Best Wordle Starting Words
A good opener spends its five letters well. These words are ranked by the same scoring GuessNudge uses inside the solver: how often their letters and letter positions appear across our five-letter word list. Pick one and carry it straight into the solver.
Choose an opener
The information score is a relative measure from our own dataset — it is a guide, not a guarantee.
tares is loaded into your first guess row.
What makes a useful opening word
Common letters
Letters that turn up in many five-letter words are more likely to return a green or yellow result.
Useful vowels
One to three vowels usually tells you where the word's shape is without wasting the whole guess on them.
Useful consonants
Frequent consonants such as R, S, T, L and N cover a lot of the word list in a single guess.
No repeated letters
A repeat spends two tiles testing one letter, so an opener with five different letters usually learns more.
No single word mathematically guarantees the fastest solve — the ranking above reflects letter coverage in our dataset, not the puzzle's answer list.
Played your opener already? Find your best next guess.
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GuessNudge is an independent word puzzle helper and is not affiliated with or endorsed by The New York Times.