What is Hitori?
Hitori is a logic puzzle played on a grid that is already full of numbers. Some of them repeat, and your task is to shade the extra copies away. There are two catches: shaded cells can never touch, and the white cells must always stay joined.
It is a quick, clever puzzle for fans of sudoku. Play Hitori online free here.
How to play Hitori
- Shade cells so that no number appears twice in any row or column.
- Shaded cells may not touch each other side by side. Diagonal contact is fine.
- All unshaded cells must stay connected in one group.
Hitori tips
Look for triples
In the pattern 3 3 3, the middle 3 stays white and both outer 3s are shaded, since two touching shaded cells are not allowed.
Circle cells that must stay white
Every cell next to a shaded cell must be white. Mark them, then shade any duplicates of those numbers in the same row and column.
Protect connections
If shading a cell would cut the white area in two, that cell must stay white.
Frequently asked questions
What does Hitori mean?
Hitori is Japanese for alone, referring to leaving each number alone in its row and column.
Can shaded cells touch at the corners?
Yes. Shaded cells may only touch diagonally, never along an edge.
Is there one solution to each Hitori?
Yes, every puzzle here has a unique solution reached by logic.
