Tower of Hanoi
The classic tower puzzle, playable right here — climb from 3 disks to 10 and match the 2ⁿ−1 minimum. Then try ten more brain puzzles built on real mathematical thinking. No download, no signup, a new daily challenge every day.
Play Level 1
Make the Number
Combine six numbers with + − × ÷ to hit today's target. The daily make-the-number puzzle.
DailyMath Maze
Steer a running total through an operator maze and land on the exit at exactly the right value.
Make 10 Game
Drop number blocks into columns; any top run that makes exactly 10 clears. Chain for combos.
DailyCryptarithm
Crack today's cryptarithm: restore the hidden digits in a secret sum like SEND + MORE = MONEY.
Balance Scale Puzzle
Balance the scale with number blocks. Many solutions work — can you find the fewest blocks?
DailyKiller Sudoku
Sudoku-style rows meet arithmetic cages — make every cage hit its + − × ÷ target.
DailyFutoshiki
Fill the grid with 1 to N and honor every < and > sign. Pure deduction, no guessing.
DailySumplete
Cross out numbers until every row and column sums to its target. Pure deduction.
DailyPicross
Use the number clues to fill the grid and reveal a hidden pixel picture.
Balloon Typing
Free typing games for grades 1–5: pop rising balloons by typing letters, words and simple sums.
Tower of Hanoi
Move the tower between rods, one disk at a time. Climb from 3 to 10 disks and match the 2ⁿ−1 minimum.
Today's daily puzzles
Same puzzle for everyone, refreshed at midnight UTC. Share your result — no spoilers, just glory.
Tower of Hanoi — the classic planning puzzle
The game above is the Tower of Hanoi, published by the French mathematician Édouard Lucas in 1883: rebuild the whole tower from rod A on rod C, moving one disk at a time and never resting a bigger disk on a smaller one. Tap a rod to lift its top disk, then tap another rod to drop it — keys 1 / 2 / 3 also pick rods. Each level adds a disk, from 3 up to 10.
The 2ⁿ−1 minimum-move formula
For n disks the fewest possible moves is exactly 2ⁿ − 1 — seven moves for three disks, 1,023 for ten. The practical trick: move the smallest disk around the rods in a fixed cycle and take the only other legal move in between. Match the minimum for three stars.
The recursive solution
Think recursively: park the top n − 1 disks on the spare rod, move the biggest disk to its destination, then rebuild the n − 1 disks on top of it. Repeat the same three steps for the smaller tower, and the full move list writes itself — that recursion is exactly why the count comes out to 2ⁿ − 1.
The 1883 legend
Lucas marketed his puzzle with a legend: in a temple in Benares, priests move 64 golden disks between three diamond needles, one per second, and the world ends the moment the tower is rebuilt. By the 2ⁿ − 1 formula that takes 2⁶⁴ − 1 moves — about 585 billion years. Ten disks here is challenging enough.
Why math thinking games?
Arithmetic drills make you faster at arithmetic. Math thinking games train something broader: decomposing problems, working backwards, planning several moves ahead, and testing hypotheses — the same skills you use in coding, engineering and everyday decision-making. Each game on HanoiStack is built around one of these skills rather than speed alone.
For classrooms and families
Every puzzle works on a phone, a tablet or a laptop, and every daily puzzle is the same for the whole class — perfect for a morning warm-up or a "puzzle of the day" board. The balance scale puzzle is designed for younger learners: no timers, no failure states, and multiple correct answers to reward creative thinking.
Free forever
No account, no download, no paywall. If a puzzle hooks you, share your result grid with a friend and see who solves it in fewer moves.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are all the games on HanoiStack free?
Yes — every game and every daily puzzle is completely free, with no ads mid-game, no accounts and no downloads. Open a page and play.
Do I need to sign up to play?
No. Nothing to register: your streaks, progress and best scores are stored locally in your own browser.
What is the daily puzzle?
Eight of the games publish a special puzzle each day at midnight UTC — the same one for everyone in the world. Solve it, then share your result and compare with friends or your class.
What age are these math games for?
Ages roughly 6 to adult. Make 10 Game and Balance Scale Puzzle are gentle enough for young kids, sudoku, killer sudoku and sumplete scale from easy to genuinely hard, and Tower of Hanoi is a classic for any age.