Futoshiki Puzzles
Place each number once per row and column while obeying every greater-than and less-than sign.
Hints available. Play as many boards as you like.
Ready when you are.
Scan to open on a phone
Scan for the same board — no hints.
How to play
Fill an N×N grid with the numbers 1 through N. Every row and every column must contain each number exactly once.
An inequality sign between neighboring cells points toward the smaller value. Both cells must satisfy that relationship as well as the row-and-column rule.
Select a cell and enter a number. Given cells cannot change; the check control highlights whether the current board matches all constraints.
Strategy
Follow inequality chains. In a 5×5 puzzle, a chain A < B < C < D forces A toward the low end and D toward the high end; neither middle cell can be 1 or 5.
Apply candidate limits from the edge of a chain. If one cell must be greater than two different neighbors, it cannot be 1 or 2. Combine that range with digits already used in its row.
Do not read each sign alone. A number fixed by a column can collapse a whole horizontal chain, which then supplies new exclusions back to several columns.
Difficulty and variants
Easy puzzles are smaller and show more inequalities or given digits. Hard boards use fewer clues and longer deduction chains; the challenge comes from how constraints interact, not just from adding rows.
Questions, answered
What do the arrows mean in Futoshiki?
The narrow point faces the smaller number and the open side faces the larger number, just like the usual less-than and greater-than symbols.
Can numbers repeat in Futoshiki?
A number cannot repeat in the same row or column. It will appear once in every row and once in every column.
How do you solve a hard Futoshiki puzzle?
Build ranges from inequality chains, remove values already used in each row and column, and revisit chains whenever a candidate becomes fixed.