Here are printable easy Sudoku X puzzles: one free PDF with six grids, one per page, and two pages of solutions. A Sudoku X is a Sudoku in which the two long diagonals also hold the digits 1 to 9. Each grid below has 36 digits given, and every one can be solved by finding the only cell where a digit fits. The sample is for personal use and needs no account.
Download the PDF: six easy Sudoku X puzzles with solutions
The six puzzles
The two diagonals are shaded light grey on every grid, so you always see where they run.
Printing the PDF
- The pages are US Letter (8.5 x 11 inches). Print at 100 %, "actual size", and each grid will be 7 inches wide.
- On A4 paper, choose "fit to page". The grid becomes slightly smaller.
- Pages 1 to 6 are the puzzles. Page 7 has the solutions of puzzles 1 to 4, and page 8 those of puzzles 5 and 6. Solution digits are printed in red and the given digits in black.
- Our suggestion: print pages 1 to 6 now and keep pages 7 and 8 on the screen, so the answers are not in front of you while you solve.
Your first digit in each puzzle
Every grid of the pack has at least three cells that you can fill at once by looking only at a grey diagonal. We checked with a program. The two diagonals cross 17 cells, and in this pack between 4 and 10 of them are given:
| Puzzle | Diagonal cells already given | Cells you can fill from a diagonal | One example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 of 17 | 5 | 2 at row 6, column 6 |
| 2 | 4 of 17 | 3 | 4 at row 7, column 7 |
| 3 | 6 of 17 | 4 | 2 at row 1, column 1 |
| 4 | 10 of 17 | 4 | 6 at row 5, column 5 (the centre) |
| 5 | 4 of 17 | 6 | 2 at row 7, column 7 |
| 6 | 10 of 17 | 3 | 3 at row 1, column 1 |
To find them yourself, take the grey diagonal, pick a digit it does not hold yet and test each of its empty cells: a cell is out if its row, its column or its box already has that digit. When one cell is left, the digit goes there. The same reasoning is explained step by step in how to solve Sudoku X.
Puzzles 4 and 6 give 10 of the 17 diagonal cells, while puzzles 1, 2 and 5 give only 4. Puzzle 5 offers the most diagonal starts (6 cells) even though it gives only 4 diagonal digits: fewer given digits on a diagonal do not mean fewer places to start. Solve them in any order and compare how each one feels.
Why are the grey cells good starting points? A cell off the diagonals sees 20 other cells, in its row, column and box. A cell on one diagonal sees 26, and the centre cell sees 32. The more cells a cell sees, the more digits are already excluded from it, so the diagonals are where a digit runs out of room first.
A warm-up plan
Our suggestion, not a rule, for an evening with the pack:
- Do puzzle 1 slowly, and say aloud "row, column, box, diagonal" each time you place a digit.
- On puzzle 2, start with the grey cells before the rest of the grid.
- On puzzles 3 and 4, count how many digits you can place before you need to look at a box. The table says that you can fill four cells from a diagonal alone in each of them.
- Keep puzzles 5 and 6 for another day, and time yourself if you like.
- When a grid is finished, read the nine rows, the nine columns, the nine boxes and then the two diagonals before you open the solutions. If one of them repeats a digit, you know where the mistake is hiding.
What easy means
In the LogikLand generator, easy means 36 or more digits given out of 81, and a grid that can be solved with the "only place for a digit" technique in rows, columns, boxes and diagonals. We ran a solver restricted to that technique on the six grids and it finished each one. The medium level has 28 digits and still needs only that technique. At the hard level, about 24 digits, you start to need eliminations.
When you want more
There is no free generator for Sudoku X: this pack is a fixed set of six. To make a whole book, create a free account and open the Sudoku X assistant, choose the levels and the page size, and download a PDF or an editable file. Create a free account to make a full book.
Learn the rules, then make a book
Read the Sudoku X rules if you are new to the puzzle, or printable easy Jigsaw Sudoku puzzles for another variant. When you are ready, create a free account; the Sudoku book generator page explains the plans.
Questions
Are these puzzles a good first Sudoku X?
Yes. They have 36 digits given and can be solved with one technique only. If you have never played Sudoku X, read the rules first and do puzzle 1 slowly.
Do I need an account to download the PDF?
No. The PDF is a free sample for personal use. To make your own Sudoku X book, create a free account.
How do I check my answer?
Compare with pages 7 and 8 of the PDF. If a digit differs, check the two diagonals first: they are the rule most often forgotten.
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Sources
Want to publish your own puzzle book?
LogikLand generates Sudoku, crossword, word search and maze books for Amazon KDP, in 8.5 x 11 or 6 x 9 inches, exported as a PDF or an editable PPTX file. Commercial rights come with the PRO and EXPERT plans.
Related: All blog articles | Try the tool | More Sudoku articles