How to play › Mathdoku

How to play Mathdoku

Fill the grid so no number repeats in a row or column, and each outlined cage makes its target.

The rules

1. Fill the grid with the numbers 1 up to the grid size. Each row and each column uses every number once.
2. Thick outlines mark cages. The small label shows a target and a sign: the numbers in the cage must make the target with that sign.
3. For − and ÷, start from the larger number. A cage with only a number and no sign is that number.
4. Numbers may repeat inside a cage, as long as they are not in the same row or column. There is exactly one solution.

How to get started

1. Fill any single-square cages first: they just show their number.
2. Look at two-square cages. Which pairs of numbers make the target? Write down the short list.
3. Use rows and columns: a number already in a row cannot appear again in that row.
4. Large × targets and small + targets have few options. Work on those next.
5. Press Check any time to see wrong squares. Ask the coach whenever you want a nudge.

A tip

List every set of numbers that makes a cage's target, then cross out the sets that would repeat a number in a row or column.

Why play on PuzzleGames.ai

• A new free Mathdoku puzzle every day, and Plus adds unlimited new ones at Easy, Medium, Hard, or Extreme.
• Every puzzle is checked by a solver before you see it, so it always has an answer and matches its level.
• With an account you never get the same puzzle twice, and a coach can explain the next step whenever you're stuck.

More puzzles to try

Catnap · Trap the Cat · Hidden Hounds · Barnyard Escape · Word Hive · Word Guess