Games & scoring / Board and puzzle games
Dots and Boxes: Play in Your Browser
Draw edges, claim completed boxes and keep the extra turn, with boards from 3 × 3 to 8 × 8.
Dots and Boxes: Play in Your Browser: Play two people on one device or face the computer. Choose a board containing 3 × 3 through 8 × 8 boxes. Completing a fourth side claims the box and gives another turn; an edge may complete two boxes. Runs 100% locally in your browser with zero server file uploads.
- Category
- Health & sport tools
- Runs
- In your browser
- Cost
- Free · no sign-up
- Availability
- Ready to use
Runs entirely in your browser
Draw an edge with a click, tap or Enter. The fourth side claims a box and gives you another turn. The most boxes wins. Medium and hard avoid third sides and count chains when only risky edges remain. Arrows move focus.
Boxes and extra turns
Elwyn Berlekamp explains Dots and Boxes and its extra-turn rule: https://math.berkeley.edu/~berlek/cgt/dots.html
Endgame play
Linked unclaimed boxes form chains. Medium opens a smaller chain when no safe edge remains. Hard searches remaining scoring choices with 16 or fewer free edges, except when it can immediately claim a box. Board sizes refer to boxes, not dots.
How to use it
- Choose the game options and restart when you want a fresh game.
- Play with a mouse, touch or the keyboard using the controls below.
- Read the result, or pause and resume the game.
Privacy & limitations
The game runs in your browser. No game state or chosen image is uploaded. Best results are stored locally on this device.
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Frequently asked questions
Does completing a box give another turn?
Yes. Keep drawing after each completion until you draw an edge that claims no box. The higher box count wins once every edge has been drawn.
How does the computer choose an edge?
Easy chooses randomly. Medium and hard take available boxes and avoid adding a third side when a safer edge exists. In the endgame they count linked chains; hard also searches short scoring continuations.
Free tool · runs in your browser · no account required