Sudoku365 vs Other Ways to Play Sudoku: Paper, Websites and Other Apps

Sudoku is everywhere. It is in newspapers, in thick puzzle books at the station kiosk, on free websites and in a very long list of apps. If you want a sudoku habit, the question is not where to find puzzles but which format suits you. Sudoku365 is one of those apps, and I made it, so please read this with that in mind. I will describe each option as fairly as I can, including where the other one is simply better.

What Sudoku365 Is

Sudoku365 is a classic 9x9 sudoku app for iOS and Android. It has 1,200 puzzles across four difficulty levels: Easy, Medium, Hard and Expert. While you solve, you have notes, hints, undo and erase, and there is a mistake check. Incorrect numbers are highlighted right away, and mistakes count toward a game over.

Every day there is a Daily Challenge, one puzzle that is the same for everyone. On iOS your time goes to a Game Center world ranking. The Android version has the Daily Challenge without a ranking. The app tracks a daily streak, can send reminders on the days and at the times you choose, and lets you make up a missed day from the past week by watching an ad and solving that day’s challenge. Stats show puzzles completed, best time and average time for each difficulty. It has system, light and dark themes, and solo play works offline.

There are two player modes over Bluetooth: Race, where two people solve the same puzzle on their own phones and the first to finish wins, and Solve together, where two people share one board and its mistakes and hints. They work between iPhone and Android and need no internet and no account.

The whole game is free. It shows banner, interstitial and rewarded ads, and a one-time Remove Ads purchase (¥1,500 in Japan) turns off the banner and interstitial ads. There is no subscription.

Option 1: Paper, in a Book or a Newspaper

Paper is where most people met sudoku, and it is still a very good way to play. A pencil and an eraser are all the tools you need. There is no screen, no notification and no battery. Pencil marks in the corner of a cell do the same job as notes in an app, and you can write them any way you like. A book is also easy to share. Two people can lean over one page.

Where paper differs is feedback. If you place a wrong digit early, you usually find out much later, when two sevens meet in a row and you have to work backwards. Some people enjoy exactly that. Others find it the moment they give up. The answer is at the back of the book or in tomorrow’s paper, and there is no hint that shows you only the next step.

A book also does not keep a streak or a best time for you. You can keep one in a notebook, of course, and some people do.

Option 2: Daily Sudoku Websites

Many websites publish a daily sudoku, often at several difficulties, and most are free to open in a browser. They are convenient if you already sit at a computer and do not want to install anything.

Features differ from site to site. Some offer notes, error checking and an archive of past puzzles, and some are very plain. Most need a connection to load the puzzle, and many are supported by ads. Picking one good website and solving there every day is also an option.

Option 3: Larger Sudoku Apps

There are sudoku apps from much bigger studios than mine. Several of them offer more difficulty levels than Sudoku365, seasonal events, trophies and other extras. They are usually free to download, with ads, and many offer paid options such as ad removal or subscriptions. The details change often and differ from app to app, so check the store page of the one you are considering.

If you like events and collecting rewards, one of those apps may suit you better. Sudoku365 is deliberately smaller: four levels, one Daily Challenge, a streak, stats, the tools you need to solve and the two-player modes. There are no seasonal events or trophies.

A Side by Side Table

	Sudoku365	Paper book or newspaper	Daily sudoku websites	Larger sudoku apps
Puzzles	1,200, classic 9x9	Fixed by the book	Varies	Varies
Difficulty levels	Four, Easy to Expert	Varies	Varies	Varies
Notes	Yes	Pencil marks	Varies	Varies
Mistake check	Yes	Answer key only	Varies	Varies
Hints	Yes	No	Varies	Varies
Daily puzzle	Daily Challenge, world ranking on iOS	Newspaper only	Yes	Varies
Streak and stats	Yes	Keep your own	Varies	Varies
Works offline	Yes, except ranking and ads	Yes	Usually needs a connection	Varies
Two players	Race or solve together over Bluetooth	Share the page	Varies	Varies
Cost	Free with ads, one-time Remove Ads purchase	Price of the book or paper	Often free	Varies

There are a lot of “Varies” in that table. That is honest. There are too many websites and apps to say anything more precise about all of them.

When Another Option Is the Better Choice

You want to get away from screens. Paper has no screen at all, so it is an option, especially before bed.

You want variants. Sudoku365 is classic 9x9 sudoku only. If you want killer sudoku, larger grids or other variants, a puzzle book that includes them or an app built around them is what you are looking for.

You enjoy finding your own mistakes. On paper, nobody tells you a digit is wrong. Some solvers consider that the whole point. Sudoku365 highlights incorrect numbers right away, so paper is the purest version of this.

You like events and trophies. Larger apps usually have more of these.

You already solve the puzzle in your daily paper. Then you already have a daily habit, and there is no need to change it.

When Sudoku365 Makes Sense

Sudoku365 fits best if you want one small app for a daily puzzle, with a streak that shows you whether the habit is holding, and a set of puzzles large enough that you will not run out. It works on a train without a signal. And if there is someone next to you with a phone, the Bluetooth modes let two people solve at the same time without an account.

It also has a sister app. If you like the daily puzzle idea and are curious about Japanese chess, Shogi365 follows the same design with tsume shogi.

The getting started guide covers your first solves, the tips post covers streaks, stats and difficulty, and who Sudoku365 is for describes where it fits. The app page is at Sudoku365.