The Ultimate Directory of Maze and Labyrinth Builders: The Top 13 Builders in the world

Mazes and labyrinths are becoming more and more popular. You can find them in corn fields, public and private gardens, parks, fairs, churches, beaches, courtyards, art galleries and of course in books. Setting up an installation that works in your space takes detailed planning and a keen understanding of how to use materials to give the feeling you want from the project. Today we will look at 13 companies that specialize in physical maze and labyrinth designs. These include projects made with stone, hedges, corn, earth mounds and many other interesting materials. If you are looking to build your own installation, you should be able to find a builder here.

Adrian Fisher - www.mazemaker.com

The world’s leading maze designer and holder of many Guinness World Records. Projects can be seen around the world and include all types of installations: Mirror, Hedge, Panel, Water, Paving, and Corn (or Maize in the UK). The company has been designing mazes for clients since 1979. Adrian Fisher designed the first Maize Maze, while pioneering water mazes, walk-through parting waterfalls in mazes, foaming fountain gates, and wrought-iron maze gates to make mazes dynamic. With over 700 designs the portfolio is impressive. Here is and example of their hedge maze work from the Blenheim Palace in England:

Jim Buchanan - www.jimbuchananprojects.uk

Specializing in land art and labyrinths in the UK. Beautiful use of earth/mounds to build interesting labyrinths. Also the only person I know who uses light projections into swimming pools to create labyrinths that can be walked or swam. Below is his beautiful “Earth and Wildflower Labyrinth” commissioned by the Chesterfield Borough Council.

Marty and Debi Kermeen - labyrinthsinstone.com

Specializes in pavement and stone labyrinths, mostly in the United States. Have been building labyrinths since 1998. They also make hand painted labyrinths on canvas and sell cards and posters of some of their work. Below is an example of their labyrinth work from Aurora University:

The Labyrinth Company - www.labyrinthcompany.com

Offer a variety of services to build or help you build a labyrinth. Pre-designed kits are available to build labyrinths of paving stone, bricks, ceramic floors, hardwood floors, cork floors, carpets, poly canvas mats, vinyl and linoleum floors to name a few. They have many different labyrinth designs including replicas of many classics. If you need quick solution they probably have it. Here is an example of their Abingdon à la Chartres™ paved labyrinth:

TheMAiZE -www.themaize.com

Design and consultant company specializing in the design of corn (maize) mazes. They have a great map feature allows you to find a corn maze near you ! Currently designing in the US, Canada, Poland and the UK with over 3000 corn mazes designed since 1996. Here is an example of one of their corn mazes:

Precision Mazes - www.precisionmazes.com

Corn Maze builder from Missouri who focuses on the use of GPS to make precision designs. They have some impressive commercial maze work in their portfolio that include Cartman from Southpark and Salvador Dali. You can see more about their work in this short video:

Mazescape - mazescape.com

Company founded by UK based maze designers Angus Mewse and Tom Hockaday. They offer 4 different Maize (Corn) Maze design packages based on customer needs. All of their corn (maize) mazes are unique and not pre- designed. They also have designed and built mazes with a wide range of materials, including to quote the website “Willow, Bamboo, Beech, Yew, Turf, Timber Panels, Wooden Posts, Trellis and Climbing Plants, Fabric, Rope, Hay & Straw Bales, Recycled Tires, Adobe, Brick and Stone”.

Don & Lorraine Watts - thecornmazeguy.com

Company out of Pennsylvania that specializes in affordable corn maze design for the Northeastern part of the US. They offer printed corn maze games to enhance the corn maze customer experience.

Maize Quest - mazecatalog.com

Company from Pennsylvania that has been designing corn mazes since 1997. They specialize in making mazes that include additional features for the guests, like a scavenger hunt and projects or tasks for kids to complete as they walk through the amaze. They also sell rope mazes and fence mazes like the one below:

MazePlay - www.mazeplay.com

Started in 1998 when the owner planted a corn maze for the first time after convincing his father to let him experiment in a corner of the corn field. Based in Idaho. Service designs corn mazes and includes the options to add games to enhance the experience for guests (treasure hunts, solving a mystery games). Check out their video playlist here:

Instant Hedge - www.instanthedge.com

“Established in 2013, InstantHedge is the only nursery in the United States devoted to growing pre-finished hedges” - from their website. A company that specializes at installing hedges for clients. They also can design and install hedge mazes. Located in Oregon. Check out their great hedge care guides for hedges.

Robert Ferré - www.labyrinth-enterprises.com/

Works on design, consulting, and installation of labyrinths. Hosts a Master Class on how to lay out a classical labyrinth. Author of the books Canvas Labyrinths: Constructuion Manual and The Labyrinth Revival. Below is his work from the Marianjoy Rehabilitation Hospital in Wheaton, Il.

Lea Goode Harris - www.creativelabyrinths.com/

A creative designer and consultant for labyrinth insulations. Author of multiple books, including Ladybug Labyrinth: A Journey Home and A Discovery of Labyrinths. Creator of the Santa Rosa Labyrinth consisting of 8 concentric circles. Here is an example of it on the roof of the American Psychological Association in Washington, DC.

There is a lot of talent here to help you with professional labyrinth installation, design and construction. I hope this directory helps you make you vision a reality. If I missed someone that you would recommend, drop me note (doyoumaze@gmail.com). Thank you!

Comparison of the even MORE online maze generation websites

Previously I have reviewed and compared the top 12 maze generation websites. And that blog post gets updated often as new websites are created and replace some of the original sites. It seems to be a common logic and programming puzzle to create a website that can create a digital maze. And so, today, I am going to take the time to go through 7 MORE maze generation websites. Why ? Well I like to keep up to date on what content is out there and share it with you.

So today I will look at 7 online maze generation websites, compare them, and let you know what each is capable of. This maze generator comparison includes the (1) shape of the overall mazes, (2) the cell types or shape of the cells that create the internal paths/walls, (3/4) the width and height sizes you can generate, (5/6) how the start/end are shown, (7) are the solutions given, and (8) how can you download the maze you have generated.

To give them a good comparison I decided to generate a 20x20 maze with each to compare how each generated (when possible). I also tried to give and example of some of the advanced features if the maze generator site has them.

In no particular order:

1. all kids network

Shapes: 5 : Square

Cell types: Square

Width / Height: 9 pre-selected sizes available, smallest 5 x 5, largest 120 x 120

Start/End: Entrance and exit are labeled.

Advanced options: You can choose one of 2 styles: Simple or Artistic

Solution generated: Yes

Downloads available: Yes. Pdfs available.

This site also allows you to select your difficulty level (Easy, Medium, Hard), and to select between 11 different page sizes.

Examples: You must register and login to download mazes. Registration is free.

2. PUZZLE GeneratoRS

This site has 6 different inputs that must be filled in to make a maze. There is no information to explain how they work (Information icons did not work for me). Those inputs are labeled: Width, Height, North, East, West, and South. This site also allows you to make crossword puzzles, sudoku and word searches !

Shapes: 2 : Square, Rectangle

Cell types: 1: Square

Width: 2 - 50

Height: 2 - 50

Start: Entrance and exit are not specified, 1 of each at the top and bottom of the generation.

End: 1

Solution generated: Yes

Downloads available: Yes

Examples: Both are 20x20 squares. The left was generated using 1111 for NSEW, while the right was generated using 2222.

3. JAMISBUCK

This maze generator is built to generate mazes for Minecraft. This includes mazes with up to 10 layers (Think of a 3D maze with each layer being a floor to a building).

Shapes: 1 : Square

Cell types: 1: Square

Width / Height: Comes in 4 selectable sizes: Small Medium Large and Huge

Start: Entrance on the left hand side.

End: Exit in the right hand side.

Advanced options: The levels I mentioned before add layers to the maze, allowing the solver to travel in a third direction. Note that this generates as a separate picture for each level with blocks colored to indicate where you may move up or down.

Solution generated: No

Downloads available: No

Examples: First example is Medium sized with 1 Level. The next set of 3 show a Small sized 3 level maze where yellow and blue denote the ability to move up and down.

4. Dcode Maze Generator

Shapes: 1 : Rectangle

Cell types: 1: Square

Width: 2 - 50

Height: 2 - 50

Start: Entrance and exit are not specified, 1 of each at the top and bottom of the generation.

End: 1

Advanced options: You can change the walls of your maze to be made by any character. The default maze walls are made from solid black blocks.

Solution generated: No

Downloads available: Yes

Examples: Left with the default black walls. Right with * as walls. I tried a few different symbols and find non-black walls very difficult to follow what the pathways are.

5. delorie

Shapes: 1 : Rectangle

Cell types: 1: Square, Rectangle

Width: 1 - 100

Height: 1 - 100

Start: Entrance and exit are not specified, 1 of each at the top and bottom of the generation.

End: Entrance and exit are not specified, 1 of each at the top and bottom of the generation.

Advanced options: You can generate a maze in Gif format (Though I could not get this to display) or using text (which uses the “+” and “-” characters). You can choose the width and height of each cell. I found if you use the default of 1 it is difficult to understand the walls of the maze.

Solution generated: Yes

Downloads available: No

Examples: Left uses a width and height of 2 per cell and is difficult to follow. The right maze is much easier to follow by changing the width per cell to 6. This generates a more square maze.

6. the teachers corner

Shapes: 1 : Rectangle

Cell types: 1: Square

Width: 10 - 50

Height: 10 - 75

Start: Entrance and exit arrows are chosen with 6 color options. Entrance generates in the top left corner.

End: Entrance and exit arrows are chosen with 6 color options. Exit generates in the bottom right corner.

Advanced options: You can add a Title and directions/instructions for the maze. Default directions are “Can you find your way through the crazy maze below?”. You can change the width of lanes, there are 5 options that vary the display size.

Solution generated: No

Downloads available: Only by right clicking to download directly from the browser. Note that the download will NOT include the start and ending arrows you see on the screen.

Other: This maze generator is part of a larger website dedicated to resources for teachers like lesson plans, activity sets and teacher resources. Great for teachers !

Examples: Each is 20 x 20.

7. Xefer Maze Generator

Shapes: 1 : Rectangle

Cell types: 1: Square

Width: 2 - 1000 ? At 1,000 the maze still generates.

Height: 2 - 1000 ? At 1,000 the maze still generates.

Start: Entrance and exit are not specified, 1 of each at the top and bottom of the generation.

End: 1

Advanced options: You can choose the size of the cells. You can choose the anfractuosity - roughly how much channels are important in the maze. Most mazes have high anfractuosity.

Solution generated: Yes

Downloads available: No

Examples: Left 20 x 20 has low anfractuosity. Right 20 x 20 has high anfractuosity.

Have a site that you want me to review ? Send me a note !

Other popular posts you may like:

The 18 Best Maze Movies

What I use to make my mazes

How to make a digital maze (40 different types)

How to make a labyrinth (classical, square, circular)

A Comparison of the Top 12 online maze generation websites

Today I will take you thru the top results for online maze generation, compare them, and let you know what each is capable of. I used a few different search engines to find the top sites, then pared them down to the very best. This maze generator comparison includes the (1) shape of the overall mazes, (2) the cell types or shape of the cells that create the internal paths/walls, (3/4) the width and height sizes you can generate, (5/6) how the start/end are shown, (7) are the solutions given, and (8) how can you download the maze you have generated. I try to note what a website does best if something stands out.

To give them a good comparison I decided to generate a 20x20 maze with each website to compare how each generated the maze (where possible). I also tried to give an example of some of the advanced features if the maze generator website has them.

I have included a “best of” section at the end of the post if you are looking for a specific functionality from the website, like: Best Pre-Made Shapes, Best Custom Shapes and Best On-Screen Solving to name a few of the categories. These are not in order:

1. mazegenerator

   Shapes: 4 : Rectangle, Circle, Triangular, Hexagonal

   Cell types: 3: Square, Hexagons, Triangles

   Width: 2 - 200 for rectangles, Diameter of 5 - 200 for Circles, Side length of 3 - 200 for Triangles , Sides 2 - 120 for Hexagonals

   Height: 2 - 200 for rectangles

   Start: 2 choices: Top, Bottom/Inner Room

   End: Same choices as start.

   Solution generated: Yes

   Downloads available: Yes, PDF in 6 different sizes, SVG, PNG

   What this site does best: Of all the sites I reviewed this is one of the few sites with hexagon maze generation and triangular maze generation. It also wins for the best download options once you have generated a maze with the site. The site allows you to create a large maze of 200x200, the second largest size of all the sites I have reviewed.

   Examples: On the Left is a 20 x 20 square maze and on the right is a 20 x 5 triangular maze. Left Below is a hexagonal sigma cell maze. Right below is an example of a circular maze with the solution.

2. CODEBOX

Shapes: 4+ (infinite) : Square, Circle, Triangular Grid, Hexagonal Grid. While there are 4 main types you can also create an infinite number of shapes using the mask feature !!

Cell types: 3: Square, Hexagons, Triangles

Width and Height: 2 - 50 for squares and hexagons, Triangles from 4-85 width to 2-50 height, and circles can have 30 layers

Start/end: 4 choices: None, Top to Bottom, Left to Right, Hardest entrance/exit

Solution generated: Yes

Downloads available: Yes, as an SVG file.

What this site does best: Of all the sites I reviewed this is one of only 2 sites with Circular maze generation. It is also the site with the most flexibility in creating shapes. You can create a distance map that shows how far the point is from the entrance. The generator offers a choice of 10 different algorithms to generate the maze. You can also solve these mazes on screen using your mouse and keyboard. You can also choose to watch the maze generate !

Examples: Starting in the top left corner a simple 20x20 maze, a hexagonal grid maze, a circular maze, and a shape I made myself using the mask feature. I also suggest you check out the examples given on the site.

3. Discovery Education Puzzlemaker

Shapes: 5 : Rectangle, Circle/Oval, Wheel, Escape from middle, Cut Out

Cell types: Square

Width: 2 - 100

Height: 2 - 100

Start: Entrance and exit are not specified, 1 of each. If internal option is not used they will be on the left and right.

End: 1

Advanced options: You can name your maze. It’s actually their step #1. You can chose the direction of the internal pathways (6 options, including random, mostly horizontal and mostly vertical).

Solution generated: Yes

Downloads available: Yes. They have added buttons to make Copying the Maze to your clipboard simple. Also includes a Print button directly on the page.

What this site does best: Allows the creation of a large size 100 x 100 maze.

Examples: On the left is a 20 x 20 square maze. On the right is a ‘circular’ maze that is made using a square grid system (For a true circular maze see above). Bottom left is an example of a 20 x20 cutout and bottom right is the wheel version.

Additional Information: This is part of the Discovery Education Puzzlemaker page. You can generate 10 different puzzle types : Word Search, Criss Cross, Double Puzzles, Fallen Phrase, Math Squares, Mazes, Letter Tiles, Cryptograms, Number Blocks and Hidden Message puzzles. It is easy to see why this site is popular with such great content !

4. ANGELIKA TYBORSKA

You can learn about Angelika and her projects here, including this maze generator she made ”just for fun”.

Shapes: 5+ : Square, Hexagon, Triangle, Circle, Star - which allows you to upload a mask to create your own shape

Cell types: Automatic based on shape of maze. Square, hexagonal, and triangular.

Width: 2 - 50

Height: 2 - 50

Note that for the circle and hexagon shapes you choose the radius (up to 30) and the triangle the side length (up to 30)

Start/Goal: Entrance and exit are not specified, but each is signified by internal dots.

Advanced options: You can choose the algorithm used to generate the pathways, of which there are 6 different options. You can generate a solution “heat map” showing the distance from the entrance of the maze.

Solution generated: Yes

Downloads available: Yes, in SVG format

What this site does best: It does a great job with custom shapes (you can upload your own mask), and with common shapes like the circle, hexagon, and triangle.

Examples: 20x20 Square using Recursive backtracker algorithm, 10 radius hexagonal with solution and “heat map”.

5. Mazesforfun

Shapes: 9 selectable shapes: including Square, Triangle and Round

Cell types: Automatic based on selected shape

Width: 10 - 40

Height: 10 - 40

Start: Unmarked but always the top left of the shape

End: Unmarked but always the bottom right of the maze

Advanced options: There are 4 levels of difficulty. You can also choose the size the maze generates in (3 possible).

Solution generated: Yes

Downloads available: Yes, in PDF, PNG, and SVG formats

What this site does best: The ability to mix and match internal shapes and external shapes. It also has 9 selectable pre-made shape templates.

Examples: First is a standard 20 x 20 square (difficulty hard); next is what generates for triangles - not the external shape but the CELL shape. The final 2 examples show a shape called Cairo and on called Squaretriangles.

6. billsgames.com

Shapes: 1 : Rectangle

Cell types: 1: Square

Width: 21 - 301

Height: 21 - 201

Start: Entrance and exit are not specified, and placement varies by maze.

End: 1. I think I have generated mazes with no exit !!! I could be wrong but it was difficult to find if it was there !

Advanced options: There are 3 options for mazes generation: Simplistic, Harder and Chaotic. Pictures are sometimes randomly inserted on the mazes. I have seen Griffins, a plane, a house, etc. Has a secondary playable option where you can play on screen and try to solve an invisible maze !

Solution generated: No

Downloads available: Only by right clicking to download directly from the browser

Examples: each maze is 21 x 21 (really? - well that is what the settings said !). The maze on the left generated extremely easy…. The maze on the right was generated using the chaotic setting. Unfortunately, each of these mazes are very easy to solve. Be sure to check to see if the generation you use is difficult enough.

7. mazepuzzlemaker

You’ll notice the controls of this website are very similar to Printable creative above with some additional options available. This is available to be used for commercial uses and is the PAID version of the site above.

Shapes: 55 selectable shapes, including letters A-Z, and many more; 4 geometric; 29 Fancy shapes

Cell types: Square

Width/Height: You can choose between 10-30 “cells”

Start: automatically generated at top and bottom of the maze shape

End: Start/end can be turned on, showing a green and red box to indicate the start/goal

Solution generated: Yes

Downloads available: Paid. Yes, PDF in multiple sizes, PNG and SVG

What this site does best: Creates puzzles for commercial use. Has a large amount of fancy shapes available. Gives more examples than any other website (by a wide margin).

Examples: The best way to check out is to view their page of examples, featuring 82 different examples !! Here is a snapshot of that page to give you a small sampling:

8. Glass Giant

Shapes: 1 : Square

Cell types: 1: Square

Width: 2 - 40

Height: 2 - 40

Start: Marked by a green diamond INSIDE the maze

End: Marked by a red square INSIDE the maze.

Advanced options: There are 5 levels of difficulty. You can choose the color of the maze walls and the background color (9 colors available). You can also choose the size the maze generates in.

Solution generated: No

Downloads available: Only by right clicking to download directly from the browser

Examples: Left is a standard 20 x 20 maze and on the right is a 20 x 20 maze with the options for Red walls on a Cyan background selected.

9. printablecreative

Shapes: 11 : Box, Circle, Diamond, 4 Rooms, L, Moon, Square, Star, Strike Triangle, 2 Rooms

Cell types: 1: Square

Width/Height: You can choose between 10-30 “cells” for the free version

Start: automatically generated at top and bottom of the maze shape

End: Start/end can be turned on, showing a green and red box to indicate the start/goal

Solution generated: Yes

Downloads available: Yes, PDF in 2 different sizes, PNG

This maze generator also allows you to pick the size of the cell corridor (10-30) adjusting the scale of the maze you generate. It also has 3 difficulty levels (Easy, Normal, Hard).

What this site does best: They have their own page of maze examples featuring 19 options ! It also features 11 pre-made shapes.

Examples: The top 2 show the Start and Goal indicators. Shapes in the examples are Square, Two Rooms, Circle and L.

10. Here and above

Shapes: 1 : Rectangle

Cell types: 1: Square, Rectangle

Width: 2 - 500. Note that I made a 500 X 500 successfully, but at higher numbers you may get an error.

Height: 2 - 500

Start: Entrance and exit are not specified, and may be on any side of the maze.

End: 1

Advanced options: You can choose wall and path widths. You can generate a maze in many colors (basically every color) using the RGB system. That is one thing that sets this site apart from all others - every color is available to make a maze in.

Solution generated: No

Downloads available: Only by right clicking to download directly from the browser

What this site does best: Large sizes - this website generates the largest mazes that I have found ! And the ability to use any color you can think of using an RBG selector.

Examples:

11. KIDEV

Things are different here compared to the other websites. On this site the solving of the mazes happens ON SCREEN. If that is what you are looking for, this is the site for you ! Also includes sections of Puzzles, Learning (Letters and Numbers), Drawing and a Code game. The mazes all feature themes as you will see in the examples !

Shapes: 34+ : 34 different styles of maze are currently available to be generated, plus a 27 predefined shapes in the Shapes section that allows you to create your own shapes.

Cell types:: Many. The 34 shapes include some unique inner cell shapes that are best explored on your own !!

Width and Height: Varies, but you do not control the output size for the 33 styles generated. However, under the Create button you can control the X and Y to create a maze in the size you want.

Start: Pre-defined in Style mazes

End: Pre-defined in Style mazes, internal or external in the Create section

Solution generated: No

Downloads available: Mazes are both shareable and Printable

Examples: 4 of the 33 styles are shown below. Rail, SawBlade, Jigsaw, and Corn mazes.

12. mazebrite

This is a custom maze message generator. You can make your name, or a message like “I love you”. Downloads are available for a fee.

Shapes: 1 : Rectangle

Cell types: 1: Square

Width: Based on the length of message.

Height: 13, 24, or 35 depending on the length of the message

Start / Finish : Are written and located inside the maze. Start in the bottom left corner, Finish in the bottom right

Solution generated: Yes. You may also select from 8 colors.

Downloads available: It costs 99 cents to email yourself 3 versions of the maze.

Example: Shows the three versions for the word “MAZE”, as labeled, the solution, with helpful arrows (Breadcrumbs), and with no clues.

That concludes the reviews, but if you are interested in additional sites I have a second blog post about sites that did not make this list.

BEST MAZE GENERATORS FOR:

• CATEGORY: SHAPES

Best pre-made shapes:

MAZEPUZZLEMAKER - features 55 selectable shapes, including letters A-Z; 4 geometric shapes; 29 fancy shapes

KIDEV - 35 variations come in many different unique forms

PRINTABLECREATIVE - drop down menu contains 11 options

MAZESFORFUN - 9 options that include unique internal pathways giving mazes a fresh look

Most unique pre-fabricated shapes:

KIDEV - you can find Rail, Pipe, Jigsaw, and Corn mazes among a large selection.

MAZEPUZZLEMAKER 29 fancy options - The best way to check out is to view their page of examples.

MAZESFORFUN the internal shapes that are generated are unique

Best custom shapes:

CODEBOX - Click on Create Mask button and make your own maze shape !

KIDEV - you can load shapes and customize them !

ANGELIKA TYBORSKA - click on the Star shape and you can upload a PNG file with a custom mask

Largest rectangular maze creation available:

1. 500 x 500 HERE AND ABOVE

2. 200 x 200 MAZEGENERATOR

3. 120 x 120 ALL KIDS NETWORK (not reviewed above)

4. 100 x 100 DISCOVERY EDUCATION PUZZLEMAKER

Best circular mazes:

MAZEGENERATOR

CODEBOX

ANGELIKA TYBORSKA

Best triangular shaped mazes:

MAZEGENERATOR

ANGELIKA TYBORSKA

Best hexagonal shaped mazes:

MAZEGENERATOR

ANGELIKA TYBORSKA

CODEBOX

OTHER CATEGORIES

Best on screen solving:

KIDEV - use a pencil on screen to solve a generated maze, or select from 40 other icons

CODEBOX - click the Play button after generating a maze to solve using your keyboard or mouse

BILLSGAMES.COM - specifically for the invisible option

Best colors available:

HERE AND ABOVE - you can choose the RBG for both the pathways and walls

GLASS GIANT - you can choose from 8 colors for the background and foreground

Best novelty mazes:

KIDEV - really interesting themes that kids would love !

Best hidden message maze generator:

MAZEBRITE

If you have a website you think I have missed and deserves a look, please drop me a note and I will evaluate it for possible inclusion !

Other popular posts you may like:

How to make a digital maze (40 different types)

The 18 Best Maze Movies

What I use to make my mazes

What I Use to Make My Mazes

Today I want to give you some background on how I actually make the mazes you see on this site. I touched on this in Part 2 of my Maze conversion project, but wanted to expand upon it a bit here since it is something I am often asked about. This isn’t a How To Make Mazes post, which I have written about extensively, but rather the tools I use and my thoughts on them and mistakes I made in the past.

Some Background - What I used to use to make mazes

When I first started making mazes in high school I drew with pen or markers on paper in Mead art sketch pad books. I mixed the mazes in with other random artwork that I did, switching things up to stay interested. Eventually I decided I liked making mazes and would do many in a row. Then I got hooked and kept making mazes over the years, Eventually I wanted to make more complex and started using the computer to make them. I first used Microsoft Excel. Yes, Excel. Not ideal looking back, but it did give me a grid pattern to work from, but really NO flexibility in design. See the original Microsoft Excel maze below, “Lost in The City”.

“Lost in the City” Maze made in Microsoft Excel

I actually did a few more in Excel that are on this site. I wonder if you can you find them ? There is an Excel maze in the fan art section. See if you can find it ! I will say that as along as you only need right angles, Excel works better than you think, although the creating is painstakingly slow.

Eventually I got tired of making maze walls by selecting each individual cell and placing the appropriate grid outlines in them. Next I moved on to Microsoft Paint. This gave me the ability to use color and to create much more interesting mazes. I also didn’t need to fit everything into the same grid if I didn’t want to ! The mazes I made in Paint were much better than my Excel ones IMO, but because I was building these mazes a pixel at a time they took months. Yes, MONTHS to make. There is also not an ability to create any grid guidelines to help you draw a maze in Paint - and believe me this is important! Here is an example of one of my Paint mazes:

Empire State Building Maze Made In Microsoft Paint

So The Empire State Building Maze took months to complete as it was done to scale and created a pixel at a time. As you can see from how small the pathways are on your screen, this maze is shrunk down significantly from actual size. When printed it is 3 feet wide and 9.5 feet tall in full resolution. Yes, it is solvable. You start in the arrow below the A, reach the top point and return back to the start. Brutal. But, Paint is not a vector graphics program. And all of these mistakes I made are all to get to me saying this: To Make Digital Mazes use a Vector Graphics Program. Now, what I use today.

Why Vector Graphics ?

Vector graphics are made up of pathways that can be resized without losing resolution. Non-vector programs use Raster graphics (like png, jpeg, gifs) where the picture is made from individual pixels. That means if you resize the picture you will lose resolution. Making a Vector Maze means you can size it larger or smaller and it will still look good. That isn’t the case for Raster Mazes. The first circle below is raster (PNG) and it looks ok. Check out what happens when you increase the size by 400%. See the pixilation ? (those of you reading this on phones are saying not really)

And now the direct comparison between the two types of files which clearly shows why vector is the way you want to design ! The larger I made this the more the Raster would pixelate.

Raster vs Vector Example at 400%

What I Use to Make My Mazes

Inkscape. I do all of my maze making in Inkscape. Inkscape is a free open source vector graphics editor, but you can use a similar product if you already have the needed skills in that program. I found, that like most programs, Inkscape basics can be learned quickly playing around in the program. You can learn a bit more from YouTube videos, and to finally master it so you aren’t frustrated all the time (While muttering why can’t I just do XXXXX) that will just take time and practice. The Inkscape website also has a forum and the majority of the questions are under Beginner’s Questions, so you are not alone!

Time to make some mazes (or labyrinths). If you want to see step by step instructions, I have over 70 different sets to choose from !