Free Puzzle Tool
Kanoodle Solver
Stuck on a Kanoodle card? Color in the pieces that are already on your board, then press Solve. The solver finishes the 5×11 tray or the pyramid in a fraction of a second, or gives you one piece at a time if you only want a nudge.
1. Pick a piece
2. Tap or drag across the holes it covers
Tap a colored hole again to erase it. In an answer, your pieces have a white ring.
Layer 1 is the bottom of the pyramid. A piece that climbs between layers covers holes on more than one layer.
How to use the Kanoodle solver
- Open your booklet to the card you're stuck on.
- Choose Flat tray or Pyramid to match your card, then pick a piece color and tap each hole it fills. Drag to fill several at once.
- Repeat for every piece shown on the card. Each piece gets a check mark once its shape is right.
- Press Hint to reveal one missing piece, or Solve for the whole answer.
The address bar updates as you go, so you can bookmark a board or send it to someone who is stuck on the same card.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does the Kanoodle solver work?
It treats the board as an exact-cover problem: every empty hole must be covered exactly once, and every remaining piece must be used exactly once. It tries each remaining piece in every rotation and flip, backs out of any placement that leaves a hole nothing can fill, and uses Donald Knuth's Algorithm X to do it in a fraction of a second. For the history behind the puzzle itself, see who invented Kanoodle.
Why does the solver say there is no solution?
Every card in the Kanoodle booklet can be solved, so a no-solution result has one of two causes. If you copied the board from a card, one of the pieces probably doesn't match it. The most common mistake is a piece that is flipped over: its mirror image fits the same holes but leaves a different gap. If you placed some pieces yourself, one of them may have sealed off a pocket of empty holes that your remaining pieces can't fill. When a pocket's size alone makes it impossible, the solver outlines it in red. See why some Kanoodle boards can't be finished.
Does every Kanoodle puzzle have only one solution?
Not always. Many booklet cards have exactly one way to finish, but some starting positions have several. The solver counts them, up to 100, and lets you step through each one.
Will this spoil the puzzle?
Only if you want it to. The Hint button reveals one piece at a time, working left to right across the tray, or bottom-up in the pyramid, so you can take a single nudge and finish the rest yourself. If you'd rather learn to crack the cards on your own, our Kanoodle solving guide covers the techniques.
Does it solve the Kanoodle pyramid?
Yes. Choose Pyramid above the board, then color in each layer from the bottom up: Layer 1 is the 5×5 base and Layer 5 is the single hole at the top. A piece that climbs between layers covers holes on more than one layer. Hints for the pyramid come bottom-up, the order you would build it.
Which Kanoodle set does it use?
The original 12-piece Kanoodle, pieces A through L. Other editions such as Kanoodle Extreme, Kanoodle Genius, and Kanoodle Jr. use different pieces or boards and are not supported.
Like Kanoodle? Try Katachi-Go
Our own puzzle in the same family, built so you solve it with logic instead of guesswork: clues on the board show where pieces belong, and every puzzle has exactly one solution. Play free in your browser with a new puzzle every day, or order the giant 3D-printed set.
Kanoodle is a trademark of Educational Insights. Hoffmakers is not affiliated with or endorsed by Educational Insights. This free tool works with a puzzle you already own; it doesn't reproduce the booklet or its answers.