Best Mini Crossword Apps (2026): Quick Grids and Full-Size

The best mini crossword for most people is the free LA Times Mini on the web, a fresh small grid every day with no subscription. The famous NYT Mini is excellent but now sits behind a New York Times subscription, along with its bigger sibling, the Midi. If you want small puzzles and full-size grids in one place, Crossword Puzzle Redstone (minis to 15x15, free with ads) and Grid Genius (Mini, Standard and Large on any topic) are the two to try.

Minis exist for the gaps in a day: the coffee line, the bus stop, the two minutes before a meeting. But a lot of solvers who start with a mini want a bigger grid on the weekend, which is why this guide also asks a second question of every app: when the mini is not enough, what comes next? We checked each one against its own listing or official page on November 4, 2026.

The short answer

• Best free newspaper mini: LA Times Mini Crossword, on latimes.com.
• Best mini overall, if you subscribe: the NYT Mini, with the Midi and the full Crossword in the same app.
• Best free mini in an app: Crosswords With Friends, with a free daily mini and midi next to its themed puzzle.
• Best mini against the clock: USA TODAY's Two Minute Mini, which gives you exactly 120 seconds.
• Best weekday mini: The New Yorker's Mini, free for app users.
• Best minis and full-size grids together, free: Crossword Puzzle Redstone.
• Best minis on any topic you choose: Grid Genius, in 7x7, with 11x11 and 15x15 when you want more.

Mini, midi and full-size: what the names mean

Publishers use these words loosely, and most do not publish exact grid sizes, so think of them as a ladder rather than a spec.

• Mini. A small grid built to be solved in a few minutes. USA TODAY's Two Minute Mini has just 10 answers.
• Midi. The step between. NYT Games calls its Midi the "just-right size between the Mini and the Crossword," and both the LA Times and Crosswords With Friends now publish one too.
• Full-size. The classic American daily is 15x15, and Sunday puzzles go bigger. The Universal Crossword, for example, has a 21x21 Sunday version.

Grid Genius names its sizes plainly: Mini is 7x7, Standard is 11x11 and Large is 15x15. Our guide to crossword puzzle sizes compares them in detail.

Mini crosswords compared

From each publisher's own page or store listing, checked November 4, 2026.

The minis, one by one

LA Times Mini Crossword (best free newspaper mini)

The LA Times offers "a compact crossword with big daily fun," and invites you to "solve a fresh free mini puzzle every day and see if you can crack it in record time." Its FAQ is explicit that you do not need a subscription: "All games are free to play." A free account adds streaks, scores and personal-best times, and achievements for keeping a streak alive or setting a new best. An ad plays before the game.

When the mini is not enough, the free LA Times Daily Crossword, "the nation's oldest newspaper crossword," is one click away and gets tougher through the week. The site also has a Midi, though its hub labels the Midi member-exclusive while the Midi page calls it free, so check when you get there.

NYT Mini (the original, now by subscription)

The NYT Mini made small crosswords a daily habit, and it is still a great one. It is no longer free: the Mini, the Midi and the Crossword all need a subscription, and the App Store lists a New York Times Crossword Subscription at $6.99 and $39.99. The help center notes that the Mini has no streak feature, and its leaderboard is among friends you add, up to 100 people, with no global board.

The upside of the subscription is the ladder. The Midi sits between the Mini and the full Crossword, so you can step up one size at a time.

Crosswords With Friends (free mini and midi in an app)

Zynga's daily crossword is themed (Movie Monday, TV Tuesday, through Sunday Funday), and the listing adds: "Play free daily mini and midi crossword in addition to the themed crossword!" That makes three sizes a day, free, in one app on iPhone, iPad and Android. A leaderboard shows who solved the daily fastest. It is ad-supported, with coins for hints and a VIP subscription that removes ads.

USA TODAY Two Minute Mini and Quick Cross

USA TODAY has two quick formats. On the web, the Two Minute Mini has "just 10 answers in this free, fast-paced crossword puzzle," and "you must finish this game within 2 minutes." Built-in hints can give you a letter or a word, and the timer can be switched off if you would rather not race. In the USA TODAY PLAY Crosswords app, Quick Cross offers "fast, bite-sized crossword challenges" next to the daily USA TODAY Crossword, with an archive and streaks. The app is free with ads.

The New Yorker Mini (weekday minis, free in the app)

The New Yorker publishes crosswords Monday to Friday, with new games at 6 a.m. Eastern. Thursday and Friday are Minis, and the Thursday Mini is slightly larger and trickier than Friday's. Its FAQ says app users get free access to the Mini Crossword. The full-size puzzles run Monday to Wednesday, and the full archive is for subscribers.

Apple News+ crossword mini

If you already pay for Apple News+, you get an always-easy crossword mini every day, next to a full crossword that gets harder through the week. In the US and Canada, finishing within 24 hours counts toward your streak. News+ is $12.99 a month after a free trial.

Crossword Puzzle Redstone (minis and full-size in one free app)

Redstone's library of 30,000+ human-made puzzles comes in "Minis, Midis and Regular 15x15 puzzles," at four difficulty levels, and plays offline. That makes it the best free app for someone who wants a stack of minis today and a 15x15 on Sunday, all in one place. It shows ads, and the App Store sells a one-time Remove Ads purchase for $34.99.

Free minis in a browser

Two more free options: AARP's Mini Crossword, which AARP calls "the perfect size for a quick break" and "great for kids or beginners," and Arkadium's Mini Crossword, "a short and sweet crossword." Both show ads.

Grid Genius: minis on any topic

Grid Genius approaches the mini differently. Instead of one mini a day that everyone shares, you choose the topic. Type "Italian cooking," "the Beatles" or "this week's spelling words," pick Mini, and the AI builds a 7x7 crossword about it, with clues. Choose Easy, Medium or Hard. When you want more, the same topic works at Standard (11x11) or Large (15x15). Your first AI puzzles are free, and community puzzles in every size are free to play.

Then there is the daily challenge: one 11x11 grid for everyone, new at midnight US Eastern, with a fastest-solves board and streaks. It is free, needs no account, and on the web shows no ads.

There is a playable 5x5 on this page, too, if you want to try a Grid Genius mini without leaving. When a clue stops you, ask for a reworded version instead of a reveal. That is how AI Hints work in the app: they rephrase the clue, so you still find the answer yourself.

The honest limits: a 7x7 holds more answers than the smallest minis (USA TODAY's quick one has 10), so a Grid Genius Mini takes a little longer. The puzzles are AI-generated rather than by a named constructor. And there is no shared daily mini for every player; the shared daily is the 11x11.

From mini to full-size

Minis are a superb way in, and many solvers want the bigger grid eventually. A gentle path:

1. Start with one mini a day for two weeks. You are learning the common short answers that every crossword relies on.
2. Add a midi a few times a week (NYT, LA Times or Crosswords With Friends), or an 11x11 Standard in Grid Genius.
3. Try a full-size grid on an easy day. The LA Times Daily Crossword gets tougher through the week, so start early in the week. In Grid Genius, a Large 15x15 on Easy about a topic you know is the softest landing.
4. Use hints that teach. A reworded clue shows you how a clue works; a revealed answer only shows you the answer. Our beginner's guide to solving crosswords covers the rest.

If a daily habit is the goal, our roundup of the best daily crossword apps lists when every puzzle drops.

How to choose

• You want a free mini every day. LA Times Mini, or the free mini in Crosswords With Friends.
• You want the NYT Mini specifically. Subscribe to NYT Games, and enjoy the Midi too.
• You like a race. USA TODAY's Two Minute Mini.
• You want minis and full-size grids in one free app. Redstone.
• You want minis about things you care about, with hints that teach. Grid Genius.

Frequently asked questions