opportunities to play the tableau and find opportunities for stacking cards.

Online variants can sometimes offer customization options, which allows you to determine your level of challenge. If you enjoy exploring different variations of Spider Solitaire, you may want to check the settings or options menu in the game to see if there are customization features that allow you to choose the number of tableau piles or other rule variations. If entering a tournament, it’s also wise to familiarize yourself with their rules before entering any tournaments, because they may have specific requirements..

Empty Spaces Handling

Klondike Solitaire:

Due to its limited number of cards, more spaces can open up with good play in the Klondike variant. This also means that certain restrictions are put in place to make certain you can’t abuse this feature. In other words, you can only fill an empty space with a King card of any suit, and descend from there.

This means that you have to be careful about opening empty spaces because in some scenarios it’s better to keep a split deck so more cards can be stacked to unveil others. However, there’s also the reassurance here that if you have a King and an empty space, you have “banked” the King in the correct spot and can play from there.

Spider Solitaire:

In Spider Solitaire, empty spaces are a little more dynamic to work with. Depending on the variant you’re playing, either the game will automatically fill the empty space with whatever available card of sequence there is nearby, or you can play whatever card you want in there.

This grants some reprieve from having 104 cards on the board, as you can mix and match them more easily. It also means that as explained above, eight or nine tableaus or columns are more than enough despite the added number of cards. For the most part, this can provide the comforting breathing room you need, while still making sure most games can be completed with good strategy.

Difficulty Levels

There’s no direct comparison needed here, because both games can be as simple or as difficult as your strategy and forethought allows. Some luck is involved depending on how the cards are drawn, but for the most part, both games have a high win rate.

As mentioned above, Spider solitaire is considered to be more difficult simply because of the number of cards involved. However, even a newcomer without much experience in Klondike solitaire won’t be locked out from the experience, nor will they need to count cards or take notes to play.

There’s strategy here, sure, but for the most part Spider solitaire remains a game you can easily play dynamically, without having to sit in thought for long periods before making a move. In other words, fun is still the priority, and you can add certain challenges such as timing yourself or competing against others if you’re hoping for a little more texture.

Accessibility and Popularity

Klondike Solitaire:

As Klondike solitaire is often considered “the baseline of Solitaire,” many people are familiar with the rules. It’s the main form of solitaire that comes packaged with many operating systems on tablets, phones, and desktop computing systems. As such, it’s the variant most are familiar with, and for that reason, it’s quite accessible to learn.

In solitaire, there are no suit combinations to learn outside of whatever the rules stipulate. If you can count to thirteen, you can count all the cards in a column. For this reason, it can easily be taught to mature children and enjoyed no matter their age. Games are quick, snappy, and comfortable, and give you plenty of room for certain options.

Spider Solitaire:

Spider solitaire is easy to learn, but as it requires two packs of cards, not everyone will play it as a default. It’s a nice step up to play when you’re tired of regular solitaire, or if you’re looking to compete with others. For that reason, having more than one pair of cards to hand can be ideal. Just make sure you learn to shuffle them well, as shuffling two packs of cards together can be a little more difficult.

Rounds are quick and easy to enjoy as expected, with a full match lasting roughly ten minutes or less. You can time yourself to rate your progress and look to become better and more focused during each game. Spider Solitaire is also widely available online, such as with 247 Spider Solitaire from 24/7 Games LLC.

Community and Tournaments

Klondike Solitaire:

In Klondike solitaire, the scoring system is most often oriented on a combination of moves and time. Your points will be awarded for each card placed in the foundation piles, encouraging players to complete the game with as few moves and as quickly as possible. The economy is the name of the game here.

Of course, specific scoring conventions may vary slightly between different platforms, but common elements include bonus points for early completion, and speedrunning to get a better score. If you’re playing against others, you might race to complete all of your tableaus, or perhaps hope to do so in fewer moves than the competition.

Spider Solitaire:

Because of the number of cards involved, Spider solitaire can be focused on all of the above rules Klondike is subject to, but with more focus on strategic thinking. For example, you might score points based on your ability to put together the most amount of column without touching the off pile of cards until as late as you need to.

Spider solitaire takes longer, so timed focuses can also be much more interesting for those highly skilled in the regular game. More cards mean eight columns to complete, and that means more card movement and arrangement. As such, the economy of movement comes into play, which can really help skilled aficionados express themselves through the habit.

Fun Factor

Both games of Solitaire, and many variants just like them, are a great deal of fun to play with. They can serve as the perfect game for filling some dead time at work, or when trying to become better at watching and thinking about cards and their various suits.

Both games can be played in tournaments for prizes or simply enjoyed online for a little fun. Spider solitaire is great in that it provides you more to delve into, and you get more satisfaction from completing twice as many columns.

No matter what game you go with, you’re sure to have a good time. As explained in the introduction to this article, solitaire is just one card game among many. Thanks to its nature as a patience game, there are very low stakes. If you’re looking to cool off from the stress of a poker game, or perhaps you just want to introduce your child to cards and what the suits mean, solitaire can serve as a fantastic grounding point.

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That’s a lot of information about Spider Solitaire, perhaps now is the time you start playing!

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DISCLAIMER: The games on this website are using PLAY (fake) money. No payouts will be awarded, there are no "winnings", as all games represented by 247 Games LLC are free to play. Play strictly for fun.