How to play Mahjong Solitaire
The 144 tiles are stacked in five layers in the classic Turtle shape. Remove all of them by matching pairs of identical tiles. Click one free tile, then its match — both are removed.
- Free tiles: a tile can be taken when no tile lies on top of it and its left or right side is open. Tiles blocked on both sides, or covered, can't be selected.
- Matching: tiles match when they are identical — the same suit and number, or the same wind or dragon.
- Flowers and seasons: any flower matches any other flower, and any season matches any other season.
- Shade blocked: when on, tiles that can't be taken yet are slightly darker.
The tiles
- Dots (circles), Bamboo (sticks) and Characters (the Chinese numerals 一 to 九 above 萬) — nine of each, four copies of every tile. The small number in the corner shows the value.
- Winds: 東 East, 南 South, 西 West, 北 North — marked E, S, W, N in the corner.
- Dragons: 中 red, 發 green, and the white dragon (an empty blue frame).
- Flowers 梅 蘭 菊 竹 (marked F) and Seasons 春 夏 秋 冬 (marked S) — one of each.
Every deal can be solved
Each new game is dealt so that at least one sequence of moves clears the whole board. Picking pairs in the wrong order can still leave you stuck. When no pairs are free, Shufflerearranges the remaining tiles into a position that can still be cleared, and Undo takes back moves one pair at a time.
Strategy tips
- Open the long rows first. Removing the end tiles of the longest rows frees the most tiles behind them.
- Clear the top of the stack early. The centre tower covers many tiles; the sooner it is gone, the more options you have.
- When three of a kind are free, check which pair unblocks more before choosing.
- When all four of a tile are free, removing them in either order is safe.
- Don't strand a pair on top of each other. If both copies left of a tile are stacked in the same column, one can never be reached.
Frequently asked questions
Is this the same as Mahjong with four players?
No. Mahjong Solitaire uses the same tiles, but it is a single-player matching puzzle.
Does shuffling cost anything?
No. Shuffles are unlimited and counted in your results.
How do I play on a phone?
Tap tiles to select them. The board shows larger tiles in landscape orientation.