How to play Nonograms
Use number clues to reveal a picture. Fill only the cells you can justify, and mark confirmed empty cells with X. You can learn the rules on five-cell lines before trying a whole puzzle.
Start the six-picture practice · Play or continue your puzzle
Read a run of filled cells
A number tells you the length of one unbroken run. A clue of 5 in a line of five cells has just one placement: every cell is filled. A clue of 0 means the whole line is empty.
Leave a gap between separate runs
Clues 2, 1 mean a run of two filled cells, then a separate single filled cell, in that order. At least one empty cell must separate the runs. The first run does not have to start at the edge, and the gap can be larger than one cell.
These are all three possible placements in a five-cell line:
Cell 2 is filled in all three placements, so that cell is certain. The row clue alone does not settle the other cells; compare their columns for more information.
Find cells shared by every placement
A run of 4 in a five-cell line can start at cell 1 or cell 2. Compare its two positions below. Cells 2, 3 and 4 are filled in both, so you can fill those three cells without guessing. The end cells are still undecided.
Compare rows and columns
Every cell belongs to a row and a column. After filling a cell from a row clue, check its column. Your new mark may remove some possible placements there. Repeat this process as the picture takes shape.
For clues 1, 1, 1 in a five-cell line, the runs and their two required gaps use all five spaces. The placement is fixed:
Use X for a confirmed empty cell
In this game, tap once to fill a cell, twice to put an X there, and a third time to clear it. An X means you believe the cell must be empty. Leave a cell blank when you have not decided. Undo cancels your last change, including a move applied from an explanation.
When you get stuck
Explain Move compares all placements of one row or column with your current marks. It shows why a cell has the same state in every placement before you choose to apply it. If your marks make a line impossible, it identifies that line so you can recheck it. If no single line gives a forced move, the helper says so; some larger puzzles require more advanced reasoning.
You finish when the filled runs match the numbers in every row and column. X marks are useful notes, but you do not need to mark every empty cell to finish. A matching row alone does not prove the whole picture is correct.
Try six small pictures
Practice begins with complete lines, then introduces separated runs, overlap, crossing clues and empty marks. The last picture combines the techniques. Help is available throughout. Your ordinary puzzle and practice progress save separately in this browser; you can switch back without losing the field. Completing practice records the pictures you finished, including help you used.