Sudoku
by 5am lab
🧠 Free · Daily · AI-Coached

Train your brain.
Every single day.

One new puzzle daily. Step-by-step AI coaching explains the strategy — not just the answer. Compete on the global leaderboard or play with your kids.

🏆 Play Today's Puzzle 📊 View Leaderboard
No download required
Works on any device
Free to play
iOS app live on App Store
Kids mode included

Three ways to play

Pick your challenge.

Same game, three different experiences. Social for competition, Coach for learning, Kids for your 3–10 year olds.

🔥 Daily
🏆
Sudoku Social
One puzzle per day. Everyone in the world plays the same board. Fastest time + fewest mistakes wins. Submit your score and see where you rank.
Play today's puzzle →
📚 Learning
🎓
Coach Mode
AI explains every hint — Naked Singles, Hidden Singles, Naked Pairs. You actually learn the techniques, not just fill in squares. Unlimited puzzles at any difficulty.
Start learning →
⭐ Ages 3–10
🚀
Kids Mode
4×4 and 6×6 grids grow into a full 9×9. Voice coach Jessica reads every hint out loud. Space, ocean, and nature themes. Built for the youngest players.
Try Kids Mode →

Live Rankings

🏆 Daily Leaderboard

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Loading leaderboard...

Puzzle resets daily at midnight Eastern Time (ET). Rankings shown in ET.

Want to appear here? Play today's puzzle and submit your score — it shows up instantly.

Play Now →

What's inside

Smarter than a hint button.

Most sudoku apps just give you the answer. Sudoku Coach explains the reasoning behind every move so you actually improve.

🧠
Step-by-Step AI Coaching
Tap 💡 and the coach explains the technique — not just the cell. Naked Singles, Hidden Singles, Naked Pairs. Each hint makes you smarter.
📅
Same Daily Puzzle Worldwide
Every day at midnight a new puzzle seeds globally. Everyone plays the identical board — fair competition, no seed shopping.
🏆
Live Global Leaderboard
Scores rank by points (1,000 base, minus 2/sec + 50/mistake). Submit your time and see your rank update immediately.
✏️
Pencil Marks & Auto-fill
Jot candidates in pencil mode. Hit ⚡ Auto-fill and the coach instantly populates every valid number across the whole board.
🔥
Daily Streak Tracking
Your streak badge tracks consecutive days played. Don't break the chain — play every day to keep your streak alive.
📱
No App Required
Pure web app — works on iPhone, Android, tablet, and desktop. No install, no account needed to play. Just open and go.

Getting started

How it works.

Open in any browser — no signup, no download. You're playing in under 10 seconds.

1

Choose your mode

Pick Social (daily leaderboard), Coach (learning mode), or Kids (voice coach + themes). Social is the default for the daily puzzle.

2

Select a difficulty and start

Easy → Medium → Hard (Expert coming in Pro). Tap any empty cell to select it. The board highlights your row, column, and box so you can see what's already used.

3

Use the coach when stuck

Tap 💡 Hint. The coach highlights the best cell and explains why — not just what to put there. In Kids Mode, Jessica reads it out loud.

4

Finish and submit your score

Complete the puzzle and tap Submit Score. Your time and mistake count are uploaded to the live leaderboard instantly. Zero mistakes = bonus points.

For the little ones

Kids Mode 🚀

Built for ages 3–10. Three immersive themes, a voice coach who reads every hint out loud, and grid sizes that grow with your child.

🚀 Space — Mission Control
🐬 Ocean — Dolphin Coach
🦉 Nature — Owl Coach
🔢

4×4, 6×6, and 9×9

Start small and grow. The grid gets bigger as confidence builds.

🎙️

Voice Coach (Jessica)

Every hint is read out loud in a warm, friendly voice. ElevenLabs AI — not robotic TTS.

💡

Unlimited Hints

Kids get unlimited free hints — no penalty. Learning is the goal, not gatekeeping.

🌈

Rainbow Numbers

Each number 1–9 has its own color. Visual learning, not just symbol recognition.

⭐

Celebration on Win

Big animated win screen with stars and audio celebration every time they finish.

🔇

Parent Mute Option

Voice coach can be muted from Settings any time — useful in quiet places.

Try Kids Mode →

Strategy guide

Get better, faster.

Sudoku Coach teaches all of these techniques in-app — step by step, in real time, on your actual puzzle. All free, no subscription required.

Beginner
Naked Single
Taught free in-app ✓
Beginner
Number Scanning
Taught free in-app ✓
Intermediate
Hidden Single
Taught free in-app ✓
Intermediate
Pencil Marks
Taught free in-app ✓
Advanced
Naked Pair
Taught free in-app ✓
Advanced
Pointing Pair / Triple
Taught free in-app ✓

✓ All strategy guides are free

Interactive in-app coaching on every technique — free for everyone. Pro features coming soon.

Try Coach Mode →

Sudoku Coach Pro

Everything is free
for now.

We're in our V1 launch window — the entire app is free while we grow. Pro features are coming, but there's no paywall today. Download and play everything for $0.

✓ Free — Right Now

Pro features coming soon — game history, personal stats dashboard, Expert difficulty, and more. We'll give early players plenty of notice before any paywall goes up.

📱 Download Free on iOS →

Strategy Guide

Learn to solve — don't just guess

Free tutorials that teach the techniques behind every puzzle. From your first naked single to advanced X-Wing patterns.

Beginner

What is a Naked Single?

The #1 technique every beginner needs. If only one number can go in a cell, it's a naked single.

Intermediate

What is a Hidden Single?

The technique that unlocks Medium difficulty. One digit that can only fit in one spot in a box.

Intermediate

Naked Pair Explained

Two cells, two candidates, one powerful elimination. Master this and Hard puzzles open up.
View all strategy guides →

FAQ

Common questions.

Is it free?
Yes — completely free. The entire app is free right now: daily puzzle, leaderboard, Coach Mode, Kids Mode, unlimited hints, and all strategy features. No paywall, no subscription required. Pro features are coming in a future update.
How is today's score calculated?
You start with 1,000 points. Every second costs 2 points. Every mistake costs 50 points. Minimum score is 0. A perfect solve (zero mistakes, fast time) earns the highest score. The leaderboard ranks by score descending, then time ascending as a tiebreaker.
Is the daily puzzle the same for everyone?
Yes. It's seeded by date — every player worldwide gets the exact same puzzle on the same day. That's what makes the leaderboard fair.
What age is Kids Mode for?
Roughly ages 3–10. Younger kids (3–5) can do the 4×4 grid with a parent. Most 6–8 year olds can tackle the 6×6 independently. The full 9×9 is appropriate for 9+ with coaching. The voice coach adapts its language to be age-friendly throughout.
Does it work offline?
Puzzle generation and coaching work fully offline (service worker cached). Leaderboard submission and loading require an internet connection.
Is there an iOS/Android app?
Yes — the native iOS app is live on the App Store. Download Sudoku Coach on iOS →. The web version also works great on any device — just tap sudokucoach.app in any browser and add it to your home screen.

Ready to play?

Free, no login, works instantly on any device.

🏆 Play Today's Daily Puzzle 🚀 Try Kids Mode