Winning Wordle in Two Tries (2024)

Victory in one try

Since there are 2,315 possible target words in Wordle, the probability that you will guess the target in exactly one try is 1/2315 = 0.000432. In fact, it doesn’t matter which of the 2,315 words in the dictionary you choose to use as your initial guess since the probability of success is always 1/2315.

Victory in two tries

The situation is more complicated if your goal is to guess the target within two tries. Let us suppose that you choose “trace” as your first guess. Depending on the target word, Wordle will return one of the 243 patterns (as described in Figure 3 of Letter Frequency and Patterns). For example, if the target word is “dance”, “lance” or “sauce”, then Wordle will return the pattern “**YGG”. These are the only three possible target words that can match this pattern.

If “**YGG” is returned, then your optimum strategy, assuming that your goal is to guess the target within two tries, is to choose “dance”, “lance” or “sauce” as your second guess. It doesn’t matter which of these three words you choose, your probability of success is 1/3.

Note too that not all patterns are possible. E.g. Wordle will never return a pattern of “*YYGY”, no matter what the target word is when you choose “trace” as your first guess.

Figure 1 displays a list of possible patterns after a choice of “trace” as your first guess.

Winning Wordle in Two Tries (1)Winning Wordle in Two Tries (2)

Figure 1 – Patterns after “trace”

Non-zero patterns

For each of the 243 patterns, Figure 1 shows how many targets will match that pattern after an initial guess of “trace”. The figure also lists one of the possible targets that match that pattern (actually the first such target in alphabetical order).

For example, if Wordle returns a pattern of “*****” (i.e. no matches), then we see from the figure that there are 246 possible target words that match that pattern. If this is indeed the pattern that Wordle returns, then you have a 1/246 chance of picking the correct target on the second try (e.g. by choosing the word shown in Figure 1 for that pattern). Also, note that the probability that Wordle returns this pattern after an initial guess of “trace” is 246/2315 (246 targets out of the 2,315 possible targets).

Probability calculation

Using the Law of Total Probability, the probability of guessing the target within two tries is equal to

Winning Wordle in Two Tries (3)

This is a sum of 243 terms (one per pattern), although terms with no matching pattern are omitted. This leaves 150 terms (93 of the patterns shown in Figure 3 of Letter Frequency and Patterns have no matching targets). Cancelling out terms, the above sum is equivalent to

Winning Wordle in Two Tries (4)

Thus, the probability turns out to be the number of non-zero patterns for “trace” divided by 2315, which is 6.4795%.

Best initial guess

It also turns out that using an initial guess of “trace” has the best probability of discovering the target within two tries. The next best initial guesses from the basic Wordle dictionary are shown in Figure 2.

Winning Wordle in Two Tries (5)

Figure 2 – Best initial guesses

In Letter Frequency and Patterns, we suggest that picking guesses with more commonly used letters might be a good strategy (see Figures 1 and 2 of Letter Frequency and Patterns). Figure 2 suggests that picking guesses that maximize the number of non-zero patterns might also be a good strategy. Note that some words (slate, crate, and trace) appear in both lists.

Using the full dictionary

We could also use as our first guess words from the full, 12,497-word dictionary that are not in the basic dictionary. There are 23 such words that are at least as good as the words in Figure 2 (in terms of the probability of winning the game in 2 guesses). The best such words are “salet” (148), “reast” (147), “carte” (146), “caret” (145), “peart” (145), and “carle” (144). The downside of these words is that there is no chance of guessing the target word in one try.

Click here for more information about using the full dictionary.

Download Tables

Click here to download the Excel workbook with the tables in Figures 1 and 2.

Reference

New York Times (2022) Wordle
https://www.nytimes.com/games/wordle/

Winning Wordle in Two Tries (2024)

FAQs

Winning Wordle in Two Tries? ›

Well, there's not too much strategy to getting Wordle in 2. You guess your first word, get some information, and make a second guess from the Wordle answer list consistent with that information. Usually, you can't uniquely identify the answer after one guess so there's no way of guaranteeing success.

How often do people solve Wordle in 2 tries? ›

Human Statistics Playing Wordle
AttemptSuccess rate
1st0.02%
2nd5.67%
3rd22.66%
4th33.10%
3 more rows
Dec 15, 2022

Is getting the Wordle in 3 tries good? ›

If you can consistently get Wordle in three guesses, you are pretty darn good. A score of three is solidly above average, and it is certainly nothing to frown at. Especially with harder words such as “cynic,” “vivid,” or “swill,” getting it in three is very good.

What are the odds for getting Wordle in one try? ›

And the first result that popped up from Real Statistics Using Excel (which seemed credible) said: “Since there are 2,315 possible target words in Wordle, the probability that you will guess the target in exactly one try is 1/2315 = 0.000432.

How many attempts do you get when trying to solve a Wordle puzzle? ›

The internet is full of advice about the best first guess to use for Wordle, the New York Times game in which players have to figure out the five-letter word of the day in six tries.

Has anyone ever got Wordle on the first try? ›

The odds get marginally better every subsequent game (e.g., 1 in 2,314; 1 in 2,313) assuming the correct answer isn't a repeat of the previous days' solutions. With that in mind, it's highly unlikely that 1% of all players are guessing correctly on the first try — and much more likely that some folks are cheating.

What are the odds of getting Wordle on the second try? ›

If this is indeed the pattern that Wordle returns, then you have a 1/246 chance of picking the correct target on the second try (e.g. by choosing the word shown in Figure 1 for that pattern).

What is a good average Wordle score? ›

Sweden is the world's best country at Wordle, with an average of 3.72. The US is ranked #18 in the world for Wordle, with a national average of 3.92. The American state with the best Wordle average is North Dakota (3.65). The US city with the best Wordle scores is Saint Paul, Minnesota, with an average of 3.51.

What happens if you don't get the Wordle in 6 tries? ›

“But really it was like my seventh try, or eighth try.” It's important to switch after your fifth try, she stressed, because if you get to the sixth and don't get it, the game is over because Wordle automatically tells you the word.

What is the highest streak on Wordle? ›

Spencer Evans was the one whose accomplishment impressed me the most: 83 unbroken wins and counting. A wordsmith himself, Evans first discovered Wordle earlier this month.

How long does it take the average person to get the Wordle? ›

On average 95% of target words can be solved within 6 guesses with average game length is approximately 4 rounds. By the time the third guess has been made, a good player will have located about 4 target letters with 2 or 3 in their correct positions.

What is the most common first guess on Wordle? ›

A pair of MIT researchers recently set out to find the optimal starting word for the popular online puzzle, discovering that the statistically superior first guess is SALET, which is a 15th century helmet.

What percentage of people fail at Wordle? ›

Because very few people fail at a given Wordle (typically around 3%), I use the percent of people who use all six guesses, whether they win (6/6) or fail (X/6) as a proxy for a word's difficulty. This percentage varies quite a bit, suggesting that some answers are definitely harder than others.

Does everyone get the same work on Wordle? ›

This practices has raised questions about whether all players receive the same word. The short answer is yes. On a given day, players around the world have access to the same puzzle. However, the game updates based on the timezone of the player, meaning that some have access to a new word more earlier than others.

Is it better to eliminate consonants or vowels in Wordle? ›

According to their research, the best Wordle starting words are those with just one or two vowels. Since most words have vowels, it is more strategic to actually burn through common consonants with your early words.

How many 5 letter words are there in Wordle? ›

As we can see, there are 12972 words of 5 letters in the Wordle dictionary.

Why did Wordle get popular all of a sudden? ›

Anticipation and a sense of belonging

There's no doubt that the social aspect of Wordle, the ability to easily share your own results — on social media, via text message, or over email — and also see how quickly others guessed the daily term, has been a huge factor driving the game's rapid ascension.

What is the best 5-letter word for Wordle? ›

11 unusual 5-letter words to kick off your next Wordle game
  • DUCAT. ...
  • OUIJA. ...
  • CAROM. ...
  • ERGOT. ...
  • CRAIC. ...
  • SQUAB. A young unfledged bird, especially a pigeon.
  • ENOKI. An edible mushroom with a long, slender stem, a small, yellowish cap, and yellowish gills.
  • AZURE. Azure is used to describe things that are bright blue.
Feb 1, 2022

What letters are most common in 5-letter words? ›

This means the top most commonly used letters in 5-letter words (in terms of total frequency as well as average frequency) were the letters A, E, S, O, R, I, L, T, etc.

What is a good word to start with in Wordle? ›

Start with a word that has a lot of vowels.

Some Wordle players have found success in starting with a word that has several vowels in it. “Adieu,” “audio” or “canoe,” for instance, may be good words to start with because at least three out of the five letters are vowels.

What's the best strategy for Wordle? ›

Wordle: The Best Strategy For The Game
  1. 1 Try Even If It Looks Wrong.
  2. 2 Words Rarely End In S. ...
  3. 3 Cross Out One Letter At A Time. ...
  4. 4 Find Go-To Words. ...
  5. 5 Skip The Correct Letters In The Second Guess. ...
  6. 6 Remember The Statistics. ...
  7. 7 Use Distinct Words For First 2 Guesses. ...
  8. 8 Eliminate Vowels First. ...
Jul 9, 2022

Is Wordle good for the brain? ›

Games like Wordle are a great stimulation activity that protect brain function and help prevent dementia and cognitive decline.

Can you ever get 100% back on Wordle? ›

Once your Wordle streak is gone, it's difficult to get it back. There used to be a way to get your score back by going to the old Wordle website, but unfortunately, that website has shut down. There is now only one way to get your Wordle streak back. This involves changing the date on your phone.

Can you go back if you miss a day on Wordle? ›

Players can also go back and have a go at any old Wordles that they missed, allowing multiple games to be played in the same day. If you have an iPhone, follow these steps to do it: Go into 'Settings' on your phone and click on 'General' Select 'Date and Time' and then un-tick 'Set Automatically'

What is the asterisk after the score in Wordle? ›

If you post your results after playing in hard mode, they appear with a little asterisk. "This person played on HARD MODE," the game tells all your friends, just to make sure that they know without your having to communicate it to them. It is the humblebrag of Wordle.

What is average Wordle score in hard mode? ›

In hard mode, Wordle can be solved in 3.5076 guesses on average (with 6 guesses at worst, i.e. 100% of the time).

What is the second most common letter in Wordle? ›

The most frequently used letter in the first position is “s”, while the most frequently used letter in the second or third position is “a”. The most frequently used letter in the fourth or fifth position is “e”.

What is the two word strategy in Wordle? ›

In Wordle, an optimal strategy means avoiding repeating letters as much as possible. Instead of rushing to try to guess the actual solution on your second try, an ideal second word would repeat no letters from your first guess.

Are people losing interest in Wordle? ›

Wordle, the popular word-guessing game that took the internet by storm, has seen a decline in interest and participation. While the game was once a viral sensation, it seems that people are losing interest in it. Over the last year, the global interest in Wordle has dropped by nearly 70% according to Google Trend.

Can there be plurals in Wordle? ›

The answer can still be plural like GEESE or FUNGI, but it will never be FOXES or SPOTS. Players can still guess words ending in "s" or "es" to narrow down the answer.

Does Wordle tell you if a letter is used more than once? ›

Keep in mind that Wordle tells you when a letter is not duplicated, too. If you use two of the same letter in a word, and only one of them turns yellow or green, then there is only one copy of that letter in the correct Wordle answer.

Does Wordle tell you if a letter is used twice? ›

Is there a way to know if a letter is used twice in Wordle? Yes, you can check to see if a letter is used twice in a Wordle by counting the number of occurrences of each letter in the Wordle. If a certain letter appears more than once, then it has been used twice in the Wordle.

Can you play the same Wordle twice in one day? ›

A user can play only one puzzle in a day. The daily Wordle resets at midnight every day in your current time zone. Every Wordle user plays the same puzzle each day. Users can share the game on social media without spoiling the answer for others.

What are 2 of the least used letters in Wordle? ›

The least common letters in all words are the usual suspects: J, Q, Z, X, and it's unlikely any five-letter Wordle word would contain any of those characters. F, V, and K are also uncommon, but these letters have higher odds of being in one of the five possible Wordle positions.

Is there a word with all the vowels for Wordle? ›

So, here are words you can try that have four non-repeating vowels:
  • ADIEU.
  • AUDIO.
  • AULOI.
  • AUREI.
  • LOUIE.
  • MIAOU.
  • OUIJA.
  • OURIE.
Feb 28, 2023

Are there 5 words that use 25 letters? ›

For this list:
  • brick.
  • feast.
  • glent.
  • jumpy.
  • vozhd.
  • waqfs.
Feb 6, 2022

Is there a 5 letter word with every vowel? ›

Five-letter words that contain four vowels include:
  • ADIEU.
  • AUDIO.
  • AULOI.
  • AUREI.
  • LOUIE.
  • MIAOU.
  • OUIJA.
  • OURIE.
Feb 2, 2022

What percentage of people get Wordle on the first word? ›

Human Statistics Playing Wordle
AttemptSuccess rate
1st0.02%
2nd5.67%
3rd22.66%
4th33.10%
3 more rows
Dec 15, 2022

What is the magnifying glass in Wordle? ›

In Wordle, each game is based on a 5-letter word. If you need inspiration for your initial guess, use the advanced search to view words with a specific number of letters. Click the magnifying glass icon () to add the search filter Number of letters, then specify equals and enter 5.

Why are people hooked on Wordle? ›

Psychology of Wordle: Why are people addicted to this viral word game? Wordle activates both the language and logic parts of our brain and give us a nice boost of dopamine, whether we win or lose. Wordle is the latest fad in a long list of gaming obsessions, going from obscurity to fame in only a few months.

What percentage of people fail to solve Wordle? ›

Because very few people fail at a given Wordle (typically around 3%), I use the percent of people who use all six guesses, whether they win (6/6) or fail (X/6) as a proxy for a word's difficulty.

What percentage of people cheat at Wordle? ›

See all Puzzles. This ease of sharing makes for good group fun, but it can also lead to angst and envy. In a survey of Wordle users conducted by Solitaired, about 10% of Wordle players admitted to cheating, most of them doing so strategically once or twice a week.

Has Wordle had the same answer twice? ›

Does Wordle repeat letters? You might have learned this already (and done so the hard way), but yes, absolutely letters can repeat in Wordle puzzles. This complication is actually one of the major sources of difficulty for many players.

What is the #1 starting word for Wordle? ›

What is the best Wordle starting word? The New York Times' Wordlebot originally recommended Wordle users on regular mode start with the word CRANE. But, as of August 2022, Wordlebot now recommends the word SLATE. If you're on hard mode, the recommended word has gone from LEAST to DEALT.

What does being good at Wordle say about you? ›

As Loren Mowszowski says, “People who are good at Wordle can be chuffed about their language and problem-solving skills but I don't think they can lay claim to being 'smarter', per se.”

What states cheat the most at Wordle? ›

Alaska, New Hampshire and Maine residents are most interested in using a Words With Friends cheat. Players in DC, Vermont and Maine turn to Wordle solvers for help the most. People who cheat at Words With Friends tend to use Wordle helpers too.

Is using paper for Wordle cheating? ›

Just no. If you need to CHEAT at a game you play on your own, there's something seriously WRONG with you. Using pen and paper to work it out offline is almost as bad. It's a BRAIN game, not a write-out-all-the-possible-solutions-until-you-get-it-right game.

Are there plurals in Wordle? ›

The answer can still be plural like GEESE or FUNGI, but it will never be FOXES or SPOTS. Players can still guess words ending in "s" or "es" to narrow down the answer.

Why has Wordle got two answers today? ›

In an email response to Mashable, Jordan Cohen, New York Times executive director of communications, confirmed that the answer had indeed been changed. "In an effort to make the puzzle more accessible, we are reviewing the solutions and removing obscure or potentially insensitive words over time.

Does everyone get the same word on Wordle? ›

This practices has raised questions about whether all players receive the same word. The short answer is yes. On a given day, players around the world have access to the same puzzle. However, the game updates based on the timezone of the player, meaning that some have access to a new word more earlier than others.

What is the number one most guessed word on Wordle? ›

A pair of MIT researchers recently set out to find the optimal starting word for the popular online puzzle, discovering that the statistically superior first guess is SALET, which is a 15th century helmet.

How do you get 100% on Wordle? ›

12 Wordle Tips and Tricks to Improve Your Score
  1. Don't Try to Guess the Word on Your First Turn. ...
  2. Your First Guess Should Contain "Popular" Letters. ...
  3. Use the Same First Word for Every Wordle Game. ...
  4. Take Time With Your Turns. ...
  5. Don't Be Afraid to Use the Same Letter Twice. ...
  6. Don't Forget the Less Popular Letters.
Sep 29, 2022

Do I lose my streak if I miss a day on Wordle? ›

Wordle keeps track of how many times you've played, what percentage of games you've won, along with your current streak. If you miss one, that streak is reset to zero, which can be a pretty big blow if you're gone for weeks or even months without missing a single word.

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