How to play Minesweeper
Minesweeper is a one-player logic puzzle. Open tiles, use the numbers to work out where the mines are, flag them and clear the field without setting one off. Play Easy, Medium or Hard free, plus a no-guess daily. A game takes 1 to 10 minutes.
Play Minesweeper freeMinesweeper at a glance
- Players
- 1
- Board
- 9 × 9, 16 × 16 or 16 × 30 tiles
- Goal
- Open every tile that isn’t a mine
- Game length
- 1–10 minutes
How to play Minesweeper
Open a tile
Your first tile is always safe and opens an empty patch.
Read the numbers
Each number counts the mines touching that tile.
Flag and clear
Flag the mines and open every safe tile to win.
Complete Minesweeper rules
The field
The board is a grid of covered tiles. Some hide mines. Easy has 10 mines on 9 × 9 tiles, Medium 40 on 16 × 16 and Hard 99 on 16 × 30.
Opening tiles
Open a tile to see how many of its eight neighbors are mines. An empty tile opens its neighbors too. Your first tile is never a mine.
Flags and chords
Flag a tile you think hides a mine. When a number has as many flags around it as its value, open it again to open all its other neighbors.
Winning
Open every tile that isn’t a mine to win. Open a mine and the game is over. The daily is a no-guess board, so every tile can be solved by logic.
Tips to win at Minesweeper
- Start in the middle. A large empty patch gives you the most numbers to work with.
- A 1 touching only one covered tile means that tile is a mine. Flag it and move on.
- Use chords. Once a number has all its flags, open the rest of its neighbors in one go.
Ways to play Minesweeper
Easy
9 × 9 tiles with 10 mines.
Medium
16 × 16 tiles with 40 mines.
Hard
16 × 30 tiles with 99 mines.
Play by your house rules
- LevelEasyMediumHard
About Minesweeper
Grid puzzles about finding hidden mines from number clues go back to early mainframe games. The version with numbered tiles and flags became one of the best-known computer puzzles in the 1990s, and it is still played by millions every day.
Rules reviewed by the tavlo.gg game team · Updated October 10, 2026Questions about Minesweeper
Is the first click safe?
What is a no-guess board?
What is chording in Minesweeper?
Is Minesweeper free to play?
Can I play Minesweeper on my phone?
- Is the first click safe?
- Yes. The mines are placed after your first tile, never on it or next to it.
- What is a no-guess board?
- Every tile can be worked out by logic from the start, so you never have to guess. The daily is always no-guess.
- What is chording in Minesweeper?
- Chording opens all of a number’s other neighbors at once. Tap or click a number whose flags are all placed.
- Is Minesweeper free to play?
- Yes. Minesweeper is free in your browser, with no download and no sign-up. You can start as a guest, and your progress saves on this device.
- Can I play Minesweeper on my phone?
- Yes. Minesweeper runs in any phone or tablet browser, with touch controls and nothing to install.