Yes, you can play Wordle with more letters, and longer words turn out to be easier to solve. The New York Times game only comes in five letters, but WordlyPlay has free, unlimited games at 4, 5, 6 and 7 letters. We ran a solver through all 8,352 answers across those four games. It needed 4.35 guesses on average at four letters and only 2.78 at seven.
Below are the full numbers, why short words are the hard ones, the best starting word for each length, and how to change your tactics.
How do the 4, 5, 6 and 7-letter games compare?
How we tested it: the solver opens with the best first word for that length. After each result it guesses a word that could still be the answer and that splits the remaining answers into the most groups. We used the real answer lists from our game, so these numbers describe our game and not the New York Times list. The solver knows every answer, so a person will need more guesses. Since it plays every length the same way, it is a fair way to compare them.
Try a longer word
Six letters, six guesses and no daily limit. No sign-up and nothing to download.
Play 6 Letter WordleIs 6-letter Wordle harder than 5-letter Wordle?
For a solver, no. Six letters took 3.07 guesses on average and five letters took 3.64. The solver also found every 6-letter answer within the six guesses allowed, while it missed about 1 in 130 five-letter answers.
The reason is simple: every guess tests more letters. One 6-letter guess leaves about 25 possible answers. A 5-letter guess leaves about 67. A 7-letter guess leaves about 10.
People can still find longer words harder, for two reasons:
- You have to think of the word. The solver has the whole list. You have to pull a real seven-letter word out of your head, and that gets harder when you already have a few letters to fit around.
- Repeated letters are everywhere. Only 18% of 4-letter answers repeat a letter, and 33% of 5-letter answers do. At six letters it is 52%, and at seven it is 65%. Most of us don't think to try a second E or a second T until late in the game.
Why is 4-letter Wordle the hardest?
Short words rhyme. In our list, 57% of 4-letter answers belong to a group of at least four words that differ by a single letter. At five letters that drops to 19%, at six it is 4%, and at seven it is almost none.
| Letters | Biggest group of look-alike answers | Solver's worst word |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | BEAR, DEAR, FEAR, GEAR, HEAR, NEAR, PEAR, REAR, TEAR, WEAR, YEAR | YEAR, 13 guesses |
| 5 | EIGHT, FIGHT, LIGHT, MIGHT, NIGHT, RIGHT, SIGHT, TIGHT, WIGHT | FOYER and WATCH, 8 guesses |
| 6 | STRIDE, STRIFE, STRIKE, STRIPE, STRIVE | DIPPER, JUMBLE and others, 6 guesses |
| 7 | FEATHER, HEATHER, LEATHER, WEATHER | WEATHER, 5 guesses |
That is why the 4-letter game gives you seven guesses. Even with the extra try, our solver only finished about 97% of the words in time. It also guesses only words that could be the answer, which is a poor way to break up a group like that.
You can do better. Once you are looking at _EAR with eleven options left, stop guessing them one at a time. A word such as BOND can't be the answer, but it tests B, N and D in one go. Hard Mode blocks this trick, because it makes you reuse the letters you have found.
What are the best starting words for each length?
These are the openers that left the fewest answers on average in our test. A two-word start uses no letter twice, so it checks as many letters as possible.
| Letters | Best first word | Good two-word start |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | ALOE (92 answers left) or TALE (93) | TALE, then CORN (about 12 left) |
| 5 | RAISE (67 left) | RAISE, then CLOUT (about 6 left) |
| 6 | SATIRE (25 left) | SATIRE, then COLUMN (about 2 left) |
| 7 | REALIST (10 left) | CERTAIN, then BLOSSOM (about 1.5 left) |
E is the top letter at every length, with A, R and T never far behind. It also gets more important as words grow, appearing in 37% of 4-letter answers, 45% of 5-letter answers, 63% of 6-letter answers and 66% of 7-letter answers. The 6-letter, 7-letter and 4-letter pages list more openers, and we have a separate guide to the best 5-letter starting words.
REALIST uses up so many common letters that no 7-letter answer in our list avoids all of them, so it has no clean partner. CERTAIN leaves room for BLOSSOM, which shares none of its letters, and together they leave about 1.5 answers on average.
How should your tactics change with more letters?
4 letters: break up the rhymes
Expect at least one group of look-alike words. When you have three or more candidates that differ by a single letter, spend a guess on a word that tests several of those letters at once. You have seven tries, so you can afford one.
5 letters: the standard game
Start with RAISE, follow with a word that covers new letters such as CLOUT, and keep an eye out for repeats, which turn up in a third of answers. Our Hard Mode guide covers the tougher version.
6 letters: look at the ending early
Endings carry a lot of information here. About 10% of answers end in -ER, 7% in -LE and 4% in -LY. If the last two tiles come back green or yellow, try the common ending next. And since half the answers repeat a letter, test for a double by your third or fourth guess.
7 letters: think in pieces
Few people can think of a 7-letter word from scattered clues, so build it from parts: a start and an ending. The most common endings are -ER at 9%, then -LY and -LE at 5% each, and the most common first letters are S, C and P. Two in three answers repeat a letter, so assume a double until you can rule it out.
Not plain plurals. The 6-letter and 7-letter answers are everyday words, with no words that are simply another word plus S. You can still guess a plural to test letters, as long as it is a real word.
Can you play the New York Times Wordle with more letters?
No. The New York Times game is five letters and six guesses, once a day, and it has no setting to change that. To play with more letters you need a different game:
- WordlyPlay: 4, 6 and 7-letter pages, each with unlimited words, no sign-up and no download. It also runs on school Chromebooks.
- Hello Wordl: a free game with a setting for word length.
- A group game: a Wordle room lets a host pick 4 to 7 letters for everyone playing together.
We don't have a game above seven letters. Past that point, the everyday word list gets thin and more of the answers become long and unfamiliar.
Which length should you play?
- New to word games, or playing with younger kids: start with 4 letters. The words are simple and you get seven tries, so it is a gentle way in, even if a rhyme can catch you out.
- Bored of five letters: move up to 6 letters. It plays like the game you know, but your first guess tells you much more.
- Want a real vocabulary test: try 7 letters. The clues come fast, and the hard part is coming up with the word.
Ready for seven letters?
Unlimited 7-letter words, six guesses each, free in your browser. See how close you can get to the solver's 2.78.
Play 7 Letter WordleFrequently asked questions
Yes. The New York Times game is five letters only, but WordlyPlay has free unlimited games with 4, 6 and 7 letters, and Hello Wordl has a setting for word length.
For a solver, it is easier: 3.07 guesses on average against 3.64 at five letters, because each guess tests more letters. People can still find it harder, since you have to think of longer words and about half the answers repeat a letter.
Four letters. Short words rhyme, so 57% of 4-letter answers sit in a group of at least four words that differ by one letter, like BEAR, DEAR and FEAR. Our solver averaged 4.35 guesses, the most of any length, even with seven tries allowed.
SATIRE. Tested against all 2,375 answers, it leaves about 25 possible words on average. Follow it with COLUMN and about 2 are left.
REALIST leaves about 10 of the 2,227 answers. For a two-word start, CERTAIN then BLOSSOM leaves about 1.5 on average.
ALOE leaves about 92 of the 1,291 answers and TALE about 93. TALE then CORN is the better two-word start, leaving about 12.
On WordlyPlay you get 7 guesses at four letters and 6 guesses at five, six and seven letters.
Yes. The 4, 6 and 7-letter games on WordlyPlay are free and unlimited, with no sign-up, no download and no daily wait.
