Naked Pair sudoku technique

Intermediate level Appears in puzzles rated SE 1.5 – 2.0

When two cells in the same unit hold exactly the same two candidates — say 2 and 7, and nothing else — those two digits are spoken for. One cell will take the 2 and the other the 7; you may not know which way round yet, but no other cell in that unit can have either. Erasing 2 and 7 from the rest of the unit often cracks it open.

How to find a naked pair

  1. Write pencil marks for a unit that refuses to move.
  2. Look for two cells whose candidate lists are identical and exactly two digits long.
  3. Remove both digits from every other cell in that unit.
  4. Check what the eliminations reveal — a naked pair very often exposes a single in the next breath.
From the table: The pair only works when both cells carry exactly those two candidates. Cells with 2-7 and 2-7-9 are not a naked pair — though the 9 might be removable by other means, and then the pair appears. Accurate pencil marks are what make this technique reliable.

The pattern on the grid

277272

r5c2 and r5c6 lock digits 2 and 7 for row 5 — the red candidates elsewhere in the row are removed.

Worked example

In row 5, cells r5c2 and r5c6 both show exactly 2-7. Those two cells will take the 2 and the 7 between them, in some order. The 7 pencilled in r5c4 and the 2 in r5c8 are therefore impossible — erase them, and watch r5c4 collapse to a single.

When it fails

The pair must live in one shared unit. Cells r5c2 and r6c6 with identical candidates share nothing and prove nothing — geometry first, candidates second.

Puzzles that need it

These grids come from rated games on this site — our solver confirmed that naked pair was part of the shortest solving path for each one.

37823177821689271892748161653731
Expert SE 2.6 32 clues
9842475196254739312584734136
Expert SE 2.6 28 clues
367836237579384226474672599237846276
Expert SE 2.6 36 clues

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