How to Play Minesweeper
Minesweeper is a single-player puzzle game played on a rectangular grid. Hidden beneath the cells is a set number of mines. Your goal is to reveal all safe cells without triggering a single mine.
Left click Reveal a cell. If it contains a mine — game over.
Right click Place or remove a flag 🚩 to mark a suspected mine.
Numbers Each revealed number shows how many mines touch that cell (including diagonals).
Empty cells Clicking an empty cell automatically reveals all connected safe cells.
First click Always safe — mines are placed after your first move.
On Burmly, there are three difficulty levels: Easy (9×9 grid, 10 mines), Medium (16×16 grid, 40 mines) and Hard (16×30 grid, 99 mines). Your best time is saved locally, and completed games are submitted to the global leaderboard.
Minesweeper Strategy & Tips
Minesweeper is a game of logic and deduction. These patterns appear in almost every game and recognising them will dramatically improve your speed.
Start from corners
Corner and edge cells are constrained by fewer neighbours, often giving you easier deductions at the start of the game.
The 1-2-1 pattern
If you see a 1-2-1 sequence along an edge, the mines are always on the outside cells flanking the 2. Flag them safely.
Count remaining mines
The counter at the top shows mines minus flags. When it reaches zero, all remaining hidden cells are safe to click.
The History of Minesweeper
Minesweeper traces its roots to 1960s mainframe games, but the version the world knows was created by Robert Donner at Microsoft in 1989. It shipped with Windows 3.1 in 1992 — originally as a way to teach users how to use a mouse, specifically how to right-click.
For over a decade, Minesweeper was one of the most played games on the planet simply because it came pre-installed on hundreds of millions of PCs. Microsoft removed it from the default Windows installation with Windows 8 in 2012 — a decision that caused genuine public outcry.
Today, competitive Minesweeper has a dedicated global community. The world record for completing the Expert (equivalent to Hard) board stands at under 1 minute. On Burmly, can you break 5 minutes on Hard?
Frequently Asked Questions
What do the numbers mean in Minesweeper? +
Each number tells you exactly how many mines are touching that cell, including all eight diagonal and orthogonal neighbours. A "1" means exactly one adjacent mine; an "8" means all eight surrounding cells contain mines.
Is the first click always safe? +
Yes. On Burmly, mines are placed after your first click. The algorithm ensures your first cell and its immediate neighbours are all safe, giving you a good starting reveal.
Can Minesweeper always be solved without guessing? +
Not always — unlike Sudoku, standard Minesweeper boards are not guaranteed to be solvable by logic alone. Some configurations require a 50/50 guess. This is an intentional part of the original game's design and is preserved in Burmly's implementation.
How does the timer work? +
The timer in the top-right of the game window starts on your first click and stops when you either clear the board (win) or reveal a mine (game over). Your best time per difficulty is saved locally.
Is Burmly Minesweeper free? +
Completely free. No account, no ads, no time limits. Play as many games as you like on any device.