How Many Squares Are Inside This Confusing Brain Teaser?

We love a good puzzle or riddle around here, so when we heard about a new square brainteaser confusing the internet, we just had to check it out. If you’re anything like us, we think you’ll be in for a treat with this great mental workout.

At first glance, the brainteaser seems relatively simple. All it asks us to do is figure out how many squares are in the whole image, which is a giant square with a bunch of teeny-tiny squares inside of it. It doesn’t look like there are that many shapes to begin with, and it seems even easier when you notice that a few of the squares are different colors. While the biggest square is a bright blue color, there are smaller squares inside of it that are lovely pink, brown, and green shades. On top of that, the squares that are the same colors are right next to each other, forming larger squares of the same shade and serving as a helpful reminder of all the different sizes these squares could possibly be. But things get tricky once you actually start counting.

Check out the video below to see if you can solve this puzzle:

If you get a chance to look at the comment section of the video, you’ll see that people left all sorts of answers to the question. Some offered 35, while others responded with 22. Meanwhile, some even insisted on 102 (that would be a whole lot of squares for one picture!). But as we all know, there can only be one right answer for a brainteaser like this one, and this time, it’s 51.

As you may recall, it’s super important to keep in mind that the smaller squares can become bigger squares, but it’s also just as important to keep track of the littlest squares — and the biggest square — as you count along. If you’re still stumped, you can watch the full video above for a complete explanation.

But if you got it right the first time, be sure to pat yourself on the back — that was tricky!