Water Sort Puzzle Tips: How to Solve Any Level
To solve a Water Sort puzzle, keep an empty jar free for as long as you can, and before every pour check which colour it uncovers and where that colour can go next. Finish a jar whenever a pour fills it, don't split one colour across several jars, and undo early rather than late. On GameLake every level is checked by a solver first, so there is always a way through.
The rules in 30 seconds
- Tap a jar to pick it up, then tap another jar to pour into it.
- Water only pours onto the same colour or into an empty jar.
- Each jar holds 4 layers. All the layers of the top colour pour together, as many as fit; the rest stay behind.
- A jar full of one colour gets a lily cork and is done. Sort every colour into its own jar to win.
If the target jar has room for only part of the top colour, only that much moves. Three yellows poured into a jar with one free space move one yellow and leave two behind, which is rarely what you want.
Tip 1: Guard your empty jar
Every GameLake level starts with two empty jars, and they are the most valuable thing on the board. An empty jar is the only place you can put a colour that has nowhere else to go, so it's how you dig out buried layers.
Try not to fill an empty jar with a colour that will just sit there. A good use of an empty jar is a pour that lets you clear it again soon, or one that starts a jar you can finish: the same colour coming out of two or three other jars over the next few pours.
Tip 2: Look at what each pour uncovers
Every pour reveals the layer underneath. Before you pour, ask: once this colour moves, where does the colour below it go? If the answer is "nowhere", the pour may just move the problem around. If the colour below can go straight onto a matching colour, the pour is usually a good one.
This is exactly how Teach me explains a pour like that: "Use the empty jar to free the red underneath: pour the purple in there."
Tip 3: Finish jars when you can
A pour that completes a jar is almost always worth making. A finished jar is out of the way for good, it can never be blocked again, and there's one less colour to think about.
Tip 4: Keep each colour together
Spreading one colour over two half-filled jars costs you extra pours later, because you'll have to gather it up again, and it uses up space you need for other colours. When two jars both have the same colour on top, pour the smaller pile onto the bigger one so the bigger pile becomes that colour's home.
A colour sitting at the very bottom of a jar is a natural candidate for that jar's final colour: once everything above it has gone, the other layers of that colour can be poured straight in.
Tip 5: Think two or three pours ahead
- Look for pours that complete a jar. Do those first.
- Look for pours onto a matching colour that also uncover a colour with somewhere to go.
- Only then use an empty jar, and pick the pour that frees the most useful layer underneath.
- If every option leaves you with no empty jar and no matching tops, stop and undo before you're boxed in.
Fewer pours earn more stars. Match Hop's best line (the level's par) for three stars; staying within about a quarter more than par, plus one, still earns two.
When you're stuck: undo, + Jar, restart or Teach me
| Mode | Colours | Undos per level | + Jar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Easy | 4–5 | 5 | Yes, once per level |
| Medium | 7–8 | 3 | Yes, once per level |
| Hard | 10–12 | 1 | No |
| Daily | 9 | 2 | No |
- Undo takes back your last pour. You only get a few per level, so use them to step back from a mistake, not to explore.
- + Jar adds one extra empty jar on Easy and Medium. It's a big help on a crowded board, so save it until you really need it.
- Restart puts the level back to the start and gives you your undos back.
- Teach me works out a winning line from where you are and explains the next pour in plain words. If there's no winning line left, it tells you, so you know to undo or restart.
Is every Water Sort level solvable?
On GameLake, yes. Each level is dealt at random, then a solver searches for a way to sort it before you ever see it. Levels the solver can't sort, and levels that are too easy, are thrown away. The number of pours in the solver's best line becomes the level's par. That means if you're stuck, the level isn't broken: an earlier pour took you off the winning path, and undo, restart or Teach me will get you back on it.
Colour-blind players can sort by shape: every colour has its own symbol on each layer, such as a heart, star, drop, leaf or moon.
Frequently asked questions
Is every Water Sort level solvable?
On GameLake, yes. Every level is checked by a solver before you play it, so there is always a winning line from the start.
How many layers does each jar hold?
Four. A jar with four layers of one colour is finished and gets a lily cork.
Can you pour onto a different colour in Water Sort?
No. Water only pours onto the same colour or into an empty jar.
What should I do when I'm stuck in Water Sort?
Undo a few pours, add the extra jar on Easy or Medium, or restart. Teach me shows a pour that still leads to a win, or tells you there is no winning line left.
How do you get three stars?
Solve the level in as few pours as Hop's best line (par) or fewer. A few pours over par still earns two stars.