Grids that have more open white space are typically harder to solve and to construct.
The "open square count" here is the number of white squares that do not touch a block (black square), even diagonally.
Top constructors and grids:
D | A | N | I | E | L | C | R | A | I | G | T | A | K | E | S | H | A | P | E | |
U | S | E | D | V | E | H | I | C | L | E | U | N | E | N | T | E | R | E | D | |
C | O | L | L | E | G | E | P | R | E | P | T | I | E | D | Y | E | I | N | G | |
A | F | L | Y | E | L | I | S | H | A | S | P | I | L | L | A | N | E | |||
I | R | K | E | D | A | M | A | T | I | V | E | |||||||||
J | E | A | L | O | U | S | Y | P | R | I | S | O | N | E | S | C | A | P | E | |
O | U | T | I | N | G | C | A | D | G | I | N | G | O | D | O | R | ||||
A | B | A | C | I | S | H | O | R | T | O | F | E | T | C | H | I | N | |||
D | I | R | E | C | T | L | I | N | E | S | I | L | I | C | O | N | E | |||
S | E | I | B | R | A | N | D | N | A | M | E | P | R | O | D | U | C | T | S | |
T | O | O | K | T | O | T | H | E | S | L | O | P | E | S | ||||||
S | E | V | E | N | Y | E | A | R | S | I | N | T | I | B | E | T | V | A | T | |
W | E | I | R | D | E | S | T | D | E | C | O | R | A | T | I | V | E | |||
A | R | N | E | S | S | D | E | S | E | R | E | T | B | E | L | I | E | |||
R | I | G | S | C | O | A | L | E | R | S | S | L | A | L | O | M | ||||
M | E | T | A | A | N | A | L | Y | S | E | S | S | T | H | E | L | E | N | S | |
M | I | M | E | S | I | S | C | E | R | E | S | |||||||||
S | A | D | F | A | C | E | S | E | T | A | L | I | I | F | L | A | P | |||
A | L | E | R | T | E | D | T | O | A | M | A | Z | O | N | P | R | I | M | E | |
A | T | L | E | I | S | U | R | E | R | A | R | E | D | I | S | E | A | S | E | |
R | O | A | D | S | T | E | A | D | S | H | O | R | E | P | A | T | R | O | L |
B | O | B | S | F | O | R | A | P | P | L | E | S | M | I | D | R | I | F | F | |
A | R | E | W | E | D | O | N | E | H | E | R | E | O | C | E | A | N | I | A | |
W | I | R | E | R | E | C | O | R | D | E | R | S | T | O | E | T | A | G | S | |
L | O | R | E | N | K | I | S | S | O | S | M | O | N | D | S | E | T | |||
S | N | A | P | B | O | N | E | B | R | I | A | R | S | H | E | A | D | |||
P | O | U | T | B | E | F | O | G | S | F | A | N | T | A | ||||||
D | E | S | C | E | N | T | L | E | A | R | N | S | D | O | R | S | E | Y | ||
I | N | T | O | T | O | H | A | L | V | E | S | P | O | R | T | E | R | S | ||
T | R | A | P | S | B | O | W | T | I | E | M | E | M | E | ||||||
K | A | T | I | E | H | O | L | M | E | S | P | A | R | A | S | A | I | L | ||
O | P | E | N | M | I | N | D | E | D | B | A | R | M | I | T | Z | V | A | H | |
T | D | G | A | R | D | E | N | M | A | S | K | I | N | G | T | A | P | E | ||
T | E | E | M | C | O | R | S | E | T | R | E | N | T | S | ||||||
R | I | C | H | A | R | D | S | O | R | B | E | T | G | E | C | K | O | S | ||
A | M | O | U | R | S | F | O | U | L | E | D | G | O | E | S | A | P | E | ||
D | I | R | T | Y | A | L | F | R | E | D | B | R | A | N | ||||||
I | N | N | S | P | R | E | T | T | Y | M | O | O | T | S | C | A | B | |||
O | L | E | S | E | N | A | T | E | V | A | T | S | C | L | O | S | E | |||
C | O | L | G | A | T | E | A | S | B | I | G | A | S | A | H | O | U | S | E | |
A | V | I | A | T | E | S | C | A | Y | E | N | N | E | P | E | P | P | E | R | |
R | E | A | P | E | R | S | O | N | E | W | A | Y | S | T | R | E | E | T | S |
W | H | A | T | E | L | S | E | I | S | N | E | W | C | L | O | N | I | N | G | |
H | E | L | E | N | A | M | O | N | T | A | N | A | A | I | R | A | S | I | A | |
E | S | T | R | O | G | E | N | P | A | T | C | H | D | R | A | G | O | N | S | |
T | S | A | R | S | L | I | E | N | L | L | B | E | A | N | G | E | T | |||
S | E | R | A | P | L | A | N | R | O | B | O | T | S | D | O | H | A | |||
T | E | E | N | M | A | S | E | R | S | T | E | N | O | N | ||||||
O | S | W | A | L | D | S | A | T | I | R | E | P | R | T | A | L | K | |||
D | O | L | I | K | E | I | N | N | I | N | G | M | E | A | S | L | E | S | ||
O | L | I | N | E | T | R | Y | I | N | G | J | U | A | N | ||||||
W | A | C | K | A | D | O | O | D | L | E | H | E | L | L | S | C | A | P | E | |
S | L | E | E | P | A | P | N | E | A | F | O | R | C | E | F | I | E | L | D | |
E | A | R | D | O | C | T | O | R | F | I | R | S | T | D | E | G | R | E | E | |
W | H | E | N | T | O | N | N | E | S | R | A | I | N | N | ||||||
R | A | M | A | D | A | N | C | R | I | K | E | Y | A | R | R | E | T | S | ||
E | L | I | T | E | S | M | A | U | L | E | D | C | L | A | S | S | Y | |||
D | O | N | O | R | T | E | R | M | E | D | T | A | I | L | ||||||
C | O | I | N | S | O | G | L | A | D | J | I | L | T | S | I | V | A | |||
E | G | G | B | E | T | S | O | N | H | U | L | U | H | U | R | O | N | |||
D | O | O | R | O | N | E | R | E | M | I | N | D | M | E | A | G | A | I | N | |
A | B | L | E | I | S | M | F | R | O | N | T | E | N | T | R | A | N | C | E | |
R | I | F | F | L | E | S | F | A | N | T | A | S | Y | S | E | R | I | E | S |
*** See the rest of the grids or view the view the wide open Daily grids. ***
Click a date below to see the full puzzle. Only 21 by 21 puzzles are considered here.
Here are the top 30:
Rank | Date | Open Squares | Author | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | November 24, 2019 | 189 | Frank Longo | OPEN WIDE! |
2. | November 4, 2018 | 186 | Patrick Berry | UNTHEMED |
December 3, 2023 | 186 | Tracy Bennett | Freestyling | |
4. | May 17, 2020 | 177 | Byron Walden | WIDE-OPEN SPACES |
5. | June 6, 2021 | 174 | Robyn Weintraub | OLIO |
6. | December 18, 2022 | 173 | Ryan McCarty | Some Theme's Missing |
7. | January 6, 2002 | 168 | Frank A. Longo | MAMMALS WITH CHARACTER |
8. | June 16, 2019 | 166 | Joel Fagliano | NOT IN SO MANY WORDS |
9. | July 11, 2004 | 164 | Randolph Ross | YOU SEE NOW? |
November 13, 2022 | 164 | Samuel A. Donaldson | Collision Courses | |
11. | November 7, 2021 | 160 | Sid Sivakumar | THIS AND THAT |
12. | March 26, 2000 | 158 | Manny Nosowsky | STARTING COSTS |
March 4, 2018 | 158 | Byron Walden | CHARACTER BUILDING | |
June 11, 2023 | 158 | Sam Ezersky | Words, Words, Words: A Themeless | |
15. | April 27, 1997 | 157 | Matt Gaffney | Off the Rack |
November 10, 2013 | 157 | Alan Olschwang | BYE-LINES | |
17. | September 4, 2011 | 154 | Dana Delany and Matt Ginsberg | THAT'S DISGUSTING! |
January 20, 2013 | 154 | Yaakov Bendavid | ALL-INSPIRING | |
19. | November 15, 2015 | 153 | Alan Arbesfeld | HAVING ASPIRATIONS |
September 16, 2018 | 153 | Joel Fagliano | "UH, WHAT?" | |
21. | January 5, 1997 | 152 | W. R. Williams | Theme: Water, Water Everywhere |
August 2, 2020 | 152 | David Levinson Wilk | PUZZLIN' | |
April 3, 2022 | 152 | Byron Walden | SOFT OPTIONS | |
24. | June 7, 2020 | 151 | Andy Kravis | SURPLUS STORE |
25. | October 16, 1994 | 150 | Raymond Hamel | Out Of Their Element |
March 22, 1998 | 150 | Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon | Anagrammatic Disclosures | |
August 18, 2013 | 150 | Elizabeth C. Gorski | EDGINESS | |
July 15, 2018 | 150 | Sam Ezersky and Byron Walden | COMPLIMENTARY | |
May 24, 2020 | 150 | Andrew Chaikin | THE MYSTERY OF MCGUFFIN MANOR | |
30. | December 29, 1996 | 149 | B. White | Theme: A Host of Sins |