Easy Sudoku Puzzles
Easy Sudoku is the right place to start if you are new to the game or just want a relaxed solve. Every Easy board on this page begins with 38 given numbers, leaving 43 cells for you, and every one of those cells can be found by looking for a digit that fits in only one place. You will never need pencil marks, and you will never need to guess.
Easy Sudoku for beginners: what makes it easy
Two things: plenty of givens, and a generator that only accepts boards solvable with the most basic technique. With 38 clues on the grid, most rows, columns and boxes already hold five or six digits, so nearly every empty cell has a short list of possibilities. At least one cell always has exactly one option, and placing it opens up the next. The puzzle unrolls in a single chain from the first move to the last.
How to solve easy Sudoku step by step
- Finish what is nearly finished. Any row, column or box with eight digits gives you the ninth for free.
- Pick a cell and list what is impossible. Read across its row, down its column and around its box. When eight different digits are already taken, the cell is decided.
- Pick a digit and hunt for its home. Take a box that is missing, say, a 4. Every 4 elsewhere on the grid blocks a whole row or column through that box. If only one cell in the box remains unblocked, that is where the 4 goes.
- Repeat. Each placement removes possibilities from up to twenty other cells, so keep re-checking the areas around the digit you just placed.
Who Easy Sudoku is for
Beginners learning the rules, experienced players warming up, anyone who wants a short puzzle with a guaranteed payoff, and children who are comfortable with the digits 1 to 9. With 43 empty cells and nothing harder than a naked single, Easy is the shortest solve on the site, and Statistics keeps your own best and average time for it.
Ready for more?
When Easy boards start to feel automatic, move up to Medium Sudoku, where you will meet hidden singles, or jump straight to Hard Sudoku for a board with far fewer givens. If the rules are still new, read how to play Sudoku first.
Frequently asked questions
How many numbers are given in an Easy Sudoku?
38 of the 81 cells are filled in at the start, which leaves 43 cells to solve.
Do I need notes for Easy puzzles?
No. Every Easy board can be completed by scanning for cells that have a single possible digit. Notes are available if you like them, but they are never required.
How long does an Easy Sudoku take?
It depends mostly on practice, and we do not have a reliable average to quote. An Easy board here has 43 empty cells and every one can be filled with a naked single, so it is the shortest level on the site. Statistics keeps your own best and average time for each level. Speed comes from scanning in a fixed order rather than from thinking harder.