Connect 4 strategy: how to win four in a row

Four in a row (best known as Connect 4) looks simple: drop discs, line up four. But it’s a real strategy game, and a few ideas will make you win far more often.

The rules in 30 seconds

• The board has 7 columns and 6 rows.
• Players take turns dropping a disc into a column; it falls to the lowest empty spot.
• Line up four of your discs horizontally, vertically or diagonally to win.
• If the board fills up with no four in a row, it’s a draw.

1. Take the center

The center column is part of more possible four-in-a-rows than any other column. Discs in the middle can connect left, right and diagonally both ways. Start there, and keep claiming central squares. Edge columns are worth the least.

2. Think in threats, not lines

A threat is an empty square that would complete four in a row for you. The game is really about creating threats and stopping your opponent’s.

• Three in a row with an open end is a threat.
• A threat only matters if it can eventually be played. A threat floating high above an empty column has to wait until the column fills up to it.

3. Make double threats

The winning move in most games is a double threat: two different squares that would each win. Your opponent can block only one.

Common ways to get one:

• The 7 shape: three discs in a row plus a diagonal that shares an end, giving two winning squares.
• Stacked threats: two of your threats one directly above the other. When your opponent blocks the lower one, you play on top of it and win.

4. Odd and even rows (zugzwang)

Count the rows from the bottom: 1 (odd) to 6. Late in the game, when most columns are full, players are forced to play into columns they’d rather avoid.

• The first player usually wants their threats on odd rows (1, 3, 5).
• The second player usually wants threats on even rows (2, 4, 6).

That’s because when the board fills up, the parity of the remaining squares decides who is forced to play right under the other player’s threat.

5. Never play under your opponent’s threat

Before every move, look at the square right above where your disc will land. If that square wins for your opponent, don’t play there unless you have to. Many games are lost by filling the square that sets up the other player’s win.

6. Block early

Blocking a three in a row is obvious. Strong players also block two in a row with space on both sides, before it turns into an unstoppable double threat.

Play four in a row online

Kepo Four in a Row is free in your browser with no ads: the classic 7×6 board against Kepo on Easy, Medium or Hard, or against a friend on the same device. Try the center opening against Hard, then try winning as the second player.