The fastest way to get better at Skyscrapers is to read the clues for the tall buildings first, count rows and columns as you would in Sudoku, and look straight at the lines your last height touched. We measured these tips on all 150 of the game’s levels, and the numbers below come from those tests.
These build on how to solve Skyscrapers. If you haven’t played before, start with the rules.
Solving tips
1. Start with the 1s and the full clues
A clue of 1 puts the tallest building next to it, and a clue as big as the grid fills its whole line. 36 of the 50 Easy levels have one, 33 Medium and 28 Hard, and on every one of those it’s the first move.
2. Keep the tall buildings away from big clues
With a clue of c, the tallest building can’t stand within c − 1 squares of it. That idea is the first move on every level without a 1 or a full clue, and it’s needed on every level in the game, 3 to 4 times each on average.
3. Find the tallest building in every line
Each row and column has exactly one tallest building, and the clues push it around. Once it’s placed, a line’s clues get much easier to read: everything behind it is hidden from that side.
4. Follow what you just changed
Every height you place sits in a row and a column. On the game’s levels, the next height goes in one of those two lines 60% of the time on Easy and Medium, and 58% on Hard. Check them first.
5. Count as in Sudoku
Much of the work isn’t clues at all: it’s a square with one height left, or a height with one place left in a line. They’re the most used techniques on every track, about 15 times per Easy level, 20 per Medium and 34 per Hard.
6. Use notes on 6×6 and up
Listing a line’s arrangements is needed on every level, about 5 times on Easy, 9 on Medium and 11 on Hard. With notes, you can see which orderings are still possible. On Hard, what-if comes up on every level too, about 5 times each, and it’s far easier from notes.
Tips for playing on PeerPuzzles
7. Use the keyboard
On a computer, type a height to place it, and the arrow keys move between squares. N turns notes on and off, Backspace clears a square, and U or Ctrl/Cmd + Z undoes a move.
8. Let the clues and Stuck? help
A clue turns teal once its line is full and matches, and red when it doesn’t; a repeated height turns red too. And if you’re stuck, Stuck? (or H) highlights where to look and names the technique, without filling anything in for you. If one of your heights is wrong, it rings that square first.