Mahjong Solitaire

Clear a stacked layout of Mahjong tiles by matching free pairs. Every deal can be cleared, with hints, undo and a shuffle when you get stuck.

Layout

PyramidFortressGrand

Time0:00

Tiles72

Matches6

Best–

Loading the tiles…

Click two free tiles that match. Shaded tiles are blocked. With the keyboard, Tab to the tiles, move with the arrow keys and press Enter to choose.Tap two free tiles that match. Shaded tiles are blocked.

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About Mahjong Solitaire

Mahjong Solitaire is a calm tile-matching puzzle played with a set of Mahjong tiles. The tiles are stacked in layers, and you take them away two at a time by matching pairs, until the board is clear.

The catch is that only free tiles can be taken, so the order matters: take the wrong pair and the tile you need next may stay buried. Every deal here is built so that it can be cleared, and the clock keeps your best time for each layout.

How to play Mahjong Solitaire

Choose a layout: Pyramid (72 tiles on three layers), Fortress (108 tiles on three layers, with a tower at each corner) or Grand (all 144 tiles on four layers).
Click or tap a free tile, then a free tile that matches it. The pair is taken away. Blocked tiles are shaded.
Keep matching until every tile is gone. The Matches count shows how many matching free pairs there are right now.
If no free tiles match, shuffle the tiles that are left, undo some matches, or deal again.

Mahjong Solitaire controls

Keyboard
Choose a tile	Click, or Enter on the focused tile
Move between free tiles	Arrow keys (Tab reaches the tiles)
Put a chosen tile back	Esc, or choose it again
Hint	H
Undo the last match	U
Shuffle the tiles left	S
New deal	N
Sound on or off	M

Touch screens
Choose a tile	Tap it
Hint, undo, shuffle or deal again	Tap the buttons above the tiles

Mahjong Solitaire rules

Free tiles

A tile is free when no tile lies on top of it, even partly, and at least one of its long sides, left or right, is open. A tile hemmed in on both sides, or covered from above, is blocked until its neighbours are gone.

Matching tiles

There are three suits, dots, bamboo and characters, numbered 1 to 9, plus the four winds (east, south, west and north) and three dragons (red, green and white). Each of these comes four times, and a tile matches another with the same face.

There is one of each of the four flowers and the four seasons. Any flower matches any other flower, and any season matches any other season. Flowers sit in a round frame, seasons in a square one. Smaller layouts use part of the set.

Winning, shuffles and records

You win when every tile is gone. Each deal is made by taking the layout apart two free tiles at a time, so there is always a way to clear it, but a careless match can still leave you stuck.

A shuffle deals the faces left over the same places again, in an order that can be cleared. Hints come from a solver that looks for a way to clear the board from where you are.

Your best time on each layout is kept in this browser. A board you cleared with a hint or a shuffle counts as played, but not as a best time. Undo is always free.

Tips and strategy

Look for tiles that free the most others: tiles on top of stacks, and tiles at the ends of long rows.
When all four tiles of a face are free, take both pairs. When only three are free, think about which one to leave.
Do not rush to take a pair just because you can. Keep a tile back if its partner is still buried under it.
Clear the tops of tall stacks early. Tiles left on the bottom layer are rarely the problem.

Frequently asked questions

Can every deal be won?

Yes. Each deal is built by taking the layout apart in pairs, so a way to clear it always exists. The order you choose can still leave you stuck, which is what undo and shuffle are for.