Kakuro difficulty levels
A Kakuro is as hard as the hardest technique it needs, and as long as the number of steps it takes. The app rates every puzzle with a deterministic solver, so the same puzzle always gets the same level.
The five levels
| Level | Name | What it asks of you |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Trivial | The last cell in a run, single candidates, Magic Blocks and simple intersections. A gentle warm-up. |
| 2 | Easy | Hidden singles, sum bounds and mandatory digits. You need to think in sets of digits. |
| 3 | Medium | Naked and hidden pairs or triples in a run. Pencil marks become useful. |
| 4 | Hard | Exact forced combinations and locked sum residuals. Pencil marks become essential. |
| 5 | Extreme | Everything, including contradiction forcing when nothing else works. |
Which techniques belong to which level
- Level 1: Last Cell in a Run, Naked Single, Magic Block, Cross-Run Intersection
- Level 2: Hidden Single in a Run, Sum Bounds, Mandatory Digit
- Level 3: Naked Pairs and Triples in a Run, Hidden Pairs and Triples in a Run
- Level 4: Forced Combination, Locked Sum Residual
- Level 5: Contradiction Forcing
The five levels match the app, and the play page generates a puzzle at the level you pick. The Daily Puzzle uses its own level setting.