Best starting words, tested on 1,802 answers
We scored common opening words against every answer in our list. The winners are not the vowel-heavy words many people use.
Play Word Guess nowDaily 5-letter word, or play unlimitedHow we measured
For each starting word, we checked the colour pattern it gives against all 1,802 possible answers, then worked out how many answers are still possible on average after that first guess. Fewer is better.
Starting words compared
| Word | Answers left on average |
|---|---|
| RAISE | 49.5 |
| ARISE | 51.5 |
| IRATE | 52.0 |
| AROSE | 52.7 |
| SLATE | 58.5 |
| STARE | 58.9 |
| CRATE | 60.4 |
| TRACE | 61.0 |
| CRANE | 65.7 |
| ADIEU | 91.3 |
| AUDIO | 131.4 |
Words packed with vowels, like ADIEU and AUDIO, feel clever, but they skip the common consonants R, S and T. RAISE tests three vowels and two of the most useful consonants.
A strong two-word opening
If you like a fixed routine, follow RAISE with COUNT or CLOUT. Together they test ten different letters and leave only about 4.6 possible answers on average – usually enough to solve on guess three or four.
The most common letters
Share of answers that contain each letter: E 46%, A 39%, R 35%, O 30%, T 29%, I 28%, L 27%, S 26%, N 24%, U 21%, Y 19%.
- Most common first letters: S, C, A, B, T.
- Most common last letters: E, Y, T, R, L. Almost one answer in five ends in Y.
- About one answer in three has a repeated letter (SHELL, LEVEL, EERIE), so don’t rule repeats out.
Avoid the “one letter at a time” trap
Suppose you have _IGHT with three guesses left. Nine answers fit: BIGHT, EIGHT, FIGHT, LIGHT, MIGHT, NIGHT, RIGHT, SIGHT and TIGHT. Guessing them one by one can easily run out of turns. A word like TERMS tests T, E, R, M and S at once and splits those nine into six small groups. Spending one guess this way often saves two.
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