Best Wordle Starting Words in 2026 (What Actually Works)

If you’ve ever stared at those five empty boxes and blanked on what to type first – yeah, you’re not alone. I’ve been playing Wordle pretty much daily since it blew up, and after thousands of games (no exaggeration), I’ve figured out which starting words actually give you the best shot at nailing it in 3 or fewer guesses.

what I’ve learned – and what the data backs up heading into 2026.

Your First Word Matters More Than You Think

Most people just throw in a random word and hope for the best. Big mistake. Your opener sets the tone for the entire puzzle. Pick a word loaded with common letters, and you’ll light up the board with greens and yellows right away. Pick something weird like FJORD? Good luck with that.

The trick is to hit the letters that show up most often in Wordle answers. After analyzing the full NYT Wordle answer list through early 2026, what stands out: E appears in roughly 46% of all answers, followed by A at 39%, R at 31%, and T at 29%.

My Top 10 Starting Words (Tested Over 1,000+ Games)

I’ve run these through solvers, played them in real games, and compared notes with other Wordle nerds. what consistently performs:

1. SALET – The math says this is the #1 opener. It tests S, A, L, E, T – all heavy hitters.
2. CRANE – The NYT’s own WordleBot loves this one. Solid mix of vowels and consonants.
3. SLATE – My personal daily driver. Same letters as SALET, different arrangement. Feels natural to type.
4. TRACE – Great if you want to frontload T and R, which pop up everywhere.
5. RAISE – Three vowels in one shot? Yes please. Perfect for elimination rounds.
6. STARE – Another banger. Overlaps a lot with SLATE but some people swear by the different letter order.
7. CRATE – Underrated. The C catches a lot of people off guard.
8. AROSE – Vowel-heavy and surprisingly effective. Good for when you want to map out vowel positions fast.
9. ADIEU – Four vowels at once. It won’t find many consonants, but you’ll know exactly which vowels are in play.
10. ROATE – Not a “real” word, but Wordle accepts it. Pure optimization pick.

The Follow-Up: What to Play Second

Here’s where most people mess up. They’ll use SLATE and then play something like STAIN – wasting the S, T, and A they already tested. Don’t do that. Your second word should use completely different letters.

Combos I swear by:

• SLATE → CORNY – Covers 10 unique letters. If you don’t have strong leads after this, the word is obscure.
• CRANE → STOMP – Hits almost every common consonant you missed.
• RAISE → CLOTH – C, L, O, T, H round out what R, A, I, S, E started.

What Changed in Wordle for 2026?

NYT has been tweaking things. The answer pool has shifted slightly – they’ve pulled a few obscure words people complained about and added some that reflect modern usage. The overall strategy hasn’t changed much, but you’ll notice slightly more common, everyday words showing up as answers compared to 2024-2025.

Also worth noting: NYT now shows your streak stats more prominently, and the sharing format has evolved. But the core game? Same addictive 5-letter puzzle it’s always been.

Quick Tips From Someone Who’s Played Too Much Wordle

• Don’t repeat letters in your first two guesses. Spread out and test 10 different letters.
• If you get a yellow, move it. Don’t just stick it in the same spot hoping it turns green.
• Common endings to watch for: -IGHT, -OUND, -ATCH, -ASTE. These trip people up constantly.
• Hard mode is actually easier once you get used to it. It forces you to use clues instead of burning guesses.
• Stop trying QUEUE and ABYSS. Repeated letters are rare in Wordle answers.

When You’re Really Stuck

Look, we’ve all been there – guess 5, two greens, three grays, and your brain just shuts down. That’s what our Wordle Solver is for. Punch in what you know and it’ll show you every possible answer.

You can also browse our full 5-letter words list to get familiar with the vocabulary. The more words you’ve seen, the faster they come to you during the game.

And hey, if you play Scrabble or Words With Friends too, our main unscrambler tool works for those as well. One bookmark, multiple games covered.