About Daily Crossword Puzzles
Play free crossword puzzles online, with two new puzzles every day. The Daily Mini is a quick 5×5 grid you can finish over a cup of coffee, and the Daily Crossword is a bigger themed puzzle with around 15 to 20 answers that all connect to one topic, from ocean life to world capitals.
Every clue is written by hand for this site, and the puzzles are designed to be fair: no obscure trivia, no abbreviations you've never heard of, just everyday words with clues that reward a little lateral thinking. That makes them great easy crossword puzzles for beginners and a fast, satisfying warm-up for experienced solvers.
The game works on phones, tablets and computers with a built-in keyboard, so the phone's own keyboard never covers the grid. Your progress saves automatically, the timer pauses when you leave, and a full archive of past puzzles and bonus grids means you'll never run out of crosswords to solve.
How to play Crosswords
- 1
Choose a puzzle
Pick Mini for today's 5×5 grid, Crossword for today's themed puzzle, or Archive to play any past daily or bonus puzzle. Press Start solving when you're ready: the clues stay hidden until the timer starts.
- 2
Read the clue and type
The highlighted squares show the word you're working on, and its clue appears in the bar above the grid. Type your answer; the cursor jumps to the next open square and then to the next unfinished clue.
- 3
Switch between Across and Down
Tap the selected square again, tap the clue bar or press Space to flip direction. On a computer, the full Across and Down lists sit beside the grid; on a phone, tap the list button to see every clue at once.
- 4
Use the crossings
Each letter in a standard grid belongs to two answers. When a clue has you stumped, solve the words that cross it: a few letters in place are often all you need.
- 5
Check, reveal or keep going
Check marks wrong letters in a square, word or the whole puzzle. Reveal fills in letters for you. Pencil mode lets you jot down tentative guesses in gray. Fill the whole grid correctly and the puzzle is solved.
Controls
| Input | Action |
|---|---|
| A–Z / on-screen keys | Type a letter and move to the next open square |
| Click / tap a square | Select it; tap again to switch direction |
| Arrow keys | Move around the grid (a sideways arrow first switches direction) |
| Space | Switch between Across and Down |
| Tab / Enter | Jump to the next clue (Shift+Tab for the previous one) |
| Backspace / Delete | Erase a letter (Backspace also steps back) |
| Esc | Pause the timer and hide the grid |
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Crosswords tips and strategy
Start with fill-in-the-blanks
Clues like Salt ___ pepper or Hot ___ buns are usually the easiest in the grid. Knock them out first to get letters in place for the harder clues.
Match the clue's grammar
A clue and its answer always agree. A plural clue (Garden tools) means a plural answer (RAKES), and a past-tense clue (Tossed) points to a past-tense answer (THREW). Checking tense and number rules out a lot of wrong guesses.
Watch for question marks
A question mark at the end of a clue signals wordplay. Owl's question? isn't asking about owls: the answer is WHO. Read those clues twice and think about puns or double meanings.
Lean on common letter patterns
Many answers end in -S, -ED, -ER or -ING. If a plural clue ends at the edge of the grid, an S in the last square is a good bet. Vowels also tend to alternate with consonants, so an empty square between two consonants is often a vowel.
Use the theme in the Daily Crossword
Every answer in the Daily Crossword relates to its theme, shown on the start screen and above the clues. If the theme is Around the World, a nine-letter answer for Land of the tango is almost certainly a country.
Keep moving
Don't stare at one clue. Skip it, solve the neighbors, and come back: the crossing letters will often make the answer jump out. With Skip filled squares on (it's in the More menu), the cursor always jumps to the next empty square.
Race yourself on the Mini
The Daily Mini is ranked by time. Read the Across clues first, then the Downs, and type confidently: you can always fix a letter later. Your times will drop as you learn the common short answers.
How crosswords work
A crossword is a grid of squares where every answer runs either across (left to right) or down (top to bottom). Squares that start an answer get a small number, and the clue lists use those numbers: 4-Across is the answer that starts in square 4 and reads to the right.
In a classic American-style grid, like our Daily Mini, black squares separate the words and every white square is part of both an across and a down answer. The black squares are arranged symmetrically, so the grid looks the same if you turn it upside down.
Our Daily Crossword uses a freeform layout: answers interlock like a word web on an open background, and some letters belong to only one word. It's the same style as many newspaper theme puzzles and puzzle books, and it's a friendly way to solve a bigger grid.
The Daily Mini vs. the Daily Crossword
- Daily Mini: a 5×5 grid with about ten clues. Most people finish in one to three minutes, so it's perfect for a quick daily habit. Clean solves (no checks, reveals or autocheck) go on the daily leaderboard, and you can share your time and a spoiler-free grid with friends.
- Daily Crossword: a themed freeform puzzle of about 13×13 squares with a title and around 15 to 20 answers. It takes longer and rewards knowledge of the theme. It has its own daily leaderboard.
Both puzzles change at midnight in your time zone, and everyone gets the same puzzle on the same day. Missed a day? Past puzzles appear in the Archive, along with bonus Minis and bonus crosswords that were never used as a daily puzzle.
A short history of the crossword
The crossword is younger than many people think. Journalist Arthur Wynne published the first one, a diamond-shaped "word-cross," in the New York World on December 21, 1913. Readers loved it, and the name soon became "crossword."
In 1924 the first book of crossword puzzles became a surprise bestseller and set off a nationwide craze. Newspapers across the country added crosswords of their own, and the rules solvers expect today took shape: symmetrical grids, interlocking answers and numbered clues.
The mini crossword is a more recent twist. Small grids suit phones perfectly, and a five-minute daily puzzle has become a morning ritual for many solvers. If you enjoy word puzzles, try our daily Word Guess, the Spelling Bee hive or themed Word Search grids, or browse all of our word games.
Frequently asked questions
Are these crossword puzzles really free?
Yes. Every puzzle on Free To Play Puzzles is free, with no sign-up and no download. You can play the Daily Mini, the Daily Crossword and the full archive in any modern browser on your phone, tablet or computer.
When does the daily crossword change?
Both daily puzzles unlock at midnight in your local time zone. Everyone who plays on the same date gets the same Mini and the same themed crossword, so you can compare times with friends.
Are these crosswords good for beginners?
Yes. The clues use everyday vocabulary and plain language, with a sprinkle of wordplay. The Daily Mini is a great place to start, and tools like Check, Reveal and Autocheck help you learn without getting stuck.
What's the difference between Check and Reveal?
Check marks any wrong letters in the square, word or puzzle you choose, and keeps correct letters locked in. Reveal fills in the right letters for you. Using Check, Reveal or Autocheck on a daily puzzle means that solve isn't ranked on the leaderboard, but your streak still counts.
Can I play past crosswords?
Yes. Open the Archive tab to play earlier Daily Minis and Daily Crosswords, plus bonus puzzles you won't find anywhere else. Solved puzzles are marked with your time, and Random puzzle picks one you haven't finished yet.
Does the game save my progress?
Yes. Your letters, time and cursor position are saved on your device after every move, so you can close the page and pick up where you left off. The timer pauses automatically when you switch tabs.
How is the leaderboard time measured?
The timer starts when you press Start solving and stops the instant the last correct letter goes in. It pauses whenever the puzzle is paused or hidden, so you can take a break without losing time.
Do I need a keyboard to play on my phone?
No. The game has its own on-screen keyboard with a key for switching direction, so your phone's keyboard never pops up and covers the grid.