Wordle strategy & the best starting words

What makes a good starting word

A strong opener does three things:

1. Tests common letters in common positions.
2. Covers multiple vowels, since most answers contain at least two.
3. Avoids repeated letters — repeats waste a slot.

The most common letters in five-letter answers, roughly in order, are E, A, R, O, T, L, I, S, N, U. Every popular starter targets a subset of these.

The best single starting words

There's no single “correct” opener — different information theory analyses produce slightly different top-scorers. These five all rank near the top:

• CRANE — popularized by 3Blue1Brown's information-theory analysis as the highest-entropy first guess. Hits C, R, A, N, E.
• SLATE — covers S, L, A, T, E. Strong against the official answer list because S, T, and E are extremely common.
• RAISE — five high-frequency letters with two vowels. Solid all-rounder.
• ADIEU — covers four vowels in one shot (A, I, E, U). Good for narrowing the vowel space, weaker on consonants.
• AROSE — three vowels plus R and S, both very common.

Pick one, stick with it for a few rounds, and pay attention to the shape of the feedback you get. A consistent opener makes pattern recognition easier.

Two-word openings (the “planned probe”)

With six guesses, you can afford to spend two on pure information gathering — covering ten unique letters before you start narrowing. This works especially well in casual mode (not hard mode).

• CRANE + STOMP — C, R, A, N, E, S, T, O, M, P. Excellent vowel and consonant coverage.
• SLATE + DUMPY — S, L, A, T, E, D, U, M, P, Y. Adds Y, often overlooked.
• CARES + MOULT — C, A, R, E, S, M, O, U, L, T. Covers all five vowels except I.
• SAUCE + GRIND — covers four vowels (A, U, E, I) and seven of the most common consonants.

The trade-off: you commit your second guess before seeing the answer's shape. If your first guess gets three greens, you should usually pivot to solving instead of probing.

Hard mode strategy

In hard mode, every clue must be reused. That kills the planned two-word opening and changes the calculus:

• Pick an opener with no repeats and balanced vowel/consonant coverage. CRANE and SLATE are still strong.
• When you get a yellow, the next guess must include that letter — so plan a word that places it in a different slot AND tests new letters.
• Two greens early can be a trap. If you have _R_NE, there are dozens of candidates. Don't commit to a guess that only differs by one letter — try to disambiguate multiple at once.

Common mistakes

• Burning a guess on gray letters. Once a letter is gray, never use it again — it doesn't matter how natural it feels in the next word.
• Forgetting that letters can repeat. The answer could be STALL, FLEET, or LLAMA. If you've only narrowed to one of three positions, double letters are still in play.
• Not testing position for yellows. A yellow R could be in any of the four other slots. Use your next guess to place it somewhere new, not the same spot.
• Guessing the same letter pattern twice. If you've learned a vowel slot, don't spend a guess on a word that doesn't reuse it.

More on the strategic and mental traps in our deeper common mistakes guide.

When you're stuck on the last guess

If you have most of the word but several candidates remain (say BATCH, CATCH, HATCH, LATCH, MATCH, PATCH, WATCH), you're in trouble: in casual mode, spend a probing guess to test multiple initial letters at once (like CHIMP tests C, H, M, P). In hard mode, you're forced to pick — choose the most common word.

Now go practice

Theory only gets you so far. The fastest way to improve is to play a lot, with a consistent opener, paying attention to the patterns you tend to miss. Start an unlimited puzzle — no daily limit, no waiting until tomorrow.