Spiral Matrix

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Problem

Given an m x n matrix, return all elements of the matrix in spiral order, starting from the top-left and moving clockwise inward.

Examples

Example 1

Input:matrix = [[1,2,3],[4,5,6],[7,8,9]]

Output:[1,2,3,6,9,8,7,4,5]

Constraints

1 <= m, n <= 10

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How to approach it: the Math & Geometry pattern

A grab-bag of problems solved with numeric or coordinate reasoning rather than a specific data structure — matrix manipulation, simulation, and basic number theory.

Look for this pattern when

The problem operates on a 2-D grid or matrix directly (rotate, transpose, traverse in a pattern).
There's no obvious "textbook" data structure — the problem is really about careful step-by-step simulation.

Read the full Math & Geometry guide →

Video walkthroughs

Original problem on LeetCode ↗