What makes Easy Sudoku easy?
It's the givens. An Easy puzzle starts with 36 of the 81 cells already filled - a little under half the grid. With that much to go on, there is always an obvious next move somewhere; you just have to find it. You'll never sit staring at a board with no way forward.
That makes Easy the perfect place to start, or to come back to when you just want to unwind. Progress is steady and satisfying: place one number, and it often unlocks the next, and the next.
The only two techniques you need
You can solve every Easy grid with two beginner techniques - no advanced patterns required:
- Naked Single - A cell where only one candidate remains - the digit must go there.
- Hidden Single in Sudoku - A digit that can legally go in only one cell of a unit, even if that cell shows other candidates.
The trick that ties them together is scanning: pick a number, and look across each row, column and box to see where it can and can't go. On an Easy grid, a careful scan almost always turns up a cell where only one number fits. Full guides with pictures are in the Sudoku School.
Never played Sudoku before? Start here
The rules fit in one sentence: fill every empty cell so that each row, each column and each 3×3 box contains the digits 1 to 9 exactly once. That is the whole game. No arithmetic, no trick - if a digit already appears in a row, column or box, it cannot appear there again.
Here is how to place your very first number. Pick any 3×3 box that already has plenty of digits. Choose a digit missing from it - say 4. Now look at each empty cell in that box and ask: does a 4 already exist in this cell's row, or in its column? If yes, that cell is out. Cross off enough cells and you are often left with exactly one place the 4 can go. Write it in. That single move is the entire skill of Sudoku, repeated eighty times.
On an Easy grid this works over and over, which is exactly why it is the right level to learn on - you get a steady stream of small wins instead of long stretches of nothing.
Tips for your first grids
- Start where it's crowded. The rows, columns and boxes with the most numbers already in them are where the next placement is easiest to spot.
- One number at a time. Rather than jumping around, pick a digit - say every 7 - and see where it has to go across the whole board before moving on.
- You don't need pencil marks yet. On Easy there's always a cell you can fill for certain, so you can leave the note-taking for harder levels.
Comfortable with Easy? Medium Sudoku is the natural next step - a few more blanks, and the first puzzles that ask you to think a move ahead.
How long does an Easy Sudoku take?
Across 44 completed Easy Sudoku games on SudokuStreak, the average solve time is about 12 minutes. A relaxed sitting - perfect for a coffee break.
Prefer it on paper?
Every level here is also available as a printable sheet. The printable easy Sudoku page builds PDF pages at this exact difficulty - handy for a commute, a classroom, or anywhere a screen is in the way.
All five difficulty levels
Difficulty on SudokuStreak starts with how many digits the puzzle gives you, but the clue count is not the whole answer - and we can show that rather than assert it. On 31 August 2026 we generated 40 boards at every level and had our own solver finish each one, recording the hardest technique it was forced to use. The result was uncomfortable: 28 of the 40 Expert boards needed nothing harder than a hidden single, which is what Medium asks for. A 25-clue grid can still be a scan.
So Expert and Evil are no longer dealt straight from the generator. Boards for those two levels are measured first, away from the site, and only the ones that genuinely need the harder techniques are kept and handed out. That is what the last column below means: always is a floor the puzzle cannot fall below, usually is what the measurement found without one. The counts are for a standard 9×9 board:
| Level | Givens | Hardest technique needed (measured) |
|---|---|---|
| Easy - you are here | 36 | usually naked single |
| Medium Sudoku | 30 | usually hidden single |
| Hard Sudoku | 26 | usually hidden single |
| Expert Sudoku | 25 | always pointing or harder |
| Evil Sudoku | 23 | always box/line or harder |
The names are not standardised, though: "Expert" is the fourth rung of five here and the fourth of six elsewhere, and the hardest tier is called Evil on some sites and Extreme on others. Sudoku difficulty levels explained compares the common ladders and says what each level here actually asks of you.
Frequently asked questions
How many numbers does an Easy Sudoku puzzle start with?
Every SudokuStreak Easy puzzle on a standard 9×9 board is generated with 36 given digits, out of the 81 cells in the grid. Variants built on a different board set their own count for the same level - Samurai, for instance, is five overlapping 9×9 grids and fills each of them separately.
Do the puzzles always have exactly one solution?
Yes. However few givens a puzzle starts with, it has exactly one solution, and that solution is reachable by logic alone.
Do I ever have to guess?
No. Every puzzle can be finished by pure deduction. If you feel you have to guess, there is a technique on the board you have not spotted yet.
Is Easy Sudoku free to play?
Yes - every puzzle on SudokuStreak is free to play in your browser, with no account required. Signing in only adds streaks, scores and the leaderboard.
Is Easy Sudoku good for a complete beginner?
Yes - it is the level to learn on. With 36 of the 81 cells filled there is always an obvious next move somewhere on the grid, so you can finish a puzzle knowing only how to scan for singles, and never need pencil marks.
Can I print Easy Sudoku puzzles?
Yes. The printable easy Sudoku page generates PDF sheets at this exact difficulty, ready to print. You can start from the printable easy page.