Clear the stack of 136 tiles by taking matching pairs. A tile can only be taken when it's free.
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How to play Mahjong Solitaire
The goal is to take every tile off the board. Tap a free tile, then tap a free tile that matches it, and both are removed. You win when none are left.
Free and blocked tiles
A tile is free when both of these are true:
- Nothing is resting on it, even if the tile above only covers part of it.
- Its left side or its right side is clear. Having tiles on both sides blocks it.
With a mouse, a free tile lights up yellow when you point at it. The line above the board shows how many pairs you can take right now.
The tiles
The board uses 136 tiles: four copies of each of 34 different tiles.
- Three suits: Characters, Dots and Bamboo, each numbered 1 to 9.
- Four winds: East, South, West and North.
- Three dragons: Red, Green and White. The White Dragon is the tile with an empty blue frame.
If you get stuck
Every deal can be won, but not by every order of moves. If there are no pairs left, you can undo, or use Shuffle to mix the remaining tiles into an order that can be cleared. Hint picks out a good pair at any time.
Tips
- Before taking a pair, check which tiles it will free.
- When you can see all four of a kind free, you can clear them whenever you like.
- When three of a kind are free, choose the two that free the most.
A little history
Despite the name, this game isn't an ancient Chinese pastime. It was created for computers. Brodie Lockard wrote an early version in 1981 on the PLATO system, and the idea reached a wide audience in the 1980s on home computers. Mahjong itself dates from China in the 1800s, and the puzzle borrows only its tiles.
The stacked layouts became part of the game's look, and players have designed hundreds of them. Our board is an original shape called the Lantern: wide in the middle, narrow at the ends, and four layers high.
Mahjong Solitaire FAQ
Is this the same as Mahjong?
No. Mahjong is a four-player game where you draw and discard to build a winning hand. Mahjong Solitaire borrows the tiles for a one-player matching puzzle, and you don't need to know any Mahjong to play it.
Can every deal be won?
Yes. Each deal is built by playing the game backwards, so there is always at least one way to clear the whole board. You can still get stuck if you take pairs in an order that doesn't work.
What makes a tile free?
Nothing can be resting on it, not even partly, and its left or right side must be clear. With a mouse, a free tile lights up yellow when you point at it. Tiles above or below it don't count as its sides.
What happens if I run out of pairs?
A Shuffle button appears and mixes the tiles left into an order that can be cleared. You can also undo as far back as you like. In the rare case that the last tiles sit directly on top of each other, shuffling can't help, so undo instead.
Do the two tiles have to be exactly the same?
Yes. A 3 of Bamboo only matches a 3 of Bamboo, and a Red Dragon only matches a Red Dragon. There are four of each of the 34 tiles, so each kind can be taken twice.
Does the Hint button show the winning move?
It shows a good pair, but not a guaranteed one. It can't see all the way to the end, so a hint can still lead to a dead end later.
Ready for more? The Mahjong Solitaire strategy guide → covers what to do in every phase of a game.