Midi Crossword (midicrossword.com)
A free 9x9 crossword every day, between a mini and a full grid, edited by Jeff Chen.
Every day: Two numbered 9x9 crosswords a day, the same for everyone: a Daily Easy that gets harder from Monday to Sunday, and a Daily Hard, both edited by Jeff Chen. New puzzle: Once a day (dated puzzles; the exact time is not stated).
Midi Crossword is a free daily 9x9 crossword from the small studio Hey, Good Game, with puzzles edited by Jeff Chen, who has had more than 150 crosswords published in The New York Times. There is a Daily Easy and a Daily Hard each day, plus an unlimited practice mode and an archive.
About Midi Crossword (midicrossword.com)
The midi sits between the 5x5 mini and the 15x15 daily crossword: a 9x9 grid with room for a few longer answers that most people finish in three to five minutes. midicrossword.com publishes a new one every day, numbered, dated and titled (for example #103, 'Resting Place', on Friday 2 October 2026). Like a classic newspaper crossword, the Daily Easy starts gentle on Monday and gets harder towards the weekend, and a separate Daily Hard midi is there for anyone who wants more bite.
Both dailies are edited by Jeff Chen, a constructor with more than 150 New York Times crosswords, who also wrote the XWord Info daily puzzle analysis for a decade. An Unlimited mode offers automatically generated midis for extra practice; those are not edited by hand.
The site is free and ad-supported, with no account needed to play. The last seven days of dailies are open to everyone, and a free account syncs stats and streaks and unlocks the full archive back to the first puzzle. The studio behind it, Hey, Good Game, also makes Wordplete, Squeezy and Pair Down with Jeff Chen.
It suits solvers who find the mini too quick and the full daily too long, and newer solvers working up to bigger grids. It is not affiliated with The New York Times.
How to play Midi Crossword (midicrossword.com)
- Open the Daily Easy (or Daily Hard) midi and press Start Game.
- Click a square to select it and see its clue; click again to switch between Across and Down.
- Type answers; the cursor moves on automatically, and wrong letters simply will not check.
- Use Check or Reveal on a square, word or the whole grid if you are stuck, and fill the 9x9 to finish.
Screenshots
Tips
- On a 9x9 grid, short answers cross a lot of entries: one sure letter can unlock several clues.
- Start with fill-in-the-blank clues and short answers, then work into the longer entries.
- Early-week Easy puzzles are good practice for new solvers; save the Hard midi for when you want a challenge.
- Make a free account if you play on more than one device, so your streak does not get lost.
Questions
Is the Midi Crossword free?
Yes. The Daily Easy, Daily Hard and Unlimited midis are free with no subscription.
Who edits the Midi Crossword?
Jeff Chen, a constructor with more than 150 puzzles published in The New York Times.
Can I play older midis?
The last seven days are open to everyone; a free account unlocks the full archive.
Is this the New York Times Midi?
No. midicrossword.com is an independent site and is not affiliated with The New York Times.
Games like Midi Crossword (midicrossword.com)
The Midi Crossword
The New York Times' own 9x9 midi crossword
Midi Crossword (Los Angeles Times)
The LA Times' daily midi-size crossword
The Midi Crossword (Greatest Games)
Another free daily midi crossword
Pair Down
A daily word game from the same studio and Jeff Chen
The Mini Crossword
The quicker 5x5 format if the midi is too long
Lex.Games Mini Crossword
An independent daily mini crossword
Crossword / 無料クロスワード (Puzzlega.me)
A five-minute Japanese mini crossword in katakana, numbered and new each day.
Daily Crossword (New York Post)
The New York Post's free full-size crossword, new every day with the past week to catch up on.