Nonogram Unlimited
Three and a half thousand pictures hiding behind their numbers.
Drag to paint a run · Right-click or long-press to cross · Arrows move · F fill · X cross · Backspace erase · Ctrl/⌘ Z undo · H hint
Nonogram strategy
Work the biggest numbers first. In a line of ten squares a run of eight has only three possible positions, and every square all three positions share must be filled. That overlap gives you a foothold in the line without a single guess, and the squares it hands you usually unlock the crossing lines.
Then count the slack. Add a line's numbers together, add one gap between each pair, and subtract from the length of the line: the result is how far the whole arrangement can slide. When the slack is zero the entire line is forced. When it is one, every run longer than one square still has a settled core.
Finish lines from the edges. Once a line's first run is placed and satisfied, the square straight after it must be empty - cross it off. Crosses are not bookkeeping for its own sake: they are what turns a half-known line into a solved one, because a crossed square splits the line into shorter segments that the remaining numbers may no longer fit into.
Pictures, themes and your album
Pick a size and a theme, or leave it on Surprise me and work through the whole library. Hand-drawn sets - Animals, Food, Sweets, Party, Garden, School, Space, Tools, Camping, Winter and more - are bold single subjects. Picture families like Robots, Monsters, Fish, Houses, Flowers, Vegetables, Lamps, Bags and Trophies each hold a hundred variations on one idea, so you can stay with a theme for a long run. Every picture you reveal joins your album, grouped by theme.
Controls: drag across squares to paint a whole run at once. Right-click, or long-press on a phone, to cross a square off. On a keyboard the arrows move, F fills, X crosses, Backspace erases, Control-Z or Command-Z undoes a whole stroke and H asks for a hint. Turn on Show wrong squares whenever you want the board to flag a filled square the picture leaves empty.
Frequently asked questions
What are the rules of a nonogram?
The numbers beside a row or above a column list the lengths of the filled runs in that line, in order, with at least one empty square between runs. Fill the squares the numbers demand and leave the rest empty. The finished grid is a picture.
Is a nonogram the same as Picross or a picture cross?
Yes. Nonogram, Picross, picture cross, griddler, paint by numbers and hanjie are all names for the same puzzle. These are original drawings, not the puzzles from any other game.
How many pictures are there?
Three thousand six hundred and five, across 50 themes - hand-drawn sets like Animals, Sweets, Party, Tools, Camping and Winter, plus picture families such as Robots, Monsters, Fish, Vegetables, Lamps, Bags and Trophies. Pick a theme or let the game surprise you.
Do I ever have to guess?
No. Every picture here is verified to be solvable by line logic alone, one row or column at a time, and has exactly one answer. A hint will always name a square your own correct squares already prove.
Do crosses count against me?
No. Crossing a square off is a note to yourself. Only the filled squares decide the win, so you can cross as much or as little as you like. A few squares start crossed off to give every picture a foothold.
Can I share this exact picture?
Yes. The challenge panel and the address bar carry a fixed puzzle code, and that code always opens the same drawing. Nothing in the link gives the picture away.
What is the picture album?
Every picture you finish joins your album, grouped by theme, so you can look back over everything you have revealed. Signed in, the album follows you to your other devices.