How do you play Minesweeper?

Click a square to uncover it. A number tells you how many mines touch that square, including diagonals. Use those numbers to work out where the mines are, flag them, and uncover every safe square to win.

How do I place a flag on a phone?

Tap the Flag mode button so it turns on, then tap any square to place or remove a flag. You can also long-press a square to flag it without switching modes.

What is chording in Minesweeper?

If a number already has the right count of flags around it, clicking that number opens all its other neighbours at once. It saves a lot of clicks, but if one of your flags is wrong you will hit a mine.

What are the board sizes?

Beginner is 9×9 with 10 mines, Intermediate is 16×16 with 40 mines and Expert is 16×30 with 99 mines — the same sizes as the classic desktop version.

Minesweeper 💣

Uncover every safe square. Numbers show how many mines touch a square.

💣 Mines left: 10

⏱ Time: 0s

🏆 Best: –

Click any square to start. Right-click (or long-press) to flag.

Play Minesweeper online for free

Minesweeper is a short logic puzzle. Every hidden square is either safe or a mine, and every safe square you open shows a number from 1 to 8 that counts the mines touching it, diagonals included. A blank square means zero mines nearby, so the game opens its neighbours for you automatically. You win when every safe square is open. You don't need to flag every mine, but flags help you keep track.

Controls

Action	Desktop	Phone / tablet
Open a square	Left-click	Tap
Place or remove a flag	Right-click	Long-press, or turn on Flag mode and tap
Open all neighbours of a number (chording)	Click a number whose flags are complete	Tap the number

Board sizes

Level	Grid	Mines	Mine density
Beginner	9 × 9	10	12.3%
Intermediate	16 × 16	40	15.6%
Expert	16 × 30	99	20.6%

On Expert, about one square in five is a mine, which is why it feels so much harder than Intermediate even though the board is only twice as big.

Three tips for beginners

Start with the 1s. A 1 that touches only one hidden square tells you exactly where a mine is. Flag it, then look at what that flag solves for the numbers around it.
Look at edges and corners. Numbers next to a wall have fewer neighbours, so they are easier to solve.
Guess only when you have to. Sometimes the numbers really don't decide it, often near the end. When that happens, choose a square that opens new information instead of a random corner.

For the patterns that make Minesweeper quick (1-1, 1-2 and 1-2-1), read our step-by-step guide: How to Play Minesweeper: Rules and Patterns.

Frequently asked questions

Can my first click hit a mine?

No. Mines are placed after your first click, and the square you clicked plus its neighbours are always clear.

Is every board solvable without guessing?

Not always. Like the classic version, mines are placed at random, so a few boards end in a true 50/50. Expert boards hit this more often than Beginner.

Where are my best times saved?

Best times for each level are kept in your own browser on this device. Nothing is sent to a server.