Pentomino Puzzles (12 Printables)
Cut out the pentominoes printed on the sheet, then fit them together to cover the shape above them, from three pieces to the full set of twelve.
Pentomino Puzzle Generator
Make a pentomino puzzle to print: a shape drawn on squares at the top of the page, and below it the pieces to cut out, each made of five squares and named after the letter it looks like, F, I, L, N, P, T, U, V, W, X, Y or Z. Cut them out, then cover the shape with them, every square once, turning or flipping the pieces as needed.
Choose the number of pieces, 3, 6 or all 12, and the shape: a rectangle or a free shape built from the pieces themselves. Three pieces fill a 3 by 5 rectangle; six fill a 5 by 6 or a long 3 by 10; the full set fills the classic 6 by 10, a 5 by 12 or a 4 by 15. The squares of the pieces match those of the shape, so the cut pieces fit it exactly.
Border hints draws, on each piece to cut out, the sides that run along the edge of the shape in a thicker line. Piece letters prints the letter of each piece on it; turned off, the pieces stay blank and look alike on both sides when flipped. New draws another shape and turns the pieces to cut out a new way; Show the solution outlines each piece in place, with its letter, in orange dots.
Version 1. Last updated on Thu, 29 Oct 2026.
Examples
The latest printable pages whose sheets were made with this generator, ready to download.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Can You Make With the Pentomino Puzzle Generator?
Cut-and-fill puzzles for children and adults: a rectangle of 3 by 5 squares for three pieces, 5 by 6 or 3 by 10 for six, and 6 by 10, 5 by 12 or 4 by 15 for all twelve, or a free shape, each printed on one A4 sheet with an answer key.
What Is a Pentomino?
A flat shape made of five equal squares joined edge to edge. There are exactly twelve of them, when turned and flipped copies count as one, and each is known by the letter of the alphabet it resembles.
How Do You Solve a Pentomino Puzzle?
Place every piece inside the outline so that its squares sit on squares of the shape, with no gap and no overlap. Begin with the corners and the narrow parts of the shape, where few pieces can go, and keep an eye on the long I and the cross-shaped X, which fit in the fewest places.
What Do the Border Hints Show?
Which sides of each piece lie along the edge of the shape: they are drawn thicker, and the rest of the outline a little thinner, so the cutting line stays clear. A piece without a thick side goes inside. The hints follow the answer key, so another arrangement that fills the shape may not match them.
Is There Only One Solution?
Rarely. The 6 by 10 rectangle with all twelve pieces can be filled in 2,339 ways, the 5 by 12 in 1,010 and the 4 by 15 in 368, a whole solution turned or mirrored never counting as a new one. The answer key shows one of them; any arrangement that covers the shape exactly is right.
How Should I Print and Cut the Pieces?
Print the sheet at full size on A4, on thick paper or card if you have some, then cut along the thick outlines of the pieces. A cut piece laid on the shape covers its squares exactly, since both are drawn with squares of the same size. Turn off Piece letters for blank pieces, with no difference between their two faces.
How Does the Pentomino Puzzle Generator Work?
For a rectangle, it fills the squares in order along the long side, always the first empty one, trying the pieces and their positions in a random order, and turns back as soon as an empty area can no longer hold whole pieces. For a free shape, it lays the pieces one by one against the others, each where it touches them most, so that the shape stays compact and never has a hole.