Find the Cat #199: 8x8 Grid Puzzle (Medium)

medium

Tap a square: ✕ (ruled out) → 🐱 (cat) → clear

0 / 8 cats · 0:00
Red (7)Orange (8)Yellow (7)Green (6)Teal (1)Blue (18)Purple (12)Pink (5)

Every row, every column and every color region needs exactly one cat -- but no two cats may touch, not even diagonally. This puzzle is a 8x8 grid with 8 colored regions.

  • One cat in every row and every column.
  • One cat in every color region.
  • Cats can’t touch — not even diagonally.

Step-by-step solution

Squares are written as R<row>C<column>, counting from the top-left. Cross out the squares listed, and place a cat wherever a step says so.

  1. The Teal region has only one open square left: R8C3. Put a cat there.
  2. The Green region has only one open square left: R7C8. Put a cat there.
  3. Wherever the cat in the Red region ends up, it rules out R6C5. Cross that square out.
  4. Wherever the cat in the Orange region ends up, it rules out R4C1 and R6C2. Cross those squares out.
  5. Wherever the cat in the Red region ends up, it rules out R1C4, R2C4, R3C4, R4C4 and R5C5. Cross those squares out.
  6. Wherever the cat in the Yellow region ends up, it rules out R2C2. Cross that square out.
  7. Wherever the cat in the Purple region ends up, it rules out R3C7. Cross that square out.
  8. Wherever the cat in the Pink region ends up, it rules out R2C6. Cross that square out.
  9. Wherever the cat in the Purple region ends up, it rules out R3C1. Cross that square out.
  10. Wherever the cat in column 6 ends up, it rules out R2C7. Cross that square out.
  11. The Red and Orange regions can only use rows 5 and 6, so rows 5 and 6 are already spoken for. Cross out R5C6, R5C7 and R6C6.
  12. Wherever the cat in the Blue region ends up, it rules out R3C6 and R4C2. Cross those squares out.
  13. The Orange and Yellow regions can only use columns 1 and 2, so columns 1 and 2 are already spoken for. Cross out R3C2.
  14. The Purple region has only one open square left: R3C5. Put a cat there.
  15. The Blue region has only one open square left: R4C7. Put a cat there.
  16. The Pink region has only one open square left: R1C6. Put a cat there.
  17. The Yellow region has only one open square left: R2C1. Put a cat there.
  18. The Orange region has only one open square left: R5C2. Put a cat there.
  19. The Red region has only one open square left: R6C4. Put a cat there.

About this puzzle

Where to start: the Teal region is a single square, so its cat is already decided. Its 8 color regions range from 1 square (Teal) to 18 squares. It can be solved in 19 deduction steps using grouped row/column/region deductions.

Look for a color that sits entirely inside one row or one column. Its cat must be in that line, so every other square in that line can be crossed out.

Stuck? Open the step-by-step solution below -- each step names the row, column or color involved, so you can use it as a hint and then finish the puzzle yourself.

More medium puzzles