Maze shapes: rectangle, circle, hexagon, triangle, heart and star
Maze Lab draws six maze shapes. All of them are perfect mazes — every cell is connected and there is exactly one route from start to finish — and every one prints with a matching answer key.
Compare the shapes
The same seed and the same Easy level in every shape. Click one to open it in the maker.
Each shape
Rectangle
The classic maze. It fills an A4 or Letter page well and is the easiest shape to explain. You enter on the left side at the top and leave on the right side at the bottom. Rectangle mazes made before this redesign still reproduce exactly from their seed.
Good for: Everyday worksheets, first mazes, anything you want to photocopy cleanly.
Size range: Up to 1,260 cells at Expert.
Circle
Rings of cells around a centre. The outer rings are split into more cells than the inner ones so every cell stays roughly the same size. You enter from the top of the outer wall and finish at the star in the middle.
Good for: Younger children ("get to the middle" is easy to understand) and a change of pace after rectangles.
Size range: From 43 cells (Starter) to 859 cells (Expert).
Hexagon
Every cell has up to six neighbours, so each junction can branch three ways instead of two. The route twists more than in a square grid, which makes it feel harder at the same level.
Good for: Children who find rectangles too easy, puzzle fans, maths lessons about tessellation.
Size range: From 19 cells (Starter) to 547 cells (Expert).
Triangle
Alternating up and down triangles fill a large triangle. You start at the top point and leave through the middle of the base. Each cell has at most three neighbours, so the corridors zig-zag.
Good for: A different look for older children; pairs well with geometry topics.
Size range: From 49 cells (Starter) to 729 cells (Expert).
Heart
A rectangle grid trimmed to a heart. The cut leaves fewer cells and a shorter route than a rectangle at the same level. You enter at the top between the two lobes and leave at the point.
Good for: Valentine's Day, cards, family activity packs, young children who like a picture.
Size range: From 64 cells (Starter) to 828 cells (Expert).
Star
A grid trimmed to a five-point star. The points act as long side branches, which makes the star trickier than it looks. You enter at the top point and leave at the bottom of one leg.
Good for: Seasonal and party worksheets, reward sheets, early finishers.
Size range: From 48 cells (Starter) to 514 cells (Expert).
How the mazes are made
Every shape is built as a set of cells and the walls between them. A seeded random walk (a recursive backtracker) knocks down walls until every cell is reachable, which leaves exactly one route between any two cells. The answer key is that one route, drawn through the middle of each cell. The same seed always repeats the same walk, so the same settings always give the same maze.
Before release, a script builds 50 mazes for every shape and level (1,500 in total) and checks that all cells are connected, that the only gaps in the outer wall are the entrance and the exit, and that the drawn red answer line never touches a wall.