The rectangular box changes things
A 6×6 grid divides into boxes that are three cells wide and two tall. That asymmetry is what makes the mini grid interesting: rows interact with boxes differently from columns, so scanning has to work in both directions rather than one comfortable habit.
Who it suits
- Children who have outgrown 4×4 grids but are not ready for nine digits.
- Anyone with five minutes rather than twenty.
- New solvers who want to practise hidden singles on a board small enough to hold in their head.
Same rules, same techniques
Every technique from the full game works here: naked singles, hidden singles and locked candidates all apply, they just have less room to hide. That makes 6×6 a good place to practise seeing a technique rather than grinding through possibilities.
You can also print mini puzzles by choosing the 6×6 grid size on the printable page.
A good format for practice
Because a 6×6 grid has only 36 cells, you can see the effect of a technique immediately. Place one digit and the consequences ripple through a third of the board rather than a ninth of it — which makes it much easier to understand why a move works instead of merely following instructions.
Solvers learning to use pencil marks often find 6×6 the most useful size to practise on: a full set of candidates fits on the page, and a mistake is quick to spot and quick to fix.
Common questions
How does 6×6 Sudoku work?
Fill every row, column and 3×2 box with the digits 1 to 6, each exactly once — the same single rule as the 9×9 game.
Is 6×6 easier than 9×9?
Considerably. There are 36 cells instead of 81 and six digits instead of nine, so a mini puzzle takes a few minutes rather than a quarter of an hour.
Can I print 6×6 puzzles?
Yes — choose 6×6 as the grid size on any printable page.
Do 6×6 puzzles have one solution?
Yes. Every grid on this site is checked for a unique solution before it is shown.