2048

What is 2048?

2048 is a single-player sliding puzzle on a 4×4 grid. Every move slides all tiles as far as they go in one direction. When two tiles with the same number touch, they merge into one tile with their sum, and that sum is added to your score. After each move a new 2 (or sometimes a 4) appears in an empty cell. The goal is to create a tile with 2048; the game ends when the board is full and no move can merge anything.

How to play

1. Click or tap the board, then press the arrow keys (or W A S D) to slide the tiles. On a phone, swipe on the board.
2. Merge equal tiles: 2 + 2 = 4, 4 + 4 = 8, and so on up to 2048.
3. Press Undo to take back your last move (one step).
4. Press New game to start over. Your best score is kept.

Strategy

1. Pick a corner and keep your biggest tile there

Choose one corner, for example the bottom-left, and keep the largest tile in it for the whole game. Almost every high score is built this way: big tiles stay together in one place, and small tiles appear and merge on the other side of the board.

2. Use only two or three directions

With a bottom-left corner, press mostly Down and Left. Use Right when those two do not move anything. Press Up only when there is no other move, because it lifts the big tile out of its corner, and a new 2 can land in the gap.

3. Keep the bottom row full

When every cell of the bottom row is filled, pressing Left or Right cannot move the corner tile. If the row has a gap, a new tile can spawn there or the corner tile can slide away, so fill gaps in that row first.

4. Build a "snake" chain

Line up tiles in decreasing order away from the corner: for example 512 256 128 64 along the bottom row, then continue on the row above in the opposite direction (8 16 32 …). When the smallest end of the chain merges, the merge rolls down the chain into the corner: 64 + 64 → 128, which meets 128 → 256, and so on.

5. Feed the end of the chain

Build the next tile the chain needs right next to its smallest end. Small tiles in the upper rows are the material: merge them toward the chain instead of making random merges in the middle of the board.

6. Look one move ahead

Before a move, check which cells will become empty, because the next 2 or 4 appears in one of them. Avoid moves that leave an empty cell inside your chain or in the corner.

When things go wrong

• If the big tile leaves the corner, put it back on the very next move if you can, before a new tile takes its place.
• Undo takes back one move. Use it to recover from a slip, such as pressing Up by accident.
• When the board fills up, look for merges that open up the most cells, even small ones, to buy time.

FAQ

What happens after I reach 2048?

You can keep playing to reach 4096, 8192 and beyond. Your score keeps counting.

Is my game saved?

Yes. The current board, the score and your best score are saved in this browser, so reloading the page or adding the game to a pocket keeps your progress.

Is the score the same as the original 2048?

Yes. Each merge adds the value of the new tile to the score, as in the original game.

Where can I see my past games?

Open Records & history below the game. It shows your best result and your last 10 games with the date and time. They are saved in this browser only.