One board a day, the same for everyone. No guessing needed. Share your time.
On: every board can be solved by logic alone, no 50/50 luck.
- Arrow keys: move around the minefield (Home and End jump to the start or end of a row)
- Enter: dig the tile, or auto-clear around a number
- F or Space: place or remove a flag, in any mode
- Screen readers: the minefield is a table, so table navigation by row and column also works
How to Play Minesweeper
Minesweeper is a classic logic puzzle game where the goal is to clear a grid without detonating any hidden mines. Tap any tile to reveal it ā if it's safe, you'll see a number showing how many mines are hiding in the adjacent tiles. Use these numbers to figure out which tiles are safe and which ones hide mines.
Switch to Flag mode to mark a tile you suspect contains a mine. This helps you keep track of dangerous tiles as you work through the grid. Clear every safe tile without hitting a mine to win the game.
Minesweeper rewards careful logic and pattern recognition rather than luck. Start in a corner or open area, work outward from the numbers you reveal, and take your time ā there's no timer pressure unless you want a personal-best challenge. Play Minesweeper free online, right in your browser, with no downloads or sign-ups needed.
Want to stop relying on guesses? Read our Minesweeper strategy guide for solving techniques that skip the guesswork.
How to Play Minesweeper: Step by Step
- Tap a tile to dig it.
- A number shows how many mines touch that tile, including diagonals.
- Switch to Flag mode and tap a tile to mark a mine.
- Tap a revealed number to auto-clear its neighbors once all its mines are flagged.
- Clear every safe tile without hitting a mine to win.
Minesweeper Tips for Beginners
- A "1" with only one hidden neighbor means that neighbor is a mine.
- If a number already has all its mines flagged, every other neighbor is safe.
- Look for the 1-2-1 pattern on a straight edge. The mines are under the 1s.
- Work outward from open areas instead of digging new random tiles.
- Guess only when logic gives no answer. A corner is a good guess: it is not safer than other unknown tiles, but it is the most likely to open a big area.
Your First Click Is Always Safe
On Playnook Games the mines are placed only after your first tap, and never on that tile or the eight tiles around it. So your first tap always opens a clear area to start from. Tapping near the middle of the board usually opens the biggest area.
Daily Minesweeper
Every day there is one new Daily Minesweeper board, and everyone in the world gets the same one on the same date. It is a 12Ć12 board with 20 mines, and it can always be solved by logic alone. The start tile is already open, with a gold border, and your timer starts on your first move.
You get one try per day. When you finish, tap Share to send your time as a small coloured bar that does not give away the board, so friends can play the same puzzle and compare. Win on back-to-back days to build a streak. A new board starts at midnight in your own time zone.
Minesweeper Without Guessing: No-Guess Mode
In classic Minesweeper, some boards reach a point where the numbers cannot tell you which tile is safe. You are forced to guess, and one unlucky guess can end a game you were playing perfectly. No-guess mode removes that luck. Before the board appears, the game checks it with a logic solver and gives you a board that can be cleared from your first tap using only the numbers.
How to turn on No-guess mode
- Find the No-guess mode switch just above the board.
- Tap it so it says On (with TalkBack, double tap it). A new game starts right away.
- Your choice is saved, so it stays on the next time you play.
Best times for no-guess games are saved separately from normal games, so your records stay fair.
How to win Minesweeper without guessing
With No-guess mode on, every safe tile can be found by reasoning. If you feel stuck, a pattern is hiding somewhere on the board. These three checks will find it:
- Count around one number. If its flags already match the number, every other hidden neighbour is safe. If its hidden neighbours equal the mines it still needs, they are all mines.
- Compare two neighbouring numbers. When two numbers share hidden tiles, the difference between them tells you about the tiles only one of them touches. This is how the 1-2-1 and 1-2-2-1 patterns work.
- Use the Mines Left counter at the end. When only a few tiles are left, the number of mines remaining often decides the last tiles for you.
In very rare cases, mostly on Hard, the game cannot find a guess-free board quickly and gives you a normal board instead. For worked examples of these patterns, read our guide to solving Minesweeper without guessing.
Board Sizes and Mines
| Level | Board | Mines | Mine density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Easy | 9 × 9 | 10 | about 12% |
| Medium | 12 × 12 | 20 | about 14% |
| Hard | 15 × 15 | 35 | about 16% |
Start on Easy to learn the number patterns, then move up. Higher mine density means more tricky spots, so Hard is where the patterns really pay off.
Chording: Clear Tiles Faster
When a number already has the same number of flags around it, tap that number to open all of its other neighbours at once. This is called chording, and it is how fast players clear a board. Only flag tiles you are sure about: a wrong flag plus a chord will set off a mine.
Accessible Minesweeper
This version is built to work with screen readers such as TalkBack on Android. The minefield is a table, every tile is a labeled button that reads its row, column and state, and game updates are read out. It is tested with TalkBack on a phone.
Playing with TalkBack
- Swipe right or left to move from tile to tile. Each tile reads its row, column and what is on it.
- Double tap a hidden tile to dig it.
- To flag a mine, double tap the Flag button above the board first, then double tap the tile. Switch back to Dig when you are done.
- Double tap a revealed number to clear its neighbours once all its mines are flagged.
On a computer you can use the keyboard: arrow keys to move, Enter to dig and F or Space to flag.
A Short History of Minesweeper
Minesweeper grew out of simple mine-hunting computer games from the 1980s. It became world famous when Microsoft included it with Windows in the early 1990s, where it taught millions of people to use a mouse. The classic Windows levels were Beginner (9 × 9, 10 mines), Intermediate (16 × 16, 40 mines) and Expert (30 × 16, 99 mines). Today Minesweeper still has a big community of players who race to clear boards as fast as possible.
Minesweeper FAQ
What do the numbers mean?
Each number tells you how many mines touch that tile, in all eight directions.
How do I mark a mine?
Switch to Flag mode, then tap the tile. On a keyboard, press F or Space.
Is the first click safe?
Yes. Mines are placed after your first tap, so your first tile and its neighbours are always safe.
Can every board be solved without guessing?
In classic mode, no: some boards need a guess, especially on Hard. Turn on No-guess mode and the game gives you boards that can be solved by logic alone.
Is this Minesweeper free and unblocked?
It is completely free, with no download, no plugins and no sign-up. It runs in any modern browser on phones, tablets, Chromebooks and computers, so it works anywhere playnookgames.com is not blocked by your network.
Can I play Minesweeper on my phone?
Yes. The board is made for touch screens. Use the Dig and Flag buttons to switch between digging and flagging.
Want to improve faster? Read our Minesweeper strategy guide, or see all 19 free games.