Best Offline Puzzle Games for iPhone: What Works With No Signal

Four popular puzzle games say outright on their App Store listings that they play offline: Vita Mahjong ("full offline support"), Woodoku ("playable offline"), Arcadia Zen Math (an "Offline Mode") and Brain Test 2 (it calls itself one of the "offline puzzle games"). For sudoku, nerByte Sudoku and Sudoku Master make the strongest offline claims. Sudoku Royale works offline only in part: downloaded Practice puzzles and Journey levels play without a signal, while the Daily Challenge, hints and drills do not.

This page is for packing a phone for a flight, a cabin or a long commute with more than one kind of puzzle on it. If you only want sudoku, our best offline sudoku app page goes deeper on that one game.

The App Store facts

From each app's US App Store listing, checked October 26, 2026. Prices and paid items change, so check the listing before you buy.

What each listing promises about offline play

Quotes and paraphrases are from each App Store listing. A listing that says "offline" rarely says which modes, so "not stated" means the developer is silent on it, not that it fails.

Mahjong: Vita Mahjong

The most direct offline promise on this page. Vita Mahjong's listing says full offline support lets you play "anytime, anywhere, without needing internet". It is mahjong solitaire: match pairs of free tiles until the board is clear. It leans on calm, with large tiles, play without a timer or score pressure, and free hints, undo and shuffle. It shows ads and sells Mahjong Ads Remove ($5.99), plus weekly, monthly and yearly subscriptions. A good long-haul game: no clock, and a stuck board can be shuffled. See the Vita Mahjong alternatives for other mahjong apps.

Blocks: Woodoku

Woodoku's feature list includes "Playable offline so you can enjoy hours of woody puzzle fun anywhere" and notes that it does not take up much space. You place wooden shapes on a 9x9 board and clear rows, columns and squares for points. Pieces are random, so it suits short, low-effort sessions more than deep thinking. Its paid items are numbered packages (Package 2 $1.99, Package 5 $4.99 and up) that the listing does not explain. Our Woodoku alternatives page covers it in detail.

Math: Arcadia Zen Math

An equation crossword: fill the grid so every sum across and down is true. Its listing has a line for it: "Offline Mode: play anywhere, and enjoy the math puzzle game without connecting to Wi-Fi or the internet". It also lists weekly and regional leaderboards, which by their nature need a connection to update. It lists no in-app purchases, and its age rating notes advertising.

Riddles: Brain Test 2

Unico Studio's sequel describes itself as "a funny and tricky addition to the offline puzzle games of the world": hundreds of story-based riddles where the answer hides in the wording or the picture. Good for passing the phone around. Its store sells lamps and Remove Ads for $3.99. One practical point for any app here: buying lamps, coins or an ad removal goes through the App Store, which needs a connection, so do it before you leave. The Brain Test alternatives page has similar games.

Sudoku: three listings, and ours

nerByte Sudoku makes the cleanest claim, "offline playable without restrictions". Sudoku Master promises a full offline mode and adds 6x6 and 16x16 grids. Sudoku Face Off says its solo mode works offline and only its live races need a connection.

Sudoku Royale, our app, is offline in part, and we would rather you know which part:

• Works offline: Practice, with the puzzles already downloaded for the level you play (when they run out, the app asks you to connect for more), and the 88-level Journey once its map has loaded once. Play Nearby runs a game with someone next to you over Bluetooth, no internet needed.
• Needs a connection: the Daily Challenge, the Dojo drills, hints, Belts and online matches.

So it is a fine offline sudoku app if you open each level you play before you leave, and a poor one if your plan is to do the daily puzzle at 35,000 feet. It has no ads and nothing to buy, so there is nothing to set up in the store first.

Where another app is the better pick

• You want hints with no signal. Sudoku Royale's hints need the internet. Vita Mahjong lists free hints and undo, though its listing does not say whether they work offline.
• You want everything to work offline, no exceptions. nerByte Sudoku says exactly that. Sudoku Royale does not.
• You want variety on one trip. No single app here covers more than one kind of puzzle. Pair a sudoku app with Vita Mahjong or Arcadia Zen Math.
• You use Android. Sudoku Royale is iPhone and iPad only.

A sensible offline set

One logic puzzle, one calm matcher and one quick game cover most trips: a sudoku app, Vita Mahjong, and Woodoku or Brain Test 2. Open each once on Wi-Fi before you go, and make any purchases then. For the sudoku slot, Sudoku Royale is free with no ads, as long as you remember the Daily Challenge stays online. More reading: puzzle games without a subscription and the full sudoku app comparisons list.