You’re staring at those five empty gray boxes. The cursor is blinking, almost mockingly. You know the drill. It’s that morning ritual—or maybe a late-night obsession if you're on the East Coast—where the entire world seems to be obsessed with a single five-letter string. Everyone wants to know the same thing: what does today's wordle start with? It’s not just about cheating; it’s about strategy, momentum, and that sweet, sweet hit of dopamine when the tile flips to a vibrant green.
Wordle is weirdly personal. Josh Wardle, the software engineer who originally created the game for his partner Palak Shah, probably didn't realize he was creating a global linguistic battlefield. When the New York Times bought it back in 2022, people panicked. They thought the words got harder. They didn't, really, but the psychological pressure of keeping a 200-day streak alive makes every single letter feel like a high-stakes gamble.
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The Brutal Logic of the Opening Letter
Let’s talk about why the start of the word matters so much. If you know the first letter, you've effectively narrowed down the English language by roughly 90% for this specific puzzle. But here’s the kicker: not all letters are created equal in the Wordle universe.
If today's Wordle starts with an "S," you’re in for a massive pool of possibilities. "S" is the most common starting letter in the Wordle dictionary by a long shot. It’s the comfort food of consonants. However, if the word starts with a "Q" or a "Z," you're looking at a much more restricted, often easier path to the finish line because the remaining combinations are so rare.
The game uses a curated list of approximately 2,300 "answer" words, even though there are over 12,000 five-letter words in the English language. This is why you’ll never see "XYLYL" as an answer, even if it is technically a word. The NYT editors, specifically Tracy Bennett, keep the list relatively accessible. They want you to win, just not too easily.
Strategic Openers and the First-Letter Trap
Most people swear by "ADIEU" or "AUDIO." They’re vowel-heavy. They feel safe. But honestly? They aren't always the best. Expert players—the kind who analyze the game using information theory like 3Blue1Brown’s Grant Sanderson—often lean toward "CRANE" or "SALET."
Why? Because these words target the most frequent letters in the most frequent positions.
If you’re hunting for what today’s Wordle starts with, you have to look at the patterns of the week. The NYT doesn't usually repeat starting letters in a row, though it's not a hard rule. It’s more of a vibe. If yesterday started with "P," the odds of today starting with "P" are statistically lower, purely based on the desire for variety in the puzzle's curation.
Common Starting Letter Frequencies
- S: Over 15% of all Wordle answers.
- C: Roughly 8%.
- B, T, and P: All hover around the 5-7% mark.
- X, Y, Z: Virtually non-existent as openers.
Sometimes the word starts with a vowel. That’s the real killer. "ABATE," "OLIVE," "ULCER." When the first letter is a vowel, people lose their minds. Our brains are wired to look for a consonant-vowel-consonant structure. Breaking that pattern is how the NYT breaks your streak.
What to Do When You're Stuck on the First Letter
You've got the "A" and the "T" in the middle, but the first box is a void. We've all been there. This is where "burn words" come in. If you're playing on standard mode (not Hard Mode), use your third guess to eliminate as many starting consonants as possible.
Throw away a turn.
Seriously.
If you think the word might be "LIGHT," "NIGHT," "FIGHT," or "MIGHT," don't just guess them one by one. You'll go broke. Guess a word like "FLOWN." In one shot, you've checked the F, the L, and the N. You’ve narrowed down the start of today's Wordle without wasting three rows. It’s a tactical retreat that leads to a victory.
Hard Mode players don't have this luxury. They have to use the letters they've found. If you're in Hard Mode and you find yourself in a "___IGHT" trap, godspeed. You're going to need it.
The Cultural Phenomenon of the "First Letter Leak"
There’s a whole subculture dedicated to spoiling the game. On Twitter (or X, if we must), the "Wordle Hint" bots and accounts are a massive industry. But the most satisfying way to find what today's Wordle starts with is through a "letter-reveal" strategy that doesn't just give you the answer.
Many people use a secondary "Wordle-like" game or a solver to test theories. But there’s a nuance to it. The "Wordlebot" provided by the New York Times after you finish the game is actually a great way to learn. It tells you exactly how many words were left in the dictionary after each of your guesses. It’s humbling to see that after your "perfect" first guess, there were still 438 possibilities.
The Shift in Difficulty Since the NYT Acquisition
There’s a persistent myth that the game got harder. It didn't. The word list was actually mostly finalized before the sale. However, the feeling of the game changed. We became more aware of it. We started seeing the patterns—or thinking we did.
When people search for what today's Wordle starts with, they are usually looking for a nudge, not a shove. They want to know if it's a "blended" start—like "ST," "BR," or "CH." These blends account for a huge chunk of the English lexicon.
If you can identify that the word starts with a blend, you’ve basically solved the puzzle.
Practical Steps for Your Next Guess
Stop guessing "QUEEN" on your first try. Just stop.
Instead, look at your keyboard. Look at the letters you haven't used. If you're three guesses in and still don't know the first letter, look for the "forgotten" consonants: H, W, G, and K.
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- Check for "S" or "C" blends first. These are the most common.
- Eliminate the Y. It's rarely at the start, but it's often at the end, and knowing its position helps you work backward to the start.
- Say the word out loud. If you have "_ _ A T E," start running through the alphabet. Your brain is a pattern-recognition machine; use it.
- Don't ignore the double letters. "KNOLL," "SPOOL," "STEEL." The first letter often feels lonely in these, but it's the anchor.
The most important thing to remember is that Wordle is a game of elimination, not just guessing. You aren't trying to find the right word as much as you are trying to kill the wrong ones. Once you've eliminated the "S," "T," and "R" as starters, the truth usually reveals itself.
Next time you’re hovering over the keyboard, wondering what today's Wordle starts with, remember that the answer is usually simpler than you think. Don't overcomplicate it with obscure vocabulary. Think like a crossword editor. Think about the words that people actually use in daily conversation. Usually, that’s where the answer is hiding.
Get your first letter locked in. The rest of the tiles will follow.