Takuzu

Fill the grid with 0s and 1s. Never three in a row.

The maths Binary logic and counting constraints

Board

18 squares left.

Line counts 1/3 2/32/3 0/32/3 2/31/3 2/32/3 1/32/3 1/3
1/3 2/3
1/3 1/3
2/3 2/3
2/3 1/3
2/3 2/3
2/3 0/3
  • three in a row
  • unbalanced line
  • duplicate line
How to play

Fill every empty square with a 0 or a 1, obeying three rules at once:

  • No three of the same digit sit next to each other, across or down.
  • Every row and every column holds equally many 0s and 1s.
  • No two rows are the same, and no two columns are the same.

The counts down the left edge and along the top are the deduction aid. A row reading 0 3/3 has all the 0s it is allowed, so every remaining square in that row must be a 1. A pair like 1 1 forces a 0 next to it, because a third 1 would break the first rule.

The dark squares are given and cannot be changed. Click any other square to cycle it: empty, then 0, then 1, then empty again. Squares that break a rule are outlined in red and marked โ€” a thick underline for three in a row, a double border for an unbalanced line, a dashed border for two identical lines โ€” and the status line above names the rule.

Keyboard: arrow keys move around the grid, Home and End jump to the ends of the row, 0 and 1 write a digit, Space or Enter cycles the square, and Backspace empties it.

Every puzzle here has exactly one solution, and every step of the way there is a square you can work out for certain. You never need to guess.

Why this is mathematics

Two rules do all the work: no three of the same digit in a row, and each line holds equally many 0s and 1s. Together they force moves you can prove โ€” if a line already has all its 0s, everything left is a 1. This is how binary constraints behave inside a computer.

Puzzle #20260827

Nothing here is scored or saved to your account. It is a puzzle, not practice.

โ† All games