Tangram
Tangram is the centuries-old Chinese puzzle of seven flat pieces cut from a single square. You arrange all of them to fill a silhouette exactly, with nothing sticking out and no gaps left over.
This version is part of Christopher Müller's PaperGames collection and is played entirely with taps, no dragging. It runs in your browser tab, so it works on a phone, tablet or Chromebook.
How to play Tangram
The set has five triangles (two big, one middle-sized, two little), plus one square and one parallelogram. They sit in a tray under the outline, each marked with its own black-and-white pattern.
Tap a piece to pick it up. The Turn 45° button spins it and the Flip button gives its mirror image. Then tap inside the outline, and it jumps to the nearest place it can legally sit. Tap a placed piece to pick it back up.
A counter tracks how many pieces are in place. Cover the whole outline to solve it, then choose Next outline. Easy shapes show faint guide lines, Medium and Hard show only the outline, and the Outline only set lets pieces rest anywhere, like real ones on a table.
Controls
| Action | Keyboard | Mouse | Touch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Choose a piece | — | Click it in the tray | Tap it in the tray |
| Rotate or mirror | — | Turn 45° or Flip button | Turn 45° or Flip button |
| Place the piece | — | Click inside the outline | Tap inside the outline |
| Lift a placed piece | — | Click it | Tap it |
| Get help | — | Hint button | Hint button |
Tips
- Place the two big triangles before anything else. Together they cover half the area and usually fit in very few places.
- Sharp points in the silhouette usually need a triangle corner, so they reveal where one of the triangles sits.
- Hold the parallelogram back until near the end. Flipping turns it into its mirror twin, so test both sides once its spot is clear.
- A pair of small triangles covers the same area as the square, so swap one for the other when a gap looks odd.
- A single Hint lays one piece correctly, and with that one anchor in place the remaining gaps get much clearer.
If you like Tangram, try these
Five-Square Tiling PuzzleFitting shapes into a target area carries over, using twelve five-square pieces to fill a rectangle.
Pixel Sketch StudioPictures built from simple parts link the two, though here you draw freely pixel by pixel and export PNGs.
Questions
Do I need to drag pieces in this Tangram?
No. Every action is a tap or click: pick a piece, turn or flip it with the buttons, then tap where it should go. That makes it comfortable on touch screens.
Does it remember which outlines I solved?
Yes. Solved outlines get a check mark in the list, and that progress is kept in your browser's storage on the same device.
What is the Outline only mode?
In that set, pieces do not snap to a solution and can hang over the edge. You have to judge the fit yourself, much like solving with a physical set.
More like this: all puzzle games · Math games · every game A–Z
