2048 Game
Slide the tiles, merge equal numbers, and build a 2048 tile. Swipe on a phone or use the arrow keys.
How to use this 2048 game
- Press an arrow key or W, A, S or D to slide all tiles up, left, down or right.
- On a phone or with a mouse, swipe or drag across the board. Each swipe makes one move, and swiping on the board does not scroll the page.
- Watch the Score, Best and Max tile numbers update after each merge.
- Press U or Ctrl+Z (Cmd+Z on a Mac) to undo one move at a time, up to the last 20 moves.
- Open the board size menu and choose 3x3, 4x4, 5x5 or 6x6. This starts a new game of that size, and your choice is remembered.
- Press N to start a new game at any time.
- When you reach 2048, choose “Keep going” to continue the same game or “New game” to start over.
Press F or the corner button to toggle fullscreen, which makes the board as large as your screen allows. On a phone, fullscreen also keeps the page from moving while you swipe quickly. Your game is saved after every move, so you can close the tab and come back later. If you add ?seed=123 to the page address, the sequence of new tiles repeats, which is useful if you want to try the same game again.
How to play 2048
Each move slides every tile as far as it can in the direction you choose. A move only counts if at least one tile moves or merges. After a valid move, one new tile appears in a random empty cell. It is a 2 nine times out of ten and a 4 one time in ten. The game starts with two tiles.
What are the 2048 rules?
Two equal tiles that collide merge into one tile with double the value. A tile created by a merge cannot merge again in the same move, and merging starts from the side the tiles move toward. For example, [2,2,2,2] slid left becomes [4,4,,] and scores 8. [4,4,8,] slid left becomes [8,8,,] and scores 8, because the new 8 does not merge again. [2,,2,2] slid left becomes [4,2,,] and scores 4.
The score goes up by the value of each newly merged tile, so two 4s merging into an 8 adds 8. The game ends when the board is full and no two neighbouring tiles are equal. A “No moves left” message then shows your score.
How to get 2048: the tile math
Every tile is a power of two, and merging keeps the total sum of the tiles the same. To make a 2048 tile, the tiles on the board must add up to at least 2048. In practice, you build it by merging smaller tiles step by step, such as 1024 + 1024 = 2048.
What is the highest tile in 2048?
2048 is 2 to the 11th power, and it is the usual goal. The game does not stop there, because “Keep going” continues the same game with no cap on tile size, so 4096 or higher can appear. The Max tile counter shows the largest tile currently on the board.
How to win 2048
Reaching a 2048 tile shows “You made 2048!” and the game is won at that point. You can still keep playing from there. Winning depends on keeping enough open space so that you can keep merging, which is why board management matters more than speed.
2048 game strategy: the corner method
The widely used approach is corner strategy. Keep the highest tile in one corner, keep the row along that corner full and ordered from largest to smallest, and mostly use two or three directions, such as left, down and right, while avoiding up. This keeps the big tile from being pulled out of its corner.
What are good 2048 tips?
Plan merges in a chain that leads toward your corner. Avoid filling the board with small tiles far away from your big ones, since they block merges. Use undo to find out which move broke your corner. Bigger boards, such as 5x5 and 6x6, give you more room, which makes 2048 easier to reach. The 3x3 board is much harder.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an undo in 2048?
Yes. Press U or Ctrl/Cmd+Z to take back one move at a time, including tiles and score, for up to the last 20 moves. Undo also works after game over, and it never lowers your Best score.
Does 2048 save my game?
Yes. The current game, including the undo history, is saved in your browser after every move, so reloading the page continues the same game. Clearing your site data deletes the saved game.
Can I play 2048 on a phone?
Yes. Swipe or drag across the board to make one move per swipe. Swiping on the board does not scroll the page.
Can I play 2048 on a 5x5 board?
Yes. Choose 5x5 from the board size menu, which starts a new game on that size. Bigger boards give you more room, so 2048 is easier to reach than on 3x3.
Is 2048 free to play online?
Yes. The game runs in your browser with no download and no sign-up, and nothing you play is sent anywhere.
Who made the original 2048?
Gabriele Cirulli created the original 2048 and released it in 2014. This version was written for this site.
What does “No moves left” mean in 2048?
It means the board is full and no two neighbouring tiles are equal, so no move can change the board. The message shows your final score.
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