Nurikabe (PuzzleMadness)
Shade the grid so each numbered island has its size and the shaded sea stays joined.
Every day: A new dated Nurikabe puzzle every day, the same for every player, one for each size (Small, Medium, Large and Mixed); completed puzzles score on monthly and all-time leaderboards and past days stay in the archive. New puzzle: Once a day (the site does not state the time).
PuzzleMadness posts a new Nurikabe puzzle every day, the same grid for every player, at several sizes. Each number is an island of exactly that many squares, islands never touch, and all the other squares form one connected sea with no 2x2 block. Finished puzzles score points on the site's monthly and all-time leaderboards.
About Nurikabe (PuzzleMadness)
Nurikabe is a Japanese shading puzzle. The numbers in the grid are islands, and each island must cover exactly as many squares as its number. Islands may not touch each other side by side, every square outside the islands belongs to one connected body of water, and the water may never form a solid 2x2 block. In a finished grid the islands are white and the water is shaded.
The daily page opens today's puzzle on its own, and its title carries the date (on 3 October 2026 it read "Daily Medium Nurikabe Puzzle for Saturday 3rd October 2026"). There is a separate dated puzzle for each size: Small, Medium, Large and Mixed. Past days stay in the archive, so a missed puzzle can be played later, and there is a print version and an image download of the grid. PuzzleMadness does not publish solutions: the site tells you when you have finished a grid correctly or made a mistake. Each completed puzzle adds to your total on the Nurikabe monthly and all-time leaderboards, where only your best score on any one puzzle counts.
Most grids open the same way: surround each 1 with water straight away, and put water on any square that sits between two different numbers, since it would join two islands. After that the 2x2 rule and the need to keep the water connected do most of the work. The small grids are a good place to learn these moves before trying a large one.
PuzzleMadness is a British puzzle site with dozens of daily puzzle types in the browser, from many sudoku variants to logic grids such as Nurikabe, Hashi and Slitherlink. It is free to play and carries ads. A free account keeps track of the puzzles you have finished and puts your name on the leaderboards, and the badges next to usernames mark how many puzzles a player has completed.
How to play Nurikabe (PuzzleMadness)
- Open the day's Nurikabe page and choose Small, Medium, Large or Mixed.
- Mark water around every 1 and on squares that touch two different numbers.
- Grow each island to its number without letting it touch another island.
- Keep the water in one connected piece with no 2x2 pools; when every rule holds, the site marks the puzzle complete.
Screenshots
Tips
- A square that no island can reach must be water.
- Three water squares in an L shape force the fourth corner to be island, or you would make a 2x2 pool.
- If two parts of the water can only join through one square, that square is water.
Questions
What are the rules of Nurikabe?
Every number is an island of that many squares, islands do not touch side by side, the remaining squares form one connected sea, and the sea has no 2x2 blocks.
When does the PuzzleMadness Nurikabe change?
Once a day: each puzzle is dated, and the daily page opens the current day's grid. The site does not say at what time the new one appears.
Is PuzzleMadness Nurikabe free?
Yes. You can play without an account; the site shows ads. A free account records which puzzles you have finished and enters your scores on the leaderboards.
Where can I find the answers?
PuzzleMadness does not publish solutions. It tells you when your grid is complete and correct, and when you have made a mistake.
Can I play earlier Nurikabe puzzles?
Yes, older puzzles are in the archive, and puzzles completed on any day count toward that month's leaderboard.
Games like Nurikabe (PuzzleMadness)
Daily Nurikabe
puzzle-nurikabe.com's daily Nurikabe, the same island and sea rules
Nurikabe (CoffeeFirst)
A daily Nurikabe from CoffeeFirst
Nurikabe World
Nurikabe World, another place for daily island puzzles
Daily Hitori
A daily shading puzzle where the unshaded cells must stay joined
Hitori (PuzzleMadness)
Shade out repeated numbers so no row or column shows a number twice.
Kakurasu (PuzzleMadness)
Shade cells so each row and column adds up to its total, counting each cell by its position.
Lits (PuzzleMadness)
Shade one L, I, T or S tetromino in every region so the shading joins up with no 2x2 blocks.
NoriNori (PuzzleMadness)
Shade exactly two cells in every region, with the shaded cells forming dominoes that never touch.