Sudoku

Easy sudoku puzzles are built for one technique: scanning. Every cell can be figured out by looking at what's already placed in the same row, column, and 3x3 box. You won't need pencil marks at this level, and you definitely won't run into pairs, triples, or any of the fancier elimination methods.

The approach is straightforward. Pick a number — start with whichever one appears most often on the board. Check each 3x3 box that's missing it. Cross out the rows and columns that already contain that number, and see what's left. If only one cell remains, that's your answer. Fill it in and move to the next number. Repeat until the grid is done.

Most easy puzzles give you 35 to 40 clues out of 81 total cells. That's nearly half the grid filled in already, leaving you plenty of anchors to work from. The solving path is always linear — every placement leads directly to the next one. A good benchmark for when you're ready to move up: if you can finish an easy puzzle in under 5 minutes without using any hints, it's time to try medium.

Easy difficulty is also the best place to build speed. The techniques don't change as you get faster — your eyes just learn to recognize the patterns sooner. Experienced solvers can finish easy grids in under two minutes, and that speed comes entirely from repetition. Spend time here until cross-hatching feels automatic, then move up. The muscle memory you build on easy puzzles carries through every difficulty level above.