Why 500-Piece Puzzles Are Becoming More Popular

For decades, 1,000-piece puzzles have been considered the gold standard of puzzling. They're the size most people picture when they think of jigsaw puzzles, and for many puzzlers, they're still the perfect challenge. Some enjoy spending long days (or even weeks) working on the same image, watching it slowly come together on the kitchen table.

But lately, something interesting has been happening. More and more puzzlers are reaching for 500-piece puzzles instead.

Harvest Market by White Mountain
GL Studios

This isn't a diss to anyone who loves settling in with a 1,000-piece puzzle or wants to get as many hours of entertainment as possible out of every box. There will always be puzzlers who love a bigger challenge. But there has definitely been a growing wave of people asking for more 500-piece options and puzzle companies seem to be listening.

They Fit Into Busy Lives

Not everyone has the time, or the table space, to leave a puzzle out for days or weeks.  A 500-piece puzzle gives you the satisfaction of completing an entire image without necessarily committing your kitchen table for the foreseeable future. Depending on how you puzzle, it might be an evening project, a weekend puzzle, or something you come back to for a few shorter sessions.

Evenings in Paris by Ravensburger
Dominic Davison

You still get the sorting, the edge building, the little victories, and that satisfying final piece. You just get to the finish line a little sooner. For me, I have cats, so leaving any puzzle out overnight is a risk. i sometimes will choose a 500 piece if I know I am short on time. Evenings in Paris by Ravensburger is one that I can do very quickly but still get the satisfaction on building a beautiful cotton candy sky. 

Not only are they great for busy lives, but many 500 piece puzzles have a smaller footprint and take up less space. 

More Variety, Less Commitment

One of the biggest reasons I think 500-piece puzzles are becoming so popular is simple: you can do more of them. If you love trying different artists, brands, puzzle cuts, and image styles, a smaller piece count lets you move through more puzzles without turning every box into a major project.

William Morris by Pomegranate

Sometimes the best part is opening a brand-new puzzle and seeing what you're working with. With 500 pieces, you get to have that experience a little more often. The circular puzzles by Pomegranate have a very unique hexagon style piece cut. In a 500 piece format it makes the puzzle much more approachable.

Publishers Are Making More of Them

Availability is also a huge part of the shift. For a long time, 1,000 pieces dominated puzzle shelves. Let's face it, they still do. Even today, many new puzzle brands launch with 1,000-piece puzzles first. But it usually doesn't take long before puzzlers start asking the same question: "When are you coming out with 500 pieces?"

Tiger of the North by Aurora Puzzles
Dawn Gerety

We're seeing more publishers respond to that demand by expanding their collections into smaller piece counts. Brands like Aurora Puzzles and Holiyay Puzzles are great examples of newer companies that launched with 1,000-piece puzzles and quickly heard requests from puzzlers wanting 500-piece options. I personal love that Aurora Puzzles had my favorite puzzle, Tiger of the North available in a 500-piece now. 

Matanuska Glacer by Aurora Puzzles
Dawn Gerety

And the more beautiful, high-quality 500-piece puzzles that become available, the more puzzlers have a reason to choose them.

They're Great for New Puzzlers

A lot of people still begin puzzling with 1,000 pieces simply because that's what they've traditionally seen in stores. But if your first 1,000-piece puzzle leaves you wondering why anyone finds this hobby relaxing, don't give up quite yet.

Little Women by Cobble Hill
Jill Howarth

A 500-piece puzzle can be a much more approachable starting point. You still experience the full puzzling process, but the amount of pieces you're sorting through is much more manageable and progress tends to happen faster. You are also able to learn a lot with a smaller piece count. For example, you can learn different sorting strateges, what styles you enjoy, and try maybe some images you'd never think you'd like. That sense of accomplishment can make a huge difference when you're first discovering the hobby.

Experienced Puzzlers Love Them Too

Choosing 500 pieces doesn't mean you're looking for an "easy" puzzle. Plenty of experienced puzzlers deliberately reach for them.

Sidewalk Sale by GoodWay Puzzles
Susan Brabeau

Sometimes you want something relaxing after work. Sometimes you want a puzzle you can finish in an evening. Sometimes you simply love the image and couldn't care less how many pieces are inside the box.

And depending on the artwork, a 500-piece puzzle can still offer plenty of challenge. However, sometimes it is nice to have a fun puzzle in the evening like A Day at the Spa by Eurorgraphics. This one just makes me happy.

A Day at the Spa by Eurographics
Lucia Hefferman

Speed Puzzling Has Helped

I also don't think we can ignore the growth of competitive speed puzzling. Five-hundred-piece puzzles are commonly used for individual speed puzzling competitions because they offer enough challenge while still being realistic to complete within a competition time limit.

Whimsical Town by MasterPieces
Peggy Collins

As more people discover speed puzzling through competitions, YouTube, Twitch, and social media, they're also being introduced to more 500-piece puzzles. Even if you have absolutely no desire to race the clock, that increased exposure has helped make the piece count feel much more normal for experienced adult puzzlers.

There Isn't a "Right" Piece Count

One of the best things about puzzling today is how many choices we have. If your perfect weekend involves spreading out a 1,000-piece puzzle and slowly working on it for days, keep doing exactly that.

Wolf Pack by Springbok
Dona Gelsinger

If you'd rather finish a colorful 500-piece puzzle on Saturday afternoon and open another box on Sunday, that's great too. Piece count isn't a measure of how serious you are about puzzling. The best puzzle is simply the one that makes you excited to sit down and start looking for pieces.

And judging by how many puzzlers are asking brands for more 500-piece options, it looks like a lot of us are discovering that sometimes, 500 pieces is just right. Check out all the options we have in this piece count!

Emilee Frost
@thecasualpuzzler