What Water Sort actually is
Water Sort gives you a row of glass tubes filled with layers of coloured liquid in the wrong order. Tap one tube, then tap another, and the top colour pours across. The stage is done when every tube holds a single colour or nothing at all.
That is the entire ruleset, and it is why the game works. There is no timer, no score to chase and nothing to read — the whole puzzle is visible on one screen from the first second, and the only thing standing between you and the solution is the order you do it in.
The one rule everything else follows from
You may only pour onto an empty tube, or onto the same colour. If the top of the tube you are pouring into is a different colour, the game simply refuses the move. Nothing is lost, nothing spills — the pour does not happen.
A few consequences worth having in mind before you start tapping:
- Pouring moves the whole run of matching colour on top, not one unit. Three reds stacked together travel as three.
- The destination has to have room. A pour that does not fit is refused rather than partially applied.
- An empty tube is the most valuable thing on the board. It is the only place any colour can go.
How to play, step by step
- Press Play above and let the board load.
- Read the board before touching it — find the colour that has the fewest scattered pieces.
- Tap the tube you want to pour from. It lifts slightly to show it is selected.
- Tap the tube you want to pour into. Same colour on top, or empty.
- Repeat until each tube is one solid colour. The stage clears itself and the next one loads.
The buttons under the board
| Button | What it does | When to reach for it |
|---|---|---|
| Circular arrow | Resets the whole stage to its starting layout | When the board is locked and you would rather start clean than unpick it |
| Curved back arrow | Undoes the last pour | Immediately, the moment a pour turns out worse than it looked |
| Light bulb | Suggests a move | Sparingly — the hint solves the step you were about to learn |
| Tube with a plus | Adds one extra empty tube | Late, on a stage with no legal move left. Early, it makes the stage trivial |
Five habits that solve harder stages
- Keep one tube empty for as long as you can. An empty tube is a move you have not spent yet. Filling your last one is how a stage becomes unsolvable.
- Finish a colour completely before starting another. Half-done colours are what fill your workspace.
- Look for the colour that is already nearly together. Two tubes holding three and one of the same colour is a free move, and it opens a tube.
- Avoid one-deep pours onto a tall stack. Dropping a single unit on top of a colour you will need to move again buries it deeper.
- Plan two pours, not one. Before you tap, ask what the board looks like after the pour — most dead ends are visible one move early.
Why it is so hard to put down
Water Sort belongs to the small family of puzzles you can start and finish inside a minute — the same shelf as 2048, Sudoku and Nonogram. Every stage is a complete problem with a visible solution and no reading, so there is never a moment where the game asks for more attention than you have. The next stage is always one tap away, which is the whole trick.
Water Sort Gameplay Screenshots
Frequently asked questions about Water Sort
What is Water Sort?
Water Sort is a colour-sorting puzzle. You are given a row of glass tubes holding layers of different coloured liquid, all mixed up. Tapping one tube and then another pours the top colour across. The stage is solved when every tube holds a single colour, or is empty.
What is the one rule I keep breaking?
You can only pour onto an empty tube or onto the same colour. If the top of the target tube is a different colour, nothing happens — the game refuses the move rather than letting you make a mess. Everything else follows from that.
Is Water Sort free, and does it need an account?
It is free and there is no sign-up. Press Play and the puzzle loads in the page. Progress is kept in your browser, so it survives a refresh on the same device.
How do I undo a bad pour?
The curved arrow at the bottom of the board steps back one move, and the circular arrow next to it resets the whole stage. Both are free; there is no move counter punishing you for using them.
What is the extra-tube button for?
The button with a plus and a tube adds one empty tube to the board. It is the get-out-of-jail move for a stage where every tube has a different colour on top and nothing can legally pour. Use it late rather than early — an extra tube makes the rest of the stage much easier.
Can a Water Sort level become unsolvable?
Yes, and this is what makes it a real puzzle rather than a fidget. Every stage is generated solvable, but a wrong pour can lock colours under each other with no legal move left. That is what undo and the extra tube are for.
Does it work on a phone or a school Chromebook?
Yes. It is a browser build with no plugin and no install, and the board is laid out for a portrait screen, so a phone is arguably the better way to play it. Anything that can open this page can run it.
Is there a strategy, or is it trial and error?
There is a strategy. Work backwards from the colour you can complete soonest, keep at least one tube empty as workspace for as long as you can, and never pour a single unit onto a stack you might need to move again — a one-deep pour costs you the empty tube you were saving.