Frequently Asked Questions
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About PuzzleProwl
What is PuzzleProwl?
PuzzleProwl is a free online puzzle game site built for people who love logic puzzles. Classic Sudoku is live now, with Killer Sudoku in development and Samurai Sudoku and Kakuro planned.
The goal is simple: the best possible version of each puzzle we offer, with no clutter, no paywalls on core gameplay, and no dark patterns.
Who builds and runs PuzzleProwl?
PuzzleProwl is a one-person operation built by Christian Patterson, an IT professional with over 30 years of experience and a lifelong puzzle enthusiast.
There is no team, no investors, and no corporate parent. Every decision is made by someone who actually plays these games.
Why did you build this?
Two reasons.
First, most puzzle apps start clean and gradually bury the experience under ads, forced accounts, and microtransactions. That's frustrating as a player.
Second, building PuzzleProwl is itself a challenge — learning front-end development as someone with a deep infrastructure background is its own kind of puzzle.
Is PuzzleProwl free?
Yes. Core gameplay is always free — the daily puzzle, the full puzzle library, and all five difficulty levels cost nothing.
The hint system offers one free hint per day for signed-in players. Token packs are available if you want more hints, and PuzzleProwl Pro adds an ad-free experience plus a monthly token allowance. Nothing is ever required.
The Daily Puzzle
How does the daily puzzle work?
A new Classic Sudoku puzzle is available every day. Difficulties rotate on a consistent schedule — Easy, Medium, and Hard — so you always know roughly what to expect.
Sign in to play the daily puzzle, track your streak, and share your result as a Wordle-style emoji grid.
When does the daily puzzle reset?
At midnight UTC every day. If you're in a timezone behind UTC, the new puzzle may arrive in the evening rather than at midnight local time.
For reference, midnight UTC is:
- 8:00 PM Eastern Time (ET, UTC-4 in summer)
- 7:00 PM Central Time (CT, UTC-5 in summer)
- 5:00 PM Pacific Time (PT, UTC-7 in summer)
A countdown timer on the daily puzzle page shows exactly how long until the next puzzle.
What happens if I miss a day?
Your streak resets to zero if you miss a day's puzzle. Streaks count consecutive days — each day you complete the daily puzzle before midnight UTC adds one to your streak.
Can I replay today's puzzle after completing it?
Yes. Once you complete the daily puzzle your result is recorded and shown in a previous result banner the next time you visit. You can choose to play the puzzle again — your original result is kept and your streak is not affected.
Can I play yesterday's puzzle?
Not currently. Only today's puzzle is available through the daily puzzle page. The puzzle library has hundreds of puzzles available on demand if you want more to play.
What is the shareable emoji grid?
When you complete the daily puzzle, PuzzleProwl generates a Wordle-style grid showing the pattern of given clues in the puzzle — green squares for given digits, white squares for empty cells. It looks like this: PuzzleProwl Daily Puzzle Thursday, May 1 · Easy · Day 121 ⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜ 🟩⬜⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜🟩⬜ ⬜⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜🟩⬜⬜ ... ⏱ 4:23 · 💡 1 hint puzzleprowl.com/daily/
Every player who solves the same daily puzzle gets the same grid — the pattern reflects the puzzle itself, not how you solved it. Share it on X, Facebook, or copy it to your clipboard.
The Puzzle Library
What is the puzzle library?
The puzzle library is a collection of hundreds of Classic Sudoku puzzles available to signed-in players on demand. Unlike the daily puzzle, library puzzles have no schedule — play them in any order, at any pace.
Does the library save my progress?
Yes. Progress saves automatically every 30 seconds, when you switch tabs, and when you close the browser. Return to any puzzle and pick up exactly where you left off — board state, pencil marks, and elapsed time all restore.
Are library puzzles different from daily puzzles?
Yes. Daily puzzles follow a rotating difficulty schedule and reset each day. Library puzzles are a curated collection you can browse and filter by difficulty, play at your own pace, and return to at any time.
Gameplay Preferences
Can I hide the timer while I play?
Yes. Every sudoku page — Classic, Daily, and Library — has a small
eye icon next to the timer. Tap it to hide the elapsed time
(— : — replaces the digits). Tap again to show it. Your
preference is saved in your browser, so once you hide it the
timer stays hidden on every sudoku page across visits until you
show it again.
The timer itself keeps running in the background — your completion time, streak credit, and any saved progress are unaffected. The toggle is purely cosmetic, aimed at players who find the running clock stressful.
The Hint System
How does the hint system work?
PuzzleProwl's hint system has four levels. Each level reveals a little more than the last:
| Level | Cost | What It Shows |
|---|---|---|
| Region Highlight | 1 token | The row, column, or box where a move is available |
| Cell Highlight | 2 tokens | The specific cell you can solve next |
| Technique Hint | 4 tokens | The technique name and the relevant cells |
| Solution Step | 8 tokens | Fills one cell and explains exactly why |
The goal is to teach you to solve, not solve for you. Start with the cheapest hint that gets you unstuck.
Do I get any free hints?
Yes. Every signed-in player gets one free Level 2 hint per day — a daily token credited automatically when you sign in.
Anonymous players (not signed in) get one free Level 1 hint per day, tracked in the browser.
What are tokens?
Tokens are the currency for hints beyond your daily free hint. Token packs are available for purchase:
| Pack | Tokens | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | 10 | $0.99 |
| Standard | 50 | $3.99 |
| Value | 120 | $7.99 |
Purchased tokens never expire and carry over indefinitely.
What is PuzzleProwl Pro?
PuzzleProwl Pro is a monthly subscription for players who play regularly:
- Ad-free experience
- 20 tokens every month credited automatically on renewal
- Puzzle library access
- $2.99/month — cancel any time, access continues until the end of the billing period
Pro subscribers also get the same daily free hint as free accounts. Monthly tokens carry over if unused.
What happens when I run out of tokens?
You can purchase a token pack directly from the hint modal when your balance reaches zero. Your daily free hint is still available regardless of your purchased token balance.
Accounts and Sign-In
Do I need an account to play?
No. Classic Sudoku is playable without signing in — open the page and play immediately.
Signing in unlocks: the daily puzzle, puzzle library, streak tracking, server-side hint balance, and progress sync across devices.
How do I sign in?
PuzzleProwl uses sign-in with Google and Apple — no password required. Facebook sign-in is coming soon pending provider approval.
Is my progress saved across devices?
Yes, for signed-in players. Your daily streak, token balance, puzzle library progress, and hint history all live server-side and follow you to any device you sign in on.
Can I delete my account?
Yes. Your profile page includes a full account deletion flow. Deleting your account anonymizes all your data in accordance with GDPR — your puzzle completions and transactions are retained in anonymized form for record-keeping, but nothing is linked back to you.
Privacy and Data
Do you track me?
We use Google Analytics 4 to collect anonymous usage data — things like which puzzles are popular, how long sessions last, and which difficulty levels are most played. No personally identifiable information is collected through gameplay.
If you sign in, your account data (name, email, provider) is stored securely and used only to provide the service.
Do you sell my data?
No. We have no interest in your data beyond making PuzzleProwl better.
Where can I read your privacy policy?
On our Privacy Policy page, which covers everything in plain language.
Installing PuzzleProwl
Does PuzzleProwl have an app?
PuzzleProwl is a Progressive Web App (PWA), which means you can install it on your home screen and it behaves like a native app — no app store required.
On iOS (Safari): tap the Share button, then "Add to Home Screen."
On Android (Chrome): tap the three-dot menu, then "Add to Home Screen" or "Install App."
On desktop (Chrome): look for the install icon in the address bar, or open the browser menu and select "Install PuzzleProwl."
What's the difference between the PWA and a native app?
Very little in day-to-day use. The PWA launches from your home screen, runs full-screen without browser chrome, and works offline for previously loaded content. A native app may come later — it would use the same account and all the same progress data.
Still Have Questions?
Contact us — you'll get a reply from the person who built the site.