How to Solve Sudoku Puzzles

Aren't sure how to solve Sudoku puzzles? These educational games will stretch your mind muscles and teach you how to reason, improving your logic skills.

Sudoku Rules
The rules to Sudoku are simple. When you look at a classic Sudoku puzzle, you'll see a grid that is nine squares across and nine squares deep. The lines of squares that run horizontally are referred to as rows, and the lines of squares that run vertically are referred to as columns. This grid is sub-divided into nine big squares, three across and three deep.

You'll notice that some of the squares are empty and some of them have numbers filled in already. Your job as a Sudoku puzzle solver is to fill in those blank squares so that every row, column and box will contain all the numbers from one to nine without repeating them. In other words, numbers one through nine will only occur once in each box, row and column.

Starting the Puzzle
The preferred method of solving Sudoku puzzles is to eliminate the numbers that have already been used. The best way to do this is to pencil into every single box all the possible numbers that could go there, then to erase or cross out the numbers that have been used. Notice the word "pencil." You will be doing a lot of erasing and changing of numbers as you figure out the puzzle, so make sure you use something erasable.

Once you've penciled in the possible numbers, look for the existing numbers and begin crossing out those numbers in the boxes, rows and columns where that number already exists. For example, let's say you have a number three in box one, column one row one. You can now cross out all the threes in the other grid boxes in box one, column one and row one. Now find the next number that is already written into the puzzle and take note of the box, column and row where it lives. Cross out that number in the appropriate box, row and column. Do this until you've eliminated all the numbers you can, using the clues provided by the puzzle maker.

You'll still have plenty of options left after you've done all this eliminating, but at least now you'll have a general idea of what can go where. Now start looking for places to put the remaining numbers. Make sure a number will definitely work in a spot before you write it down, since one wrong answer will mess up the entire puzzle. Check your number against the whole board before you write it down.

This method will solve most easy to moderate puzzles. Get started on Sudoku and watch your logic skills soar.