LinkedIn Patches explained — it’s Shikaku, and you can play it here for free

If you’ve recently discovered LinkedIn Patches, you may be wondering whether this puzzle already existed under another name. The answer is yes. LinkedIn Patches is inspired by the classic Japanese logic puzzle Shikaku, also known as Rectangles. LinkedIn’s own puzzle designers have explained that Patches started from the Shikaku concept before adding a few gameplay twists to make it more approachable for daily play.

How does LinkedIn Patches work?

The objective is to divide the grid into rectangles. Each numbered cell tells you the area of the rectangle that must contain it. Every rectangle:

• contains exactly one clue.
• has the correct number of cells.
• cannot overlap another rectangle.
• together, all rectangles cover the entire grid.

Patches also introduces additional shape hints (square, horizontal or vertical rectangles), making it slightly different from traditional Shikaku.

Want unlimited puzzles?

Unlike LinkedIn Patches, which offers a single daily puzzle, Shikaku can be played without limits. You can play free Shikaku puzzles here:
👉 https://www.analong.com/category/games/shikaku

Whether you’re practising for tomorrow’s LinkedIn puzzle or simply enjoy rectangle logic puzzles, Shikaku is the closest classic version available.