Fill the right squares using only the row and column number clues, and a hidden picture appears — one certain deduction at a time. It's pure logic, so you never have to guess. Every grid below is free to print, with the solution folded on the back.
Picross · Logic Nonogram · Griddlers · Hanjie · Paint by Numbers — same puzzle, different names
The perfect place to learn the overlap trick. A clean, symmetric shape that rewards the big clues first — ideal if this is your first picross.
Print this puzzle »A leaning sail, a single-cell mast and a pointed bow. Good practice at reading clues that describe a shape which isn't the same on both sides.
Print this puzzle »A big grid that will genuinely stretch the overlap technique and your patience. Bring a sharp pencil — and mark your empty squares as you go.
Print this puzzle »If you've searched for a picross logic nonogram, you've already met the puzzle under one of its many names. Picross is what Nintendo called it; nonogram is the original name, after its co-inventor Non Ishida; and you'll also see it as griddlers, hanjie or paint by numbers. They're all the same picture-logic puzzle: a grid of empty squares with number clues down the side and across the top, hiding an image you reveal by filling in the correct cells.
The numbers describe the runs of filled squares in each line, in order. A clue of 3 1 means a run of three filled squares, then at least one gap, then a single filled square. That "at least one gap" rule is the foundation the whole puzzle stands on — squeeze each line between its own clue and the clues of every line crossing it, and only one picture can possibly be true.
When a run is large relative to the length of its line, some squares are forced to be filled no matter where the run finally sits. Slide it as far left as it goes, then as far right — any square covered both times is guaranteed. Hunt for the biggest clues first, because that's where this overlap hands you the most free squares to build from.
Want the full method — edge logic, marking empties, cross-referencing rows and columns? Read our complete guide to nonograms, then level up with advanced nonogram techniques.
If a puzzle defeats you, you don't have to leave it unfinished. Our free nonogram solver takes your row and column clues on grids up to 25×25 and reveals the hidden picture — handy for checking a finished puzzle or finding the deduction you missed.