15 Puzzle Online
The classic sliding puzzle: push the tiles through the empty space until the numbers are back in order. Every game can be solved.
Tap a tile next to the empty space or use the arrow keys.
How to play the 15 Puzzle
The tiles start out scrambled, and there’s always one empty space. Tap a tile in the same row or column as the gap to slide it (and any tiles in the way) into the space. On a keyboard, the arrow keys or W, A, S, D move the neighboring tile into the gap.
The goal is to put the numbers in order, left to right and top to bottom, with the empty space in the bottom-right corner. Tiles that are already in the right spot turn blue.
Choose your size: 3×3 (the 8 puzzle) to warm up, 4×4 (the classic 15 puzzle) or 5×5 (the 24 puzzle) for a bigger challenge. In picture mode, you put together an image instead of numbers. The game saves your best moves and time for each size.
Frequently asked questions
Is every 15 puzzle solvable?
No: half of all possible positions can’t be solved. Here the tiles are shuffled in a way that guarantees every game has a solution.
What’s the trick to solving a sliding puzzle?
Solve it in sections: first the top row, then the left column, and keep shrinking the board. For the last two tiles of each row, park one of them out of place and slide both in together with a loop.
Who invented the 15 puzzle?
The puzzle appeared in the United States around 1874 and became a worldwide craze in 1880. It’s credited to Noyes Chapman, a postmaster from New York.