Given cells
Teal-highlighted letters are permanent clues supplied at the start. They anchor the puzzle. Build candidate words around them instead of trying to replace them.
The Field Manual / Edition 1
SUDOKUWORDLE
A complete guide to reading the grid, interpreting row clues, managing risk, and solving the board before the board solves you.
01 / Mission briefing
SudokuWordle combines word deduction with Sudoku constraints. Every row contains a real dictionary word. The same letter cannot repeat in a column, and on supported boards the same letter cannot repeat inside its Sudoku box.
Your objective: reconstruct every solution row. You are not merely guessing words. You are placing letters that must satisfy three systems at once: the row word list, the Wordle clue counts, and the Sudoku geometry.
A puzzle begins with some letters already visible. These are given cells: they are part of the solution and cannot be edited. Empty cells are yours to fill. Select a cell, choose a letter from the keyboard, and use the surrounding rows, columns, boxes, notes, and feedback to reduce possibilities.
The central discipline
A plausible word is not automatically a legal row. A legal row must fit its visible letters, use an available dictionary word of the correct length, avoid duplicate conflicts, and preserve the possibility of completing every other row. Treat every move as a constraint, not a hunch.
02 / Reading the board
Empty cells
These are editable cells. Click one, then use the virtual keyboard or a physical letter key. The pink outline marks the selected cell; the darker row tint marks the active row.
Conflict outline
A red outline means the current letters repeat illegally in a row, column, or Sudoku box. Conflicts are warnings, not Wordle feedback. Resolve them before trusting a candidate.
Boxes
6 x 6 and 8 x 8 games use rectangular boxes, while 9 x 9 games use classic 3 x 3 boxes. 5 x 5 and 7 x 7 boards use rows and columns without box constraints.
Candidate thinking
For each empty cell, write down the letters allowed by its row, column, and box. Then intersect that set with the letters that can appear in a real word matching the row's known pattern. A letter that has only one legal position is a placement. A word that is the only candidate for a row is a commitment.
03 / Aggregate row feedback
Submitting a complete row does not color individual cells. Instead, the feedback panel at the row edge reports totals such as 2 Green / 1 Yellow / 3 Gray. The counts tell you how much evidence the row produced, but they intentionally hide which position owns which status.
Green Correct letter, correct position
The guessed letter exists in that exact position in the solution. It is confirmed evidence, but it is not glued down. You may clear or overwrite it later.
Yellow Correct letter, wrong position
The letter belongs somewhere in the solution row, but not in the guessed position. Track its possible destinations using notes and row patterns.
Gray Absent letter
The letter does not belong in that row's solution, subject to normal Wordle duplicate handling. Remove it from that row's candidate words.
How to locate hidden statuses
Combine the totals with fixed letters, duplicate rules, column restrictions, box restrictions, and the dictionary. If a row reports one Green and only one candidate position can remain exact, that position is the Green even though no cell is colored.
Important: feedback counts belong to the submitted row. They do not directly tell you which cell to lock. Reconstruct the assignment logically. A later overwrite can invalidate your personal assumption, so keep notes.
04 / Game modes
Wordle Limit
The standard pressure mode. The board has one shared wrong-submission pool, not a separate allowance for each row. The limit is board size + 1; therefore a 6 x 6 board allows 7 wrong rows total. One bad row can consume the run.
Sudoku Strike
Entering a wrong letter immediately costs a strike. Three strikes end the run. Correct entries may be locked by this mode's immediate placement rules. Use columns and boxes before pressing uncertain keys.
Timed Mode
A countdown runs continuously. A wrong submission removes time, while a fully correct row adds a small time bonus. The shared wrong counter still records mistakes, but the clock is the primary danger.
Relaxed
No fail state. Use it to learn the dictionary, practice note-taking, or explore how aggregate feedback behaves without spending a run.
Blueprint / Deduction
The board starts half-filled with 3 or 4 incorrect rows. Their Wordle feedback is already printed at the row edge. Those clue rows are immutable. There are zero extra row submissions: fill the remaining rows by deduction and solve the board.
Conveyor Belt
Every 45 seconds, or every 2 wrong row submissions, the top row becomes permanent and a fresh blank row appears at the bottom. Rows shift through the board. Preserve deductions in notes and work quickly because the visible arrangement changes.
Mode interaction: settings such as Pencil marks, QWERTY keyboard, Strict hard mode, Dual-axis words, and Fade feedback can be combined with modes. Their effects stack, so read the HUD and row edge carefully.
05 / Controls and settings
| Control | What it does | Best use |
|---|---|---|
| Menu | Returns to the setup screen and stops the active timer. | Change size, difficulty, mode, or settings. |
| Cell click | Selects an editable cell and activates its row. | Move deliberately between candidate positions. |
| Virtual keyboard | Places the chosen letter. Key colors show letter knowledge gathered from submissions. | Use the reduced pool to scan candidates. |
| Notes: Off / On | Turns pencil marks on. In note mode, pressing a letter toggles it without filling the cell. | Blueprint and aggregate feedback modes. |
| Clear | Removes the selected editable letter or its notes. Given and permanently locked cells remain safe. | Undo a weak assumption before it contaminates the grid. |
| Hint | Reveals one safe letter for 800 score points. | Use only when the remaining deduction is more expensive than the score. |
| Submit Row | Evaluates a complete active row and adds one wrong attempt if it is not exact. | Submit only after checking dictionary and Sudoku legality. |
Physical keyboard
Letter keys place letters, Enter submits the active row, Backspace/Delete clears the selected cell, and the arrow keys move the selection. Keys not present in the current pool are ignored.
06 / Coins and power-ups
Coins persist in your browser. The HUD shows your balance. Correctly locking a row grants coins, and completing a puzzle grants a larger reward.
Letter Purge
Letter Purge permanently removes two decoy letters from the current virtual keyboard. A decoy is a letter that does not occur anywhere in the final solution. It cannot remove a solution letter, so the remaining keyboard stays complete for the puzzle.
The base price is 500 coins. The price falls as difficulty rises and as the grid gets larger. The button shows the exact current price. If you cannot afford it, the button is disabled and the game explains the required balance.
Power-up timing: purge before building a difficult candidate list, not after you have already memorized a useful keyboard. The removal is permanent for that game, but coins are spent immediately.
07 / A disciplined solving method
- Inventory the anchors.
Record every given letter, every fixed row pattern, and every immediate row, column, or box conflict. - Build row candidates.
Search only words of the selected size. Filter by known positions and eliminate words containing gray letters or impossible duplicates. - Use column and box pressure.
For each candidate word, test every letter against its column and box. A word can fit its row and still be globally impossible. - Submit information, not guesses.
Before submitting, estimate what each possible feedback pattern would teach you. In shared-pool modes, only spend an attempt when the evidence is worth the risk. - Translate totals into positions.
With aggregate feedback, compare the reported Green and Yellow totals against the candidate words. Use the Sudoku constraints to assign statuses to positions. - Keep anchors mentally soft.
Submitted Greens are unlocked anchors. They are evidence, not permanent tiles. Clearing or overwriting one can be correct when a broader deduction disproves your earlier placement. - Recheck after every edit.
Look for red conflicts, impossible rows, and a broken feedback count. A legal-looking placement may still contradict a previous row summary.
Blueprint tactics
Start with the pre-printed rows. Treat their counts as equations. If a clue row has zero Green, every letter is displaced or absent; if it has zero Green and zero Yellow, the whole guessed row is excluded. Then use the fixed half-filled grid to decide where each surviving letter can go.
Conveyor tactics
Prioritize deductions in the top half and write notes before the 45-second drop. When rows move, mentally label them by their target word or by a short note. The top row is no longer editable after a drop, even if it is wrong, so the mode rewards robust global progress rather than perfect local completion.
08 / Edge cases and warnings
Full row required
A partial row cannot be submitted. Fill every cell first. Notes do not count as filled letters.
Green is editable
In normal Wordle-style submissions, Green feedback does not lock the cell. Use Clear or overwrite it. Only given cells, strike-mode immediate locks, and permanent conveyor rows are protected.
Wrong total is global
The Wrong total in the HUD belongs to the entire board. It does not reset when you change active rows. Changing rows is not a way to recover attempts.
Feedback can fade
With Fade feedback enabled, row summaries disappear after a short delay. Keep a written mental or pencil-mark record before the clue fades.
Dictionary limits are real
The game uses its built-in word list. A familiar word may still be unavailable, while an unusual listed word may be valid. Candidate generation must respect the game's dictionary.
Dual-axis words
When enabled, columns must also form valid dictionary words. A row-perfect grid can therefore remain unfinished until every column passes the word test.
09 / The one-minute checklist
Before placing: Does the letter fit the row, column, and box?
Before submitting: Is the row full, dictionary-valid, and worth one shared attempt?
After feedback: Record the Green, Yellow, and Gray totals at the row edge. Do not color cells in your head unless Sudoku logic proves the position.
Before a conveyor drop: Preserve notes and finish the deductions most likely to survive row movement.
Before using Letter Purge: Confirm you have enough coins and that two genuine decoys remain.
At all times: Remember that submitted Green cells are unlocked anchors. Evidence guides the solve; it does not own the cell.