How to Solve Queens Puzzles: 7 Strategies That Work Every Time
Queens looks simple: place one queen in every row, every column and every coloured region, with no two queens touching. But on an 8×8 or 9×9 board it can feel impossible to know where to start. The good news is that every well-made Queens puzzle can be solved by logic alone, using a handful of repeatable techniques. Here are the seven that matter most.
A quick reminder of the rules
- Each row has exactly one queen.
- Each column has exactly one queen.
- Each colour region has exactly one queen.
- No two queens may touch, not even diagonally.
You can practise every technique below on our free Queens puzzle, which has a new daily puzzle and unlimited boards from 6×6 to 9×9.
1. Mark everything a queen rules out
Whenever you place a queen, immediately mark (with an ✕) every cell it rules out: the rest of its row, the rest of its column, the rest of its region, and the up to eight cells surrounding it. Most of the work in Queens is marking cells; once enough are ruled out, the queens almost place themselves. In our game you can drag across cells to mark several at once.
2. Start with the smallest region
A region with only one cell must hold a queen there. A region with two or three cells has very few options, and often all but one of them can be ruled out quickly. Small regions are the best place to begin.
3. Look for regions locked into one row or column
If every cell of a region sits in the same row, that region's queen must be in that row. And because each row has only one queen, no other region can use that row: mark every other cell in the row. The same applies to columns. This is one of the most powerful moves in the game.
4. Count regions against rows (and columns)
Extend the previous idea. If two regions both fit entirely inside the same two rows, those two rows must hold the queens for those two regions, so every other cell in those rows can be marked. Three regions inside three rows works the same way. It works for columns too, and it's often the key to cracking larger boards.
5. Find cells that would wipe out a region
Pick a cell and ask: "If a queen went here, would every cell of some region be ruled out?" A queen rules out its neighbours, row and column, so a cell that touches or lines up with every cell of a small region can never hold a queen, because that region would have nowhere left. Mark it. This is especially useful next to regions of two or three cells.
6. Use the last remaining cell
Keep scanning rows, columns and regions for one that has only one unmarked cell left. That cell must be the queen. After every move, check the rows, columns and regions it affected; this chain reaction is how the end of a puzzle falls into place.
7. Never guess
If you feel stuck, it means there's a deduction you haven't spotted yet, not that you need to guess. Go back through techniques 3, 4 and 5; one of them almost always gives the next step. Guessing usually leads to an error several moves later that is hard to undo. If you're truly stuck, use a hint and then try to work out why that queen had to be there.
A simple solving routine
- Place any forced queens (one-cell regions) and mark around them.
- Find regions locked into a single row or column, and mark the rest of that line.
- Look for groups of regions locked into the same rows or columns.
- Check cells next to small regions for the "wipe-out" rule.
- Place queens wherever only one cell remains, mark around them, and repeat.
Practise and track your progress
Start with 6×6 or 7×7 boards in unlimited mode to get used to the patterns, then try the daily puzzle, which is 7×7 early in the week, 8×8 midweek and 9×9 at the weekend. Share your time with colleagues and see who can keep the longest streak. If you enjoy Queens, you'll probably like Tango and Zip too.
