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7 Sudoku Tips for Beginners

Sudoku looks like a numbers puzzle, but it’s really a looking puzzle. These seven habits get a first puzzle finished, whether you play with numbers or colors.

The short version

Start where the board is most crowded. Follow one color at a time. Only place what you can prove. When the easy moves run out, write notes.

  1. Know the one rule

    Every row, every column and every 3×3 block holds each color exactly once. That’s the whole game. Every move you’ll ever make comes from that one rule.

    More: The Rules

  2. Start where it’s crowded

    A row, column or block that’s nearly full gives up its answers first. If eight of nine cells are filled, the missing color goes in the last one. Look for those before anything else.

    Lesson: Full House

  3. Follow one color at a time

    Pick one color and find every place it already sits. Each one rules that color out of its row, its column and its block. Often a block is left with just one cell where the color can go.

    Lesson: Hidden Single: Last Remaining

  4. Count around one cell

    Pick an empty cell in a busy area. Name every color in its row, its column and its block. If you can see eight different colors, the ninth one is the answer.

    Lesson: Obvious Single: Last Possible

  5. Only place what you can prove

    Sudoku never needs a guess. A guessed bubble that turns out wrong quietly spoils every move built on it, and you won’t find out until much later. If you can’t say why a color goes in a cell, leave it empty.

  6. Write notes when the easy moves run out

    A note is a small dot for a color a cell could still hold. Once counting and following colors stop finding moves, give each empty cell its possible colors. Many moves can only be seen in notes. Remove a dot as soon as that color is placed in the same row, column or block.

    Lessons: Notes · Obvious Single: With Notes

  7. After every move, look around it

    A new bubble changes its whole row, column and block. Check those three first: the next move is often right next to the last one. When you’re stuck, use a hint to see the move and the reason behind it, then try to spot the same pattern yourself next time.

    More: What to try when you’re stuck

Put the tips to work

Easy and Medium boards need nothing past these tips.

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