Wordle is a daily word-guessing game in which you get six attempts to identify a secret five-letter word. Every player around the world gets the same puzzle each day, and colour-coded tiles — green, yellow or grey — tell you how close each guess is to the answer. Created by software engineer Josh Wardle and released publicly in October 2021, Wordle grew from a personal project into a global phenomenon before being acquired by The New York Times in January 2022.
The Story Behind Wordle
Who Created Wordle?
Wordle was created by Josh Wardle, a Brooklyn-based software engineer. The game's name is a play on his surname. Wardle actually built the first prototype back in 2013, then set it aside. During the pandemic, he dusted it off as a personal project for his partner, who loves word games — and this time he kept it deliberately simple: no app, no ads, no accounts, just one puzzle a day in a web browser. [dev.to]
How Wordle Went Viral
After sharing the game with friends and family, Wardle released Wordle to the public in October 2021. Growth was explosive: the game reportedly went from around 90 players in early November 2021 to roughly 300,000 players by mid-January 2022. A key driver was the share button, which lets players post their results as a grid of coloured emoji squares — a spoiler-free format that flooded social media and turned every player's timeline into free advertising.
The New York Times Acquisition
On January 31, 2022, The New York Times announced it was buying Wordle for a price in the "low seven figures." Wardle said in the company statement that the move felt natural because New York Times Games "play a big part in its origins." The Times moved the game to its own site, updated the word list over time (removing obscure words such as "AGORA" and words it deemed insensitive), and kept the daily puzzle free to play — no subscription required. [livemint.com]
How to Play Wordle: The Rules
Wordle's rules are simple, which is exactly why it works. Here's the full rundown:
The Basic Rules
- Guess a five-letter word. Type any valid five-letter English word into the first row and press Enter.
- Read the tile colours. After each guess, the tiles change colour:
- Green — the letter is in the word AND in the correct position.
- Yellow — the letter is in the word but in the wrong position.
- Grey — the letter is not in the word at all.
- You get six attempts. Use the feedback to narrow down possibilities with each guess.
- One puzzle per day. Everyone plays the same word, and the puzzle resets at midnight in your local time zone.
- Guesses must be real words. You can't just type random letters — every guess has to be a valid word.
- Answers are never plurals ending in S (like NOSES) and proper nouns never appear as answers. [gamerant.com]
Example Round
Say today's word is CRANE and your first guess is SLATE:
- S turns grey — not in the word.
- L turns grey — not in the word.
- A turns yellow — in the word, wrong spot.
- T turns grey — not in the word.
- E turns green — in the word, correct spot.
You now know the word ends in E and contains A (not in position 3). Your next guess might be BRAVE… and you're already closer.
Optional Settings
- Hard Mode — every revealed hint (green and yellow letters) must be used in your subsequent guesses. Toggle it with the cog icon.
- Dark Theme — easier on the eyes for late-night solving.
- Colour Blind Mode — swaps green/yellow for high-contrast orange and blue. [makeuseof.com]
Wordle Strategies That Actually Work
Start Smart
Your first guess matters most because you know nothing. The best starting words:
- Use five different letters — no repeats.
- Cover the most common vowels and consonants.
- Popular choices backed by letter-frequency analysis: CRANE, SLATE, ADIEU, STARE, AUDIO.
Avoid words with repeated letters early on — they give you less information per guess.
Mid-Game Tactics
- Don't reuse grey letters. The keyboard display greys out eliminated letters — trust it.
- Watch yellow letters carefully. A yellow letter in position 3 means it belongs somewhere else; try it in positions 1, 2, 4 or 5.
- Beware double letters. If you're down to your last guesses and common patterns fail, consider that the answer may contain a repeated letter (like SPELL or ROBOT).
- Think in word families. Once you have _A_E, run through consonant pairs mentally: BRAVE, CRANE, GRADE, SHADE, FLAME.
Wordle vs Similar Games
| Feature | Wordle | Plusword | Quordle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Format | Guess 1 word | Crossword + word deduction | Guess 4 words at once |
| Guesses | 6 | Unlimited (crossword-based) | 9 |
| Word length | 5 letters | 5 letters | 5 letters |
| Puzzles per day | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Publisher | NYT Games | The Telegraph | Independent |
If you enjoy Wordle's daily rhythm but want a different flavour, try the Telegraph's Plusword — it blends a mini crossword with Wordle-style letter logic.
Why Wordle Still Matters
A few design choices explain why Wordle outlasted every clone:
- Artificial scarcity. One puzzle a day means you can never binge it — and you always come back tomorrow. Wardle himself said the game "encourages you to spend three minutes a day. And that's it."
- Shared experience. Everyone solves the same word, so comparing results with friends feels meaningful. [grimsbytelegraph.co.uk]
- Zero friction. No app to download, no account to create, no ads in the original version — you just open the page and play.
- The share grid. The emoji result grid became a universal visual language for the game.
Common Wordle Questions
Is Wordle still free?
Yes. Despite moving to The New York Times platform, the daily Wordle remains free to play with no subscription required. [parade.com]
Where is the official Wordle site?
The official game lives on the New York Times Games site. Wardle's original PowerLanguage domain now redirects there. Beware of copycat apps charging money — Apple removed several paid Wordle clones from the App Store in early 2022. [screenrant.com]
Can I play more than one Wordle a day?
The official game offers exactly one puzzle per day. If you want more practice, unofficial "unlimited" versions exist — but the official daily puzzle is the only one that counts toward streaks.
What happened with the double answers?
Twice in early 2022, players saw different answers on the same day (notably puzzle #241 in February and #284 in March). The cause: the Times was updating the word list — replacing words like "AGORA" with "AROMA" and "HARRY" with "STOVE" — and players on the old cached version saw the original word. Refreshing the browser fixed it. [livemint.com]
Does Wordle work on mobile?
Yes. Wordle is a browser-based game, so it works on any device with a web browser — phone, tablet or desktop. The New York Times also offers its Games app. [themanual.com]
What is Wordle hard mode?
An optional setting that forces you to use every revealed hint (green and yellow letters) in all subsequent guesses. It removes the option of "burner" guesses used purely to eliminate letters.
How do I share my Wordle result?
After finishing (or failing) a puzzle, tap the share button to copy a grid of coloured squares. It reveals your guess pattern without spoiling the answer — perfect for social media.
Is Wordle good for your brain?
Word puzzles exercise vocabulary, pattern recognition and deductive reasoning. While no single game is a proven brain-training miracle, regular wordplay is widely considered a healthy mental habit — and Wordle's three-minutes-a-day design makes it an easy one to keep.
Final Thoughts
The Wordle game proved that the simplest ideas often win: six guesses, five letters, one puzzle a day. Whether you're chasing a streak, hunting for the perfect opener, or just filling three quiet minutes, Wordle remains the benchmark every other daily word game is measured against.
Ready for a different kind of word challenge? Learn how to play Plusword — the Telegraph's crossword-meets-Wordle hybrid — or explore more word games in our Games guides.
Sources: The New York Times acquisition announcement via livemint.com; gameplay details via makeuseof.com and gamerant.com; viral growth history via dev.to.
What is today’s Wordle answer?
The daily Wordle answer changes at midnight in your local time zone, and everyone plays the same word. If you are stuck, many players look for hint sites before attempting their next guess rather than peeking at the answer directly.
Can I play past Wordle puzzles?
The official New York Times version only offers the current day’s puzzle, but the Times keeps a Wordle archive for subscribers, and several fan-made sites host playable archives of every past answer. Your stats and streak only count in the official game.
How many possible Wordle answers are there?
The original Wardle word list contained about 2,300 curated answer words (drawn from a larger list of roughly 13,000 accepted guesses). The Times has edited the list since the acquisition — removing obscure words like AGORA and words deemed insensitive — so the exact count shifts over time.
What is the best starting word in Wordle?
Mathematically, information-dense openers like CRANE, SLATE or TRACE consistently rank near the top in analyses by computer scientists and Wordle solver tools. ADIEU and AUDIO are popular for vowel coverage but test fewer consonants. The honest answer: any five-letter word with common, non-repeating letters is a fine opener.
Does Wordle keep my streak if I switch devices?
Your Wordle streak and stats are stored locally in your browser (or in your NYT account if you are signed in). Switching browsers or devices without an account resets your stats — so play on the same device, or sign in to keep your streak safe.