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Minesweeper Strategy and Tips

Here is how to think about winning at Minesweeper, split into short lessons. Each one reads on its own, and each one comes with a real position: press Try it on the board and you play the move yourself.

When a number equals its covered squares, they're all mines

Lesson 1

This is the most basic deduction in Minesweeper. The number on an opened square tells you how many mines are in the 8 squares around it, including diagonals. Count the covered squares around that number. If there are exactly as many covered squares as the number, every one of them must be a mine. A 1 with only one covered neighbour means that neighbour is the mine.

The reverse also works: once all of a number's mines are known, for example when its flags already match it, every other covered neighbour is safe. Applying just these two rules from the edges inward clears most Beginner boards. When you are stuck, look for numbers with the fewest covered neighbours first.

Here the 1 at the bottom left has only one covered square next to it, on its right. The number is 1 and one square is covered, so that square is the mine. Switch to Flag and plant a flag on it.

Tap a number when flags plus mines hit match it

Lesson 2

If all of a number's mines are already flagged, its other covered neighbours are safe. You could open them one by one, but tapping the number itself opens all of them at once. This is called chording, and it is one of the most important moves for solving quickly.

Be careful when a flag is wrong. If a flag sits on a square that is actually safe, chording will open the real mine instead. Only flag squares you have proven with logic. While you still have a flag you are unsure about, open squares one at a time rather than tapping the number.

Here the glowing 2 already has two flags around it. The number is 2, so the remaining covered squares are safe. Tap the 2 to open them all at once.

The 1-2 pattern along a wall

Lesson 3

Sometimes one number alone isn't enough, but comparing two neighbouring numbers settles it. The classic example is the 1-2 pattern along a wall. When a 1 and a 2 sit side by side along the edge with a covered row beyond them, every square the 1 can see is also seen by the 2.

The 1 has only one mine, so the squares the 1 and 2 share hold at most one mine. The 2's other mine must therefore be in the square only the 2 can see, the one beyond it. That square is a mine. By the same logic, a 1-1 pattern makes the square beyond the second 1 safe.

Here the 1 at the left edge and the 2 to its right both touch the covered top row. The square above and to the right of the 2 is out of the 1's reach, so it is the mine. Switch to Flag and plant a flag there.

Solve faster without flags (the 1-1 pattern)

Lesson 4

In a race, every tap costs time. Flags are handy reminders, but each one is an extra tap. Strong players keep the mine locations in their head and simply open the squares they know are safe, one after another.

The 1-1 pattern is a great help when you play without flags. When two 1s sit side by side along a wall, every square the first 1 sees is also seen by the second. The one mine is somewhere in there, so the square only the second 1 can see, the one beyond it, has no mine. You can open it without planting a single flag.

Here the 1 at the left edge and the 1 to its right both touch the covered top row. The square above and to the right of the second 1 is safe. Open it directly.

Try it on the board

Pick a lesson and the board starts from that position. Start over as often as you like.

Now put it to work

Play with friendsLearn how to play (3 min)

Last updated 2026-09-25 · Run by Qdan, Inc.