Free Snake, no sign-up
Snake is the classic arcade game you can play online for free, with nothing to install and no account. Steer a snake around a 17 by 17 board and eat the food that appears on it. Every bite adds a point and makes the snake one square longer, so the board gets more crowded the better you do. Hit a wall or your own body and the game is over.
Play with the arrow keys, W, A, S and D, or a swipe on a phone or tablet. There are three speeds and two modes, and each keeps its own best score in this browser.
How to play
- The snake starts in the middle of the board, three squares long, facing right. It sets off when you press Start or steer it.
- Steer with the arrow keys or W, A, S and D, or swipe on the board. You can’t turn straight back on yourself.
- Each piece of food you eat adds one point and makes the snake one square longer. A new piece appears at once on a random empty square.
- The game ends when the snake hits the wall or its own body. Fill the whole board and you win.
Two quick turns in a row both count, so you can turn a tight corner with two key presses or one bent swipe. The square your tail is just leaving is safe to move into, unless you’re eating at that moment, when the tail stays put.
Modes and speeds
In Classic the walls are solid. In Wrap there are no walls: leave the board on one side and you come back in on the other, so only your own body can stop you.
Slow moves 6 squares a second, Normal 9 and Fast 12. The speed stays the same for the whole game. Each mode and speed keeps its own best score, and Statistics shows how many games you’ve played and your average score for each.
Tips for longer games
Don’t chase every piece of food
The shortest way to the food is often the one that traps you. Early on it costs nothing, but once the snake is long, think about where your body will be when you get there and how you’ll get out again.
Keep to the edges and leave the middle open
Running along the walls and turning back in neat rows keeps your body tidy and the open space in one piece. A snake that wanders through the middle cuts the board into pockets it can’t leave.
Follow your tail
When you’re boxed in, head for the end of your tail. It moves away as you move, so the path behind it keeps opening up. Following your tail is the safest way to wait for the food to land somewhere easier.
Turn early, not at the last square
At Fast speed there’s little time to react. Press the next turn a square or two ahead: up to two turns are remembered, and each one happens on the next step.
Use Wrap to practise
With no walls to hit, Wrap mode lets you practise steering a long snake around itself. Crossing an edge is also a quick way to reach food on the far side.
Pausing
Press P or Pause to stop the snake. The game also pauses by itself when you switch tabs or windows. A game can’t be saved, so reloading or leaving the page ends it, and its score counts.
Keyboard
| Arrow keys | Steer |
|---|---|
| W, A, S, D | Steer up, left, down, right |
| P | Pause or resume |
Playing on a phone
Tap Play and the game fills the screen. Swipe on the board in the direction you want to go; a swipe turns the snake as soon as your finger moves, without waiting for you to lift it. If you’d rather tap, turn on the arrow pad in Settings.
The snake glides from square to square. If you’d rather it stepped, turn off smooth movement in Settings; it follows your device’s reduce motion setting until you choose. Either way the game is the same: only the drawing changes.
Accessibility
Snake is played in real time on a picture of the board, so it can’t be played with a screen reader. It can be played with the keyboard alone, and Slow speed gives the most time to react.
Questions
What is the highest score possible?
286. The board has 289 squares and the snake starts three long, so after 286 pieces of food it fills every square, and that’s a win. It takes careful planning, most of all at Fast.
Why didn’t the snake turn?
A turn straight back the way you’re going is ignored, because the snake would run into itself. Only two turns are remembered at a time, so a third quick press before the snake moves is ignored too.
Is the food placed at random?
Yes. Each new piece lands on a random empty square, never on the snake, and every empty square is equally likely.
Can I play on my phone?
Yes. Swipes that start on the board never scroll the page, and the arrow pad in Settings gives you buttons instead.
Where are my scores kept?
Only in this browser: your best scores, statistics and settings. Nothing is sent anywhere, and clearing your browser’s site data removes them.
Where does Snake come from?
The idea goes back to Blockade, an arcade game from 1976, and became famous on mobile phones in the late 1990s. This version is written from scratch for El Trivia.
More to play
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- Queens Puzzle: Place one queen in every row, column and colored region.
- Minesweeper: Open every square without a mine. The numbers tell you where they are.
- 2048: Slide the tiles and join equal numbers. Can you make 2048?
- Double Drop: Drop numbered blocks into five columns. Equal blocks join and set off chains.
- Memory Match: Turn over two tiles at a time and find every matching pair.
- Checkers: Jump and capture across the board, and crown your kings. Also called draughts.
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