Clues & Culprits › Clues by Sam alternative
A Clues by Sam Alternative: Three Cases a Day, No Login
Love Clues by Sam but want more than one puzzle a day — or older puzzles without logging in? Clues & Culprits is a free daily logic puzzle in the same truthful-suspect format, with three cases a day and the last week free to replay — no account needed.
Clues & Culprits is an independent game, not affiliated with Clues by Sam. Details about Clues by Sam were checked on its site on 22 October 2026.
Play today’s case Browse the archive
What Clues by Sam offers
- One daily puzzle on a 4×5 grid, getting harder through the week, refreshed at midnight New York time.
- A free account keeps your results and opens the current and previous week’s puzzles.
- The full archive is part of a premium membership; puzzle packs of 50 puzzles are sold separately (Pack #2 is €5.00).
- A two-step hint, a “Share scenario” link, and an active help community on Reddit.
It is the original and it is excellent. If one puzzle a day is enough for you, it is hard to beat.
Where Clues & Culprits is different
| Game | Daily puzzles | Archive | Hints | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clues & Culprits | Three a day (4×4, 4×5, 4×5) + Evil 5×5 Sundays | Last 7 days free to play, no login; every case free to read | 3 steps: clue → suspect → proof | 4 corner tags × 6, pencil I?/C?, contradiction check |
| Clues by Sam | One a day, 4×5 | Two weeks with free account; full archive for members | 2 steps: clues → persons | 2 corner tags, extended palette |
- Midnight in your time zone, not New York’s.
- The scenario counter shows how many possible answers are still open, and rolls down as you prove suspects.
- A recurring cast of 75 characters in twelve classes, and free era skins such as Victorian London.
- Printable packs of ten puzzles with answers, free, every week — see printables.
Switching from Clues by Sam
Most of what you know carries straight over. Everyone tells the truth; neighbors include diagonals; “between” excludes the two people named; and you can only mark someone when the clues force it. A few things feel different at first:
- Three sizes a day. Easy is a 4×4 board where every step uses a single statement — good for a warm-up. Medium and Hard are the familiar 4×5, and Hard always contains steps that need two or three statements read together.
- The counter. The number at the top of the board is how many complete answers still fit the statements on file. It is the fastest way to see how much a new statement just told you.
- Notes that answer back. Pencil a hunch as I? or C? and press Check: if your hunches can’t all be true, Clues & Culprits names the statement they break.
- Roles, not jobs. Every suspect has a permanent character class, and each setting gives that class a role — a cook in a hotel case, a pie seller at the opera. Clues about roles count everyone in that role.
Blocked at school or work?
Clues & Culprits is a plain static website: no ads, no trackers, no sign-up and no downloads, so it tends to load on school Chromebooks and work laptops. See playing at school or work for details.
Something harder than Evil
If the end of the week is your favourite part, Clues & Culprits’ Sunday case is a 5×5 Evil board with 25 suspects and long chains of combined clues. The Evil case list keeps every one of them free.
Start here
New to Clues & Culprits? Play today’s Easy case first — every step uses a single statement — then try Medium. The strategy guide covers the ten techniques that matter in both games, and the full comparison lists seven more games in the genre.
- Oct 25, 2026The Loaf That TickedEasyMediumHardEvil
- Oct 24, 2026Breakfast with the GorillasEasyMediumHard
- Oct 23, 2026912 Flights Without Leaving HomeEasyMediumHard
Questions
Can I play old Clues by Sam puzzles?
On its own site, the current and previous week are available with a free account, and the full daily archive is part of a premium membership (announced by its creator in May 2026 at $3 a month or $25 for lifetime access to the first year).
What’s free in Clues & Culprits’ archive?
Every past Clues & Culprits case has its own permanent page you can read — statements, a spoiler-free hint page and, after two days, a full walkthrough. The last 7 days are free to play with no account; playing older cases is part of Clues & Culprits Pro.
How many puzzles does Clues & Culprits publish?
Three every day (Easy, Medium and Hard), plus an Evil 5×5 case on Sundays, all unlocking at midnight in your own time zone.
Is there a free Clues by Sam archive?
Clues by Sam’s own archive is for members, apart from the current and previous week with a free account. If what you want is more puzzles in the same style, Clues & Culprits’ last 7 days are free to play without an account, and every past case is free to read in the archive.
Will my Clues by Sam skills carry over?
Yes. Clues & Culprits uses the same family of rules — truthful suspects, neighbors including diagonals, verdicts only when proven — so the same techniques work.