(This post is part of: “A Story of Self-setting Sudoku”.)
They say your vision changes as you age, but this may be hard to sense when the objects under view are changing too.

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Theme: United States Jigsaw Sudoku, 2025/08/10

Author/Opus: This is the 20th puzzle from “Dr. Sudoku”, our AI-powered puzzle engine pushing the limits of sudoku intelligence.

Rules: Insert a letter from AFKLNTVWY into each cell so that no letter repeats in any row, column, or outlined region. Note that the blue region, the original author’s birthplace, has one cell connected only by a corner to the rest.

Difficulty (highlight to view): 4 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 7:00, Master = 14:00, Expert = 28:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for classic Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Sudoku to get started on. More classic Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku, The Art of Sudoku 2 and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Twelve Months of Sudoku? post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

(This post is part of: “A Story of Self-setting Sudoku”.)
They say your vision changes as you age, but this may be hard to sense when the objects under view are changing too.

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Theme: United States Jigsaw Sudoku, 2006/06/09

Author/Opus: This is a repost of the first Sudoku (second puzzle) on Thomas’s original blog from nineteen years ago.

Rules: Insert a letter from AFKLNTVWY into each cell so that no letter repeats in any row, column, or outlined region. Note that the blue region, the author’s birthplace, has one cell connected only by a corner to the rest.

Difficulty (highlight to view): 4.5 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 8:00, Master = 20:00, Expert = 40:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for classic Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Sudoku to get started on. More classic Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku, The Art of Sudoku 2 and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Twelve Months of Sudoku? post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

(This post is part of the Genuinely Approachable Sudoku (GAS) series.)
In this variation on both 0 to 9 Sudoku (and technically Tight Fit which we are including in our naming here even if not part of the August guessing game), some cells are filled with slashes and must contain two numbers with a smaller one over a larger one. With ten numbers to place per box, can you solve this challenge?

PDF

or solve online (using Penpa-Plus; use tab to shift between corner mode and normal Sudoku mode; with notes in corners and no where else there should be answer confirmation but this could be finicky for this variant.)

Author/Opus: This is the 43rd puzzle from Clover, part of the Genuinely Approachable Sudoku (GAS) team.

Rules: Insert a number from 0 to 9 into each cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region. Some cells are split by slashes; in these cells the smaller number must go above the larger number.

GAS Time Standards (highlight to view): Two party hats (🎩🥳): 8:00; One party hat (🥳): 15:00 All other solvers earn a 🦕: null Nomingia.

Thomas Hits the GAS (highlight to view): 3:04, with Penpa Plus replay this time.

Solution: PDF and solving video with explanation from GAS team.

Note: Follow this link for other Tight Fit Sudoku puzzles on this website. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Tight Fit Sudoku to get started on. More Tight Fit Sudoku can be found in these books in our e-store.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Daily GAS discussion post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

(This post is part of: “A Story of Self-setting Sudoku”.)
As a new month begins, our ASoSS series is seeking a new identity since its old one has been exposed. We suspect it is not just “A Story of SS”, but what is being spelled out or who is being signalled to?

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Theme: A Story of SS?

Author/Opus: This is the 15th puzzle from “Dr. Sudoku”, our AI-powered puzzle engine pushing the limits of sudoku intelligence.

Rules: Insert a number from 1 to 6 into each white cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region.

Difficulty (highlight to view): 2.5 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:45, Master = 3:15, Expert = 6:30

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for classic Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Sudoku to get started on. More classic Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku, The Art of Sudoku 2 and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Twelve Months of Sudoku? post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

(This post is part of the Genuinely Approachable Sudoku (GAS) series.)
While we’ve labeled this an “Irregular” Sudoku, if you are flexible enough with the definition of a Sudoku region the same rules as so-called “Classic” Sudoku apply here. We hope you enjoy this puzzle by Philip Newman.

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Author/Opus: This is the 22nd puzzle from Philip Newman, part of the Genuinely Approachable Sudoku (GAS) team.

Rules: Standard Sudoku rules: Insert a number from 1 to 9 into each cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region.

GAS Time Standards (highlight to view): Two party hats (🎩🥳): 6:00; One party hat (🥳): 13:00. All other solvers earn a 🦕: August Abysodon.

Thomas Hits the GAS (highlight to view): 2:34 = incorrect until check, with SudokuPad replay file shared as a download for now (requires loading via settings menu with improvements expected before people should use this regularly).

Solution: PDF and solving video with explanation from GAS team.

Note: Follow this link for other classic Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Sudoku to get started on. More Sudoku including variations can be found in these books in our e-store. Also, visit this page to purchase all of the puzzles from the 16th World Sudoku Championship including classic Sudoku.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Daily GAS discussion post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

(This post is part of: “A Story of Self-setting Sudoku”.)
As a new month begins, our ASoSS series is seeking a new identity since its old one has been exposed. We suspect it is not just “A Story of S”, but what is being spelled out or who is being signalled to?

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Theme: A Story of S?

Author/Opus: This is the 601st puzzle from Thomas Snyder.

Rules: Insert a number from 1 to 6 into each white cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region.

Difficulty (highlight to view): 2 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:15, Master = 2:45, Expert = 5:30

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for classic Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Sudoku to get started on. More classic Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku, The Art of Sudoku 2 and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Twelve Months of Sudoku? post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

Today Clover continues sharing appropriately-themed puzzles to mark the fifth year of GAS. In this Killer Sudoku variant, all the cage sums must end in five.

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Author/Opus: This is the (5×5)th puzzle from Clover, part of the Genuinely Approachable Sudoku (GAS) team.*

Rules: Variation of Killer Sudoku. Insert a number from 1 to 9 into each cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region. Within each cage, the sum of the numbers must end in five (i.e., 5, 15, 25, 35, 45). Numbers do not repeat within a cage.

GAS Time Standards (highlight to view): Two party hats (🎩🥳): 7:00; One party hat (🥳): 13:00. All other solvers earn a 🦕: still-alive Sinornithoides.

Thomas Hits the GAS (highlight to view): 2:22, with SudokuPad replay file shared as a download for now (requires loading via settings menu with improvements expected before people should use this regularly).

Solution: PDF and solving video with explanation from GAS team.

Note: Follow this link for more Genuinely Approachable Sudoku puzzles on this site. Follow this link for more Killer Sudoku and this link for classic Sudoku. More Killer Sudoku puzzles can be found in Killer Sudoku by Serkan Yürekli.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Daily GAS discussion post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

*Special Editorial Note: With this published puzzle, Clover has set a new record (likely never to be broken?) for fastest time to 25 posts on Grandmaster Puzzles (just 26 days). This breaks the previous record by legendary male puzzlemaker Thomas Snyder set on January 28, 2013 (29 days). While some may say that puzzles like Just One Cell Sudoku shouldn’t count as much, we think every diverse idea matters in this world and every one of Clover’s 25 record-setting puzzles has been a stellar display of hand-crafted Sudoku.

Today’s Genuinely Approachable Sudoku by Bill Murphy is a minor variation of a favorite style here at GMPuzzles: Outside Sudoku. Can you place all the numbers now that the outside clues refer to the second, third, or fourth cells in that direction?

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Author/Opus: This is the 2nd puzzle from Bill Murphy, part of the Genuinely Approachable Sudoku (GAS) team.

Rules: Variation of Outside Sudoku rules. Standard Sudoku rules. Insert a number from 1 to 9 into each cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region. Some numbers are given outside the grid. These numbers must appear in the second, third, or fourth cell in the corresponding direction.

GAS Time Standards (highlight to view): Two party hats (🎩🥳): 8:00; One party hat (🥳): 15:00. All other solvers earn a 🦕: empathetic Ekrixinatosaurus.

Thomas Hits the GAS (highlight to view): 2:35, with SudokuPad replay file shared as a download for now (requires loading via settings menu with improvements expected before people should use this regularly).

Solution: PDF and solving video with explanation from GAS team.

Note: Follow this link for more Genuinely Approachable Sudoku puzzles on this site. Follow this link for other less common variations of Sudoku.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Daily GAS discussion post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

This is a free “warm-up” puzzle; Season 4 subscribers will see today’s main puzzle in the same style posted at 9:05 AM PT.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to shift between shading mode and the composite Yajilin mode where left click marks cells, right click marks dots in cells or X’s on edges, left click+drag draws lines.)

Theme: Into the Unknown

Author/Opus: This is the 506th puzzle from our managing editor Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard Aqre rules. Also, some regions have a circle in their center. In these regions, the shaded cells must have 180° rotational symmetry around the circle of the region. There is no restriction on regions without a circle. A ? can represent any Aqre number clue, including zero.

Difficulty: 1 star

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 0:40, Master = 0:50, Expert = 1:40

Solution: PDF and solving animation.

Note: Follow this link for more Aqre puzzles. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Aqre to get started on. More Aqre puzzles can be found in these books in our e-store.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Week 12 Discussion post on the GMPuzzles Discord.

This is a free “warm-up” puzzle; Season 4 subscribers will see today’s main puzzle in the same style posted at 9:05 AM PT.

PDF

or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools)

Theme: Faces

Author/Opus: This is the 504th puzzle from our managing editor Serkan Yürekli.

Rules: Standard TomTom rules, using the integers 1-8. The “rows” in this puzzle pass through opposite parallel sides of each quadrilateral; in other words, the rows bend across the surface of the apparent cube to travel in a “straight” line.

Difficulty: 1.5 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:20, Master = 1:45, Expert = 3:30

Solution: PDF and solving animation.

Note: Follow this link for other TomTom. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest TomTom to get started on. More TomTom puzzles can be found in these books in our e-store.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Week 11 Discussion post on the GMPuzzles Discord.