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Swipe a gem to swap it with its neighbour.Drag a gem, or click two neighbours. Arrow keys and Enter work too.
Swap the gems, line up three, and set off cascading combos.
Match-3 is the gem puzzle where you swap neighbouring gems to line up three or more of a color. Big matches make special gems, cascades multiply your points, and you can play without limits, against a two-minute clock, or with thirty moves.
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Why you will love it
Learn Match-3 in a minute
Swap two gems that sit side by side to line up three or more of the same color. They clear, the gems above fall, and new ones drop in.
How Match-3 works
A few rules decide which swaps count and what happens after them.
- Neighbours only: you can swap gems that touch side by side or above and below, not diagonally.
- Every swap must match: a swap that lines up nothing slides back and costs nothing, not even a move.
- Lines join up: lines of one color that cross, in an L, T or plus shape, count as a single match.
- Gravity and cascades: cleared gems leave gaps, the gems above fall, and new ones drop in from the top. New lines that form clear on their own.
- Always a move: the board always has a swap that counts. If cascades ever leave none, the gems are shuffled.
Line gems, bombs and rainbows
Bigger matches leave a special gem behind, on the gem you moved when your swap made the match. It stays on the board until you use it.
- Line gem (four in a line): marked with two stripes. When it is matched, it clears its whole row, or its whole column if it came from a vertical line.
- Bomb (an L, T or plus shape): marked with a ring. When it is matched, it clears the three by three square around it.
- Rainbow gem (five in a line): a disc of every color. Swap it with any gem to clear every gem of that color.
- Chain reactions: a special gem caught in another one's blast goes off too.
- Two specials together: swapping two special gems sets both off at once. Two rainbow gems clear the whole board.
How scoring works
Points come from every gem you clear, and cascades are worth more.
- 10 points per gem: every gem cleared by your swap scores 10, whether a match or a special gem cleared it.
- Cascades count double, then triple: gems cleared by the first cascade after your swap score 20 each, the next cascade 30 each, and so on.
- Best per mode: your best score is kept for each mode separately.
Three ways to play
Pick a mode when you start a new game; the game remembers your choice.
- Endless: no clock and no move limit. Play as long as you like, and press End game when you want your score counted.
- Timed: two minutes to score as much as you can. The clock starts with your first swap and stops whenever you pause or leave the page.
- Moves: thirty swaps to score as much as you can. Only swaps that make a match use up a move.
Controls and tools
Made for a thumb on a phone, and just as quick with a mouse or a keyboard.
- Swipe: the swap happens as soon as your finger moves a third of a gem, without waiting for you to lift it.
- Tap and tap: tap a gem, then a neighbour, to swap them. Tap the picked gem again to let it go.
- Hint: shows a good swap. If you wait a few seconds without moving, the game shows one by itself.
- Keyboard: arrow keys move between gems; Enter or Space picks one, and an arrow then swaps it that way. H shows a hint, P pauses a timed game and N starts a new game.
- Shapes: every color has its own shape, so gems are easy to tell apart even when colors look alike to you.
Strategies & tips
A little planning turns ordinary swaps into special gems and long cascades.
To start with:
- Work near the bottom. Clearing low on the board moves more gems, which makes cascades more likely.
- Look for four before three. A line gem is worth a whole row of points later.
- Save the rainbow. Swap it with the color you see most of.
Once that feels natural:
- Set up crossings. Two lines of one color that meet make a bomb.
- Line up your specials. A line gem that sweeps through a bomb sets it off too.
- In moves mode, think in points per move. One swap that sets off two specials beats several small matches.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers to the things players ask most about Match-3.
Can I run out of moves in endless mode?
No. The board always has a swap that counts; if none is left after a cascade, the gems are shuffled. An endless game ends only when you press End game.
Does a wrong swap cost me anything?
No. A swap that matches nothing slides back. It does not use a move in moves mode.
Can I pause a timed game?
Yes. Press Pause, or the P key. The game also pauses by itself when you switch to another tab or app, and the board stays covered until you resume.
Is my game saved if I close the page?
Yes. The game in progress is kept in your browser on this device, and a timed game comes back paused with the time it had left. Your best score for each mode is kept too.
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