Summary:
A color nonogram is a picture logic puzzle: the numbers beside each row and above each column tell you how many cells to fill and in which color, and when every clue is satisfied a color picture appears. It plays like a black-and-white nonogram with one extra rule: runs of the same color need a gap between them, while runs of different colors may sit side by side.
Want to make your own? Color Nonogram generates color nonogram puzzles with matching answer keys, ready for print or online play.
Overview
You start with an empty grid. Each row has a list of numbers to its left, and each column has a list above it. Every number is printed in a color. Fill cells in those colors until every line matches its clues, and leave the rest of the grid empty. A well-made puzzle has exactly one solution, and you can reach it one certain cell at a time.
This 8×8 puzzle is the example used throughout this page. It uses three colors: red, yellow and green.
The Goal
Fill the grid so that every row and every column matches its clue list exactly. Cells that no clue asks for stay empty (white). When you are done, the filled cells form a picture.
The Rules
- Each number is a run. A red 4 means four red cells next to each other in that row or column, with nothing between them.
- Runs appear in order. A row’s clues read left to right and a column’s clues read top to bottom, in the same order as the runs on the grid.
- The color of the number is the color of the run. A yellow 2 is two yellow cells, never red ones.
- Same color, gap required. If two runs next to each other in a clue share a color, at least one empty cell separates them on the grid. A row of green 2 2 2 is three separate green blocks.
- Different colors, no gap required. If two neighboring runs have different colors, they may touch. Red 2, yellow 2 can be red-red-yellow-yellow with nothing in between. They may also have empty cells between them; the clue alone does not say which.
Rule 5 is the one that catches people who already know black-and-white nonograms. In a black-and-white puzzle every pair of runs needs a gap. In a color puzzle, only same-colored neighbors do.
How to Start Solving
Count from the top-left corner: rows are numbered 1 to 8 from the top, columns 1 to 8 from the left.
1. Look for a line that fills exactly. Add up the runs in a line, then add one cell for every gap the rule requires (one between each pair of same-colored neighbors, none between different colors). If the total equals the line length, there is only one way to place the runs.
Row 7 reads green 2 2 2. All three runs are green, so two gaps are required: 2 + 1 + 2 + 1 + 2 = 8, exactly the width of the grid. Row 7 is green, green, empty, green, green, empty, green, green.
2. Use the color rule to find a second full line. Column 4 reads red 1, yellow 3, red 1, green 3. Each neighbor has a different color, so no gaps are required: 1 + 3 + 1 + 3 = 8. Column 4 fills top to bottom as red, yellow, yellow, yellow, red, green, green, green. Column 5 has the same clue and fills the same way. Had those runs all been one color, they would have needed three gaps and eleven cells, which would not fit; the colors are what make this line solvable at a glance.
3. Mark the cells that must stay empty. When a line’s clues are used up, every other cell in it is empty. Column 1 is a single green 1, and row 7 already put a green cell in column 1. So the other seven cells of column 1 are empty. Column 8 works the same way. Mark empty cells with a small ✕ so you do not fill them by mistake.
4. Overlap a long run. Row 8 is green 6. Columns 1 and 8 are now empty, so the run must fill columns 2 to 7, all six cells. Even before you knew that, a run of 6 in a line of 8 always covers the middle four cells, wherever it sits; when a run is longer than half its space, the overlap is always filled.
5. Let different colors touch. Now that columns 1 and 8 are empty, rows 2, 3 and 4 each have six cells left: columns 2 to 7. Row 3 reads red 1, yellow 4, red 1. Neighbors with different colors need no gap, so the runs total 1 + 4 + 1 = 6 and fill those six cells exactly: red, four yellows, red, all touching. Rows 2 and 4 read red 2, yellow 2, red 2, also six cells with no gaps: red, red, yellow, yellow, red, red. The middle of the flower is now done.
6. Keep alternating rows and columns. Row 6 is green 2, and columns 4 and 5 already gave it two green cells, so the rest of row 6 is empty. Every new cell gives the crossing line more information. Work back and forth between rows and columns, checking each line for an exact fit, an overlap, or a finished clue, until the picture appears.
Common Mistakes
- Leaving gaps between different colors. In step 5, row 3 fits only because red, yellow and red touch. Add a gap between them and the runs no longer fit in six cells. Only add a gap when the neighbors share a color.
- Assuming different colors always touch. They may touch. When the line has spare cells, an empty cell between a red run and a yellow run is still possible; let the crossing columns decide.
- Filling a run in the wrong color. Read the color as carefully as the number. A cell that fits the count but not the color is still wrong.
Bigger Pictures
Color nonograms range from small teaching boards like this one to large grids with several colors. Bigger puzzles use the same moves: exact fits, overlaps, finished lines and the color rule. They just take longer, and the picture is more detailed when it appears. Many color puzzles have a picture that only reads from a distance, so step back now and then.
Outcome
You now know how color nonograms work: numbers are runs, runs appear in order, the number’s color is the run’s color, same-colored neighbors need a gap, and different colors may touch. You can find exact fits, use the color rule to fill lines where touching colors fit exactly, mark empty cells, and use overlaps to make progress on any board.
Try It Online
Solving in the browser feels like painting: pick a color from the swatch bar (or press 1 to 8), then click or drag across cells to fill them, and right-click to mark a cell as empty. Click a filled cell again in the same color to turn it into an ✕, and once more to clear it. Play Color Nonogram online, and see How to Play Puzzles Online for the general controls such as Check and Reset.
FAQ
What is a color nonogram?
A color nonogram, also called color picross, is a logic puzzle where colored number clues tell you how many cells to fill in each color on every row and column. Solving every clue reveals a color picture.
How is a color nonogram different from a regular nonogram?
The clues have colors, and the gap rule changes. Runs of the same color need at least one empty cell between them; runs of different colors may touch.
Do runs of different colors always touch?
No. They are allowed to touch, but there may also be empty cells between them. Use the crossing lines to decide.
Can a color nonogram have more than one solution?
A well-made puzzle has exactly one. When you play online, Check accepts any filling that matches every clue, so a correct solve is never marked wrong.
Is a color nonogram the same as paint by number?
No. Paint by number tells you the color of every cell. A color nonogram only tells you how many cells of each color sit in each row and column, and you work out where they go.
Where do I start on a big color nonogram?
Look for the longest runs and for lines whose clues add up close to the line length, counting gaps only between same-colored neighbors. Those lines give you the first certain cells.
Further Reading
- How to Create Color Nonogram Puzzles in Puzzle Maker Pro
- How to Play Puzzles Online
- Puzzle Book Studio Tutorials
Make Your Own Color Nonogram Puzzles
Now that you know how the colors fit together, turn your own pictures into color nonograms, each with its answer key, ready for a puzzle book, a printable pack or online play.
Create your own color nonogram puzzles with Color Nonogram
Not ready yet? Try the free demo first — it covers every module.