Nonogram Classic

Fill the grid to reveal the hidden picture

Nonogram Classic is a calm logic puzzle on a five-by-five grid. Each row and column carries a short list of numbers along its edge: those numbers state how many squares in that line are filled, grouped into consecutive runs. A row marked 2 1 means two filled squares, a gap, then one more. Read the clues and shade the right squares until a hidden picture appears. Every board is generated fresh in your browser when you press Start, so no two puzzles repeat.

What makes this version fair is its built-in solver. The generator first draws a random picture, then backtracks through every possible completion to count how many answers the clues allow. If more than one solution exists, that board is discarded and a new one is made. Every puzzle you are shown therefore has exactly one correct answer, and you never have to guess between two equally valid grids.

There is no countdown, only a timer that tracks how long you take, so you can beat your own best. On a phone, tap a square to cycle it through three states: empty, filled, and marked with an X for squares you know stay blank. On desktop, the arrow keys move a cursor, the space bar toggles a fill, and X marks a square. A live counter shows how many squares you have filled.

The entire game is one self-contained HTML file with no external libraries, no network requests after load and no tracking. It works with a mouse, a finger or a keyboard, reflows to a portrait phone screen, needs no account and nothing to download. Your best time is kept only on your own device.

How to play

Press Start to generate a fresh five-by-five puzzle.
Read the numbers on the left of each row and above each column — they show the filled runs in that line.
Tap or click a square to fill it; tap again to mark it with an X, and once more to clear it.
Use the row and column clues to deduce which squares must be filled, working line by line.
Fill every correct square to reveal the picture and finish the puzzle.

Controls

Mouse or touch: tap a square to cycle empty to filled to marked
Keyboard: arrow keys move the cursor, Space toggles a fill, X marks a square
Button: New starts a different puzzle at any time
Timer counts up; the Filled counter tracks your progress

Tips

Start with the longest clues first. A row or column marked with a single large number (like 4 or 5) forces most of its squares immediately.
If a line's clues already account for every square, mark the rest with an X so you stop second-guessing them.
Work from the edges inward. Squares that every valid arrangement agrees on are safe to fill early.