The best sudoku app for most people is Sudoku.com by Easybrain: free, huge (100M+ Google Play downloads), with hints, auto-check and daily challenges. If you want an app that teaches you techniques, pick Brainium Sudoku or, on iPhone, Good Sudoku. If you hate ads, Conceptis Sudoku has none at all, and Sudoku ′ No ads costs $1.99 once on iPhone.
Below are 14 sudoku apps grouped by what they do best. Prices, ad labels, ratings and downloads come from the US App Store and Google Play listings, checked November 2, 2026 (02:15 to 02:40 UTC). Twelve are on both stores from the same developer; two are iPhone and iPad only.
Table of Contents
Quick answer: the best sudoku apps right now
- Best overall: Sudoku.com (free, ads; No Ads purchase $14.99 on iPhone).
- Best for learning techniques: Brainium Sudoku (hints explain why) and Good Sudoku by Zach Gage (iPhone only).
- Best killer sudoku app: Killer Sudoku by Sudoku.com.
- Best for variants: Sudoku: Variants & Classic by Logic Wiz (35+ rule sets) and Cracking the Cryptic (hand-made puzzles).
- Best sudoku app with no ads: Conceptis Sudoku and MultiSudoku (both stores, no ads), or Sudoku ′ No ads ($1.99, iPhone).
- Best for offline play and big 16×16 grids: Sudoku Master.
- One daily puzzle, no grind: NYT Games (easy, medium and hard sudoku every day).
Best sudoku apps compared
| App | Developer | Best for | Ads / price | App Store rating | Google Play downloads |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sudoku.com | Easybrain | Everyone, beginners to expert | Ads; No Ads $14.99 | 4.8 (1.87M) | 100M+ |
| Killer Sudoku by Sudoku.com | Easybrain | Killer sudoku | Ads; No Ads $14.99 | 4.7 (218K) | 10M+ |
| Sudoku (Brainium) | Brainium Studios | Learning with smart hints | Ads; Remove Ads $11.99 | 4.7 (161K) | 10M+ |
| Sudoku Master | Malpa Games | Offline, 6×6 to 16×16 grids | Ads; No Ads from $6.99 | 4.7 (17K) | 1M+ |
| Sudoku by Staple Games | Staple Games | Minimal, small download | Ads on Android | 4.8 (105K) | 500K+ |
| Sudoku: Variants & Classic | Logic Wiz | 35+ variants | Ads; Premium $2.99/mo to $24.99 lifetime | 4.8 (1.7K) | 1M+ |
| Sudoku: Classic & Variations | Conceptis | No ads, hand-picked puzzles | No ads; packs $0.99 to $3.99 | 4.8 (1.1K) | 100K+ |
| MultiSudoku: Samurai Sudoku | Conceptis | Samurai (2 to 8 grids) | No ads; packs $0.99 to $3.99 | 4.8 (2.4K) | 1M+ |
| NYT Games | The New York Times | One daily puzzle in 3 levels | No ads label on Play; Games subscription | 4.8 (299K) | 10M+ |
| Cracking the Cryptic | Studio Goya | Hand-crafted variant puzzles | No ads label on Play; packs $0.99 to $4.99 | 4.4 (210) | 100K+ |
| Calcudoku | Razzle Puzzles | KenKen-style math grids | Ads on Android | 4.7 (1.6K) | 100K+ |
| Meowdoku! | Oakever Games | Sudoku-like logic with cats | Ads; optional subscriptions | 4.8 (395K) | 10M+ |
| Good Sudoku by Zach Gage | STFJ | Learning, daily puzzles (iPhone only) | Free; Full Game Unlock $4.99 | 4.2 (1.3K) | Not on Play |
| Sudoku ′ No ads | Mind The Frog | Paid, no ads (iPhone only) | $1.99, no ads | 4.8 (29K) | Not on Play |
Best classic sudoku apps for iPhone and Android
1. Sudoku.com: the best all-round sudoku app
Easybrain’s app is free, covers easy to expert, and its listing promises one solution per puzzle. The helpers are all optional (hints, auto-check for mistakes, duplicate highlighting, notes that update themselves when you fill a cell), so beginners can lean on them and experts can switch them off. Daily Challenges earn trophies and Seasonal Events earn medals. It sat at #9 in the App Store’s Board games chart when we checked.
Ads: yes. The iPhone listing sells “Sudoku.com No Ads” for $14.99; Google Play lists in-app purchases from $2.49 to $14.99. App Store | Google Play
Sudoku.com shows mistakes, score and time above the grid, with Undo, Erase, Notes and Hint below. Image: Easybrain (App Store)
2. Sudoku (Brainium): the best for learning techniques
Brainium’s hint button doesn’t just fill a cell. According to the listing, it shows the technique you need next and explains why the answer is right, with animations on the board. That makes it the best free pick for anyone stuck at medium. Five difficulty levels, daily puzzles and theme options round it out. On Google Play it is listed as “Sudoku: Number Match Game”.
Ads: yes; “Remove Ads” is $11.99 on iPhone. App Store | Google Play
3. Sudoku Master: the best for offline play and big grids
Malpa Games’ app plays fully offline and goes beyond the standard board with 6×6, 9×9 and 16×16 grids across five difficulty levels, plus notes, hints, a daily puzzle and light and dark themes. It holds a 4.8 Google Play score from about 235,000 ratings.
Ads: yes; the iPhone listing shows “No Ads” from $6.99 and an optional Premium tier. App Store | Google Play
4. Sudoku by Staple Games: the best minimalist app
No themes, no events, just the grid: four levels (easy to expert), a Daily Challenge, notes, a hint that fills one cell, and numbers that disappear once all nine are placed. At 53 MB on iPhone it is a fraction of the size of Sudoku.com (254 MB). Google Play says it contains ads; the App Store listing shows no in-app purchases.
5. NYT Games: the best for one daily sudoku
For a short daily habit, the New York Times Games app adds a new sudoku every day in easy, medium and hard, next to Wordle, Connections and the Crossword. Google Play lists no ads for it. The App Store shows Games subscription options from $4.99 a month for the full NYT Games package.
Best killer sudoku and variant apps
6. Killer Sudoku by Sudoku.com: the best killer sudoku app
Killer sudoku adds cages: dotted shapes whose cells must add up to the small number in the corner, with no repeats inside a cage. Easybrain’s version teaches that rule set gently, with thousands of levels, daily challenges, seasonal events, notes and hints. Same business model as Sudoku.com: ads, or “Killer Sudoku No Ads” for $14.99 on iPhone.
7. Sudoku: Variants & Classic (Logic Wiz): the best for variety
Logic Wiz packs more than 35 rule sets into one app (its store art says 40+): killer, sandwich, thermo, diagonal, jigsaw, arrow, Windoku, Kropki, German Whisper, Renban, XV and more, sometimes several on one board. Puzzles are hand-made with one logical solution, across six levels, with themed Weekly Challenges and hints that explain the next step. Logic Wiz also makes a separate Killer Sudoku app (App Store | Google Play).
Ads: yes; Premium is $2.99 a month, $9.99 a year or $24.99 lifetime on iPhone. App Store | Google Play
Logic Wiz combines rules like arrows, thermos, whispers and killer cages, sometimes on one board. Image: Logic Wiz (App Store)
8. Cracking the Cryptic: the best hand-crafted puzzles
This is the app from the hosts of the Cracking the Cryptic YouTube channel. Its puzzles are hand-crafted by named setters (Phistomefel, Clover, Sam Cappleman-Lynes and others, per the listing) rather than churned out by a generator. The free download includes a seven-puzzle variety pack (sandwich, classic, chess, thermo, miracle, killer and arrow), and more packs cost $0.99 to $4.99 each. Google Play lists no ads. The developer, Studio Goya, also sells older stand-alone apps such as Classic Sudoku! ($4.99).
9. MultiSudoku: Samurai Sudoku: the best for Samurai grids
Conceptis’ Samurai app overlaps 2, 3, 4, 5 or even 8 grids into one puzzle. It starts with 104 free puzzles, adds a free bonus puzzle every week, and sells extra volumes for $0.99 to $3.99. No ads, unlimited checks and hints, and a 10 MB download.
10. Calcudoku: the best for math fans
Calcudoku is the KenKen-style cousin of killer sudoku: no repeats in a row or column, and each shape’s number is reached by math. According to its listing, the puzzle was invented in 2004 by Japanese math teacher Tetsuya Miyamoto. Razzle Puzzles’ app has over 15,000 grids up to 9×9, unlimited hints and checks, and works offline. Google Play says it contains ads.
11. Meowdoku!: the trending sudoku-like puzzle
Meowdoku isn’t number sudoku. You place one cat in each colored region, and cats can’t share a row or column or touch, even diagonally. Released in May 2026, it has sat near the top of the free iPhone charts since October (#2 in Casual when we checked). It is free with ads and three-mistake lives, and sells optional Premium subscriptions from $3.99 a week. Our trending puzzle games list covers it with 11 other chart climbers.
Best sudoku apps with no ads
12. Sudoku: Classic & Variations (Conceptis): free and ad-free
The cleanest free answer to “sudoku app no ads”. Conceptis’ listing says it has no ads and comes with 160 free puzzles (classic, mini, diagonal, irregular and odd-even), plus one free bonus puzzle every week. You get unlimited checks, hints and undo, and auto pencil marks. Extra volumes cost $0.99 to $3.99 each on iPhone, and the download is only 9 MB. Google Play also lists no ads.
13. Good Sudoku by Zach Gage (iPhone and iPad only)
Good Sudoku is designer Zach Gage’s take on the classic. Its pitch is a hint system that runs a solver while you play and coaches you toward the next technique. It has over 70,000 generated puzzles, Good, Arcade and Eternal modes, three daily modes that get harder through the week, and a Custom mode for importing puzzles. It is free to try with a one-time $4.99 Full Game Unlock. The official site links only to the App Store, and the last update was July 2025.
Brainium Sudoku's daily puzzle calendar and theme options. Image: Brainium Studios (App Store)
14. Sudoku ′ No ads by Mind The Frog (iPhone and iPad only)
If you’d rather pay once than see ads, this is the simplest option: $1.99, no ads, unlimited grids on or offline, six levels from easy to “diabolical”, daily challenges, 10 games at once and a 3 MB download. Mind The Frog also has a free version (Sudoku ′). We found no Google Play version. Its last update was June 2025.
How to pick a sudoku app
- New to sudoku: Sudoku.com on easy with auto-check, then Brainium or Good Sudoku to learn techniques.
- Bored of classic grids: Killer Sudoku first, then Logic Wiz or Cracking the Cryptic.
- Offline: Sudoku Master, Calcudoku and Sudoku ′ list offline play. More in our best offline mobile games.
- Block puzzles: Blockudoku and Woodoku mix sudoku boxes with block placement (see our games like Block Blast list); physics puzzlers are in our best physics puzzle games.
FAQ
What is the best sudoku app for iPhone?
Sudoku.com is the most popular (4.8 from 1.87 million App Store ratings). For learning, Good Sudoku and Brainium are better. For no ads, Sudoku ′ No ads ($1.99) or the free Conceptis Sudoku.
What is the best sudoku app for Android?
Sudoku.com (100M+ downloads) for most players, Sudoku Master for offline play and bigger grids, and Conceptis Sudoku if you want no ads. Good Sudoku and Mind The Frog’s app are not on Google Play.
Is there a sudoku app with no ads?
Yes. Conceptis Sudoku and MultiSudoku are free with no ads (you pay only for extra puzzle volumes), and Sudoku ′ No ads is a $1.99 one-time purchase on iPhone. Sudoku.com, Killer Sudoku and Brainium sell a No Ads or Remove Ads purchase ($14.99, $14.99 and $11.99 on iPhone).
What’s the difference between sudoku and killer sudoku?
Killer sudoku uses the same 1 to 9 rules but adds cages: each cage’s cells must add up to the number shown, and no number repeats inside a cage. Killer puzzles usually start with few or no given digits, so the cage sums do the work.
Sources: App Store listings and iTunes lookup data for each app (prices, in-app purchases, ratings, versions), Google Play listings (download counts, ads labels, in-app purchase ranges), playgoodsudoku.com, logic-wiz.com and conceptispuzzles.com. All checked November 2, 2026 UTC.
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