Sudoku — Medium

Free printable medium sudoku puzzles as PDFs with answer pages. Where pencil marks start to earn their keep. No sign-up, no email.

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Medium is the level where sudoku starts asking for a system. Scanning still opens the puzzle, but somewhere past the halfway point it stops producing placements and you need to look at what a cell can be rather than where a number must go. That is the shift these grids are built around — a handful of moments where the answer comes from a candidate list rather than a glance. Most solvers work one of these in fifteen to twenty-five minutes, and the last few cells usually fall in a rush.

One 9x9 medium sudoku per page, printed with cells large enough to hold small pencilled candidates in the corners without crowding the final digit. The 3x3 boxes are separated by heavier rule lines. Each puzzle is paired with an answer page showing the completed grid. Black and white on US Letter, one puzzle per sheet.

Sudoku 9x9 Medium 01 Sudoku 9x9 Medium 01Download PDF ↓ Sudoku 9x9 Medium 02 Sudoku 9x9 Medium 02Download PDF ↓ Sudoku 9x9 Medium 03 Sudoku 9x9 Medium 03Download PDF ↓ Sudoku 9x9 Medium 04 Sudoku 9x9 Medium 04Download PDF ↓ Sudoku 9x9 Medium 05 Sudoku 9x9 Medium 05Download PDF ↓ Sudoku 9x9 Medium 06 Sudoku 9x9 Medium 06Download PDF ↓ Sudoku 9x9 Medium 07 Sudoku 9x9 Medium 07Download PDF ↓ Sudoku 9x9 Medium 08 Sudoku 9x9 Medium 08Download PDF ↓ Sudoku 9x9 Medium 09 Sudoku 9x9 Medium 09Download PDF ↓ Sudoku 9x9 Medium 10 Sudoku 9x9 Medium 10Download PDF ↓

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Frequently asked questions

When should I start writing candidates?
When a full scan of all nine digits produces no placement. At that point, pencil candidates into one box or one row rather than the whole grid — a targeted list is easier to read and usually enough. Marking all eighty-one cells up front creates clutter you will spend the rest of the puzzle maintaining.
What is a naked pair and why does it matter here?
Two cells in the same row, column or box that both have exactly the same two candidates. Between them they will use up both of those digits, so neither digit can appear anywhere else in that unit. It is the first technique beyond scanning that most solvers learn, and medium puzzles are usually where it first becomes necessary.
Is a medium sudoku ever ambiguous?
A properly constructed sudoku has exactly one solution. If you reach a point where two different digits both seem to fit and neither leads to a contradiction quickly, the usual cause is an earlier error rather than a flawed puzzle — check for a digit appearing twice in a box.
How is medium different from easy?
Easy puzzles can be finished by scanning alone. Medium puzzles include at least one position where scanning stalls and you have to reason about candidates. The grids look identical; the difference is entirely in what they demand of you.