Boxes rules
How to play Boxes
Split the grid into rectangles. Every cell is in one rectangle. Each rectangle has one clue, and the number tells you how many cells it contains.
Worked example
Use Next to follow each deduction from the starting clues to the finished board.
Each clue gives the number of cells in its rectangle. The rectangle covers that clue cell, and all rectangles fill the board without overlap.
1 / 4
- Each clue gives the number of cells in its rectangle. The rectangle covers that clue cell, and all rectangles fill the board without overlap.
- An area-4 rectangle can be 1 by 4, 2 by 2, or 4 by 1. For the top-left 4, both long shapes would cover another clue, so place the 2-by-2 box.
- That box uses the first two columns. Each 2 on the top row would overlap a clue or the placed box if it ran sideways, so both must extend one cell down.
- Only the bottom half remains. Each 4 there has one 2-by-2 space left, so place both boxes and check that every cell is covered once.
Rules
- Each rectangle has exactly one clue and contains that number of cells.
- Rectangles never overlap and never leave gaps.
Common mistake
A rectangle with the right area is still wrong if it covers a second clue. Each box contains exactly one clue.
Controls
Drag across cells to draw a box. Click a placed box to erase it.