Free printable kakuro puzzles and tools

Printable Kakuro Puzzles

Pick a size and a difficulty, generate new kakuro puzzles with exactly one solution each, then print them with answer pages.

Kakuro is a number puzzle in which you fill the white cells with digits from 1 to 9 so that each run adds up to the clue beside it. This page is a free printable kakuro generator: it makes new kakuro puzzles in your browser and prints them with answer pages.

The tool runs in the web browser, needs no sign-up, and nothing is uploaded or sent to a server. You choose the grid size, difficulty, and number of puzzles, then print them on Letter or A4 paper. Every puzzle has exactly one solution, so you can check your work against the answer page. A quick Mini 6x6 and a challenging 15x15 grid are both made with the same controls.

How to use the Printable Kakuro Generator

  1. Pick a Grid size: Mini 6x6, Small 8x8, Medium 10x10, Large 12x12, or Giant 15x15. Small 8x8 is selected by default.
  2. Pick a Difficulty: Easy, Medium, or Hard. A one-line explanation of the level appears under the choice.
  3. Set Number of puzzles from 1 to 12. The default is 4.
  4. Set Puzzles per printed page to 1, 2, or 4. The default is 2.
  5. Choose Paper: Letter 8.5 x 11 in or A4.
  6. Select Generate. Select Cancel to stop a batch while it runs.
  7. On each puzzle card, use Show answer or Hide answer, Play online, or Download SVG.

How to print kakuro puzzles

  1. Select Print puzzles + answers to print the puzzle pages first, followed by the answer pages.
  2. Select Print puzzles only if you want the puzzles without answers.

The answer pages hold six small grids per page for sizes up to 10x10, and four per page for 12x12 and 15x15. Each page shows the size, the level, and a page number. With 4 per page the puzzles are smaller, which suits Mini and Small grids; choose 1 per page for Large and Giant grids so the clue numbers stay easy to read. Puzzle pages and answer pages use the paper size you picked.

What is kakuro?

Kakuro is a logic puzzle built on a grid of white cells and black clue cells. Each white cell takes one digit from 1 to 9. A run is a line of white cells going across or down.

The clue in a black cell gives the sum of the run next to it. A clue to the left of an across run (shown in the upper right of the clue cell) or above a down run (shown in the lower left) is the total of that run’s digits. No digit may repeat inside a run. Kakuro is also called cross sums.

How hard are easy, medium and hard kakuro puzzles?

The difficulty levels are measured by a logic rater, not guessed. An Easy puzzle can be solved with three kinds of reasoning: finding which digit sets of a given length add up to the clue, removing digits already placed in a run, and comparing the across and down run at each cell. No guessing is needed.

A Medium puzzle also needs reasoning about a whole run at once. A digit stays in a cell only if the rest of the run can still reach the sum with different digits.

A Hard puzzle needs at least one step of trial and error. You try a digit, follow the consequences, and reject it when you reach a contradiction. In the measurements, one level of trial was always enough.

Do the puzzles have only one solution?

Yes. Every generated puzzle has exactly one solution, which was confirmed with a solver that counts solutions. This matters when you get stuck. If your grid breaks a clue, a mistake has been made somewhere. There is no other valid answer to find.

How do I start solving a kakuro?

Look first for sums that have only one combination of digits. A 3 in two cells is always 1 + 2, and a 4 is always 1 + 3. In two cells, 16 is 7 + 9 and 17 is 8 + 9. In three cells, 6 is 1 + 2 + 3, and 24 is 7 + 8 + 9.

Next, compare the across and down run that pass through each cell. A digit that one run cannot use often rules out a choice in the other. Fill in the cells you are sure of, then look again at the runs that remain. A full list of combinations is in the kakuro cheat sheet.

Frequently asked questions

Can I print kakuro puzzles with answers?

Yes. The answer pages show six small grids per page for sizes up to 10x10, and four per page for 12x12 and 15x15. To save the result as a PDF file instead of printing on paper, choose Save as PDF in the print window.

What size kakuro should a beginner start with?

Start with Mini 6x6 or Small 8x8, both on Easy. The Mini size has a 5x5 area for digits, so it is the gentlest start. Keep the kakuro cheat sheet next to you while you learn the combinations.

Can I play a printed puzzle online too?

Yes. Each puzzle card has a Play online button that opens the same puzzle in the online player. You can start on paper and finish on screen, or the other way round.

Can I get the same puzzles again?

Yes. The page address holds the grid size, level, number of puzzles, puzzles per page, and a seed. Select Copy link or bookmark the page to return to exactly the same puzzles.

What do the card buttons do?

Show answer and Hide answer toggle the solution on that card. Download SVG saves whatever is shown, the puzzle or the answer, as an SVG image.

How long does it take to generate puzzles?

Each puzzle takes well under a second up to 12x12. A Giant 15x15 puzzle takes about 1 second on average, and up to about 4 seconds.