Mahjong Solitaire Strategy: Clear the Table

The tiles

A full set has 144 tiles in seven families:

Most tiles match only their exact twin: a five of dots with a five of dots, the north wind with the north wind. The flowers and the seasons are the exception. Any flower matches any other flower, and any season matches any other season, so each of those groups makes two pairs however you combine them. The easy and medium deals use fewer kinds (72 and 108 tiles) but every kind still comes four times, and the flowers and seasons are always there. If the characters or winds are new to you, switch on the small corner numbers in Options: every tile then shows 1 to 9, a wind letter, R, G or Wh for the dragons, or F and S with a number.

When a tile is free

You may only take a tile that is free, and a tile is free when two things are true:

1. Nothing lies on it. Not even the corner of a tile on the layer above.
2. One side is open. No tile on its own layer touches its left side, or none touches its right side. One open side is enough; it does not matter which.

Tiles that are not free are dimmed, so the bright tiles are your choices. A tile in the middle of a long row is blocked until every tile on one side of it has gone, and a tile under the top of the pyramid waits for everything above it. That is the whole puzzle: the layout is a lock, and every pair you take opens part of it.

Free the tall stacks and the long rows

Beginners take the first pair they see. Better players ask which pair opens the most. Two kinds of tile hold the table shut:

• Tiles high in a stack. The top of the pyramid covers four tiles, and each of those covers more. Taking high pairs early uncovers tiles that would otherwise stay locked to the very end.
• The ends of long rows. The bottom layer of a hard deal has rows twelve tiles long, and they only open from the ends. The wing tiles at each side of the hard layout block the ends of the two middle rows, so they are worth taking early when their twins are free.

When you have a choice between a pair in the open middle of the table and a pair that sits on top of something, take the one on top.

Three of a kind, and four

Each kind comes four times, and how many of them are free decides how careful you must be:

• All four free: take both pairs. Nothing can go wrong, and two tiles are cleared out of the way.
• Two free, the other two buried: take them if they open something useful, but there is no hurry. The buried two will match each other later.
• Three free: this is the moment to stop and look. Whichever two you take, the third must wait for the fourth, which is still buried. Leave free the one whose fourth twin you will reach soonest, or the one that blocks nothing; take the two that are covering other tiles.

Most dead ends begin with three of a kind taken in a hurry: the wrong pair leaves the third tile stuck on top of the fourth, and the two can never meet.

Flowers and seasons

Because each flower matches any other flower, the four flowers make two pairs whichever way you combine them, and the same goes for the seasons. Treat them as spares. If two flowers are free and taking them opens nothing, leave them; they will still match each other later. If taking a flower uncovers a tile you need, use it then.

Undo, hints and dead ends

Every daily deal can be cleared: the game makes it by taking the full layout apart two free tiles at a time, so at least one complete order exists. A table with no free pair therefore means an earlier choice went the wrong way, not that the deal was unfair. The game tells you when no pair is left, and the counter of free pairs shows trouble coming before it arrives.

• Undo is free. It takes back the last pair, as many times as you like, and costs nothing but time. When you are stuck, undo two or three pairs and look for a different choice at the moment you took three of a kind or left a high tile in place.
• A hint shows a pair that still leads to a cleared table when one can be found quickly. Hints are counted and break ties on the leaderboard, so try the undo button first.
• Start over puts every tile back, keeping your clock running.

Speed habits

• Scan the bright tiles, not the whole table. With dimming on, only free tiles stand out, and the pairs are easier to see.
• Take sure pairs in a row. When all four of a kind are free, clear both pairs at once before you think about anything else.
• Look ahead one layer. Before you take a high pair, glance at what it uncovers. If the tiles underneath will match each other, you have just made your next move.
• On a phone, use the bigger tiles. On hard days the table is wider than a phone screen, so it keeps a readable tile size and scrolls sideways inside its frame. Swipe across it rather than shrinking the tiles.

Difficulty, scoring and the leaderboard

Mahjong Solitaire is ranked by time, fastest first; fewer hints break ties. Only a member's first finished game of the day is ranked, practice deals are never ranked, and everyone gets the same deal on the same day.