Best Wordle Starting Words (Tested on Every Answer)
1,950 puzzles tested · updated daily
Quick answer
The best word to start Wordle with is RAISE, if you want a common everyday word. On average it narrows the 1,950 past answers down to 51.6 possibilities after one guess. Close behind are IRATE, ARISE, SNARE. If any accepted word is fine, ROATE did best of all (47.2 left).
How we tested the best Wordle start words
Lots of lists of good Wordle starting words are based on letter frequency in the dictionary. We wanted to know what actually works on the game's own answers. So we took all 14,855 five-letter words that Wordle accepts and played each one as a first guess against every Wordle answer from #0 (CIGAR) up to yesterday, 1,950 puzzles in all. We scored the colours the same way the game does, double letters included.
For each starting word we measured three things:
- Answers left: on average, how many possible answers still match the colours after your first guess. Lower is better. This is the most useful single number.
- Letters found: the average number of the answer's letters it turns green or yellow.
- Greens: the average number of letters in the right spot.
Top 10 best Wordle starting words (common words)
These are everyday words that have been Wordle answers themselves, so you know them already. Sorted by answers left:
| # | Word | Answers left | Letters found | Greens |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | RAISE | 51.6 | 1.76 | 0.55 |
| 2 | IRATE | 51.8 | 1.80 | 0.53 |
| 3 | ARISE | 53.7 | 1.76 | 0.56 |
| 4 | SNARE | 57.5 | 1.73 | 0.60 |
| 5 | CRATE | 57.7 | 1.72 | 0.60 |
| 6 | ALTER | 58.2 | 1.80 | 0.42 |
| 7 | TRACE | 58.3 | 1.72 | 0.59 |
| 8 | STARE | 58.5 | 1.78 | 0.60 |
| 9 | ALERT | 58.9 | 1.80 | 0.40 |
| 10 | SLATE | 58.9 | 1.70 | 0.64 |
Best starting words overall (any accepted word)
If you don't mind unusual words, these did best of all. Many are rare words (for example ROATE, TIARE, SOARE) that Wordle accepts as guesses but has never used as an answer.
| # | Word | Answers left | Letters found | Greens | Ever an answer? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ROATE | 47.2 | 1.83 | 0.57 | No |
| 2 | TIARE | 49.6 | 1.80 | 0.56 | No |
| 3 | SOARE | 50.2 | 1.79 | 0.68 | No |
| 4 | RAILE | 50.5 | 1.79 | 0.54 | No |
| 5 | ORATE | 50.7 | 1.83 | 0.53 | No |
| 6 | RAISE | 51.6 | 1.76 | 0.55 | Yes (1×) |
| 7 | IRATE | 51.8 | 1.80 | 0.53 | Yes (1×) |
| 8 | ARISE | 53.7 | 1.76 | 0.56 | Yes (1×) |
| 9 | AROSE | 53.9 | 1.79 | 0.57 | No |
| 10 | ARIEL | 54.5 | 1.79 | 0.49 | No |
Popular starting words compared
How the openers people talk about most compare in our test. The rank is out of the top 403 words we scored for answers left.
| Word | Answers left | Letters found | Greens | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROATE | 47.2 | 1.83 | 0.57 | #1 |
| SOARE | 50.2 | 1.79 | 0.68 | #3 |
| RAISE | 51.6 | 1.76 | 0.55 | #6 |
| IRATE | 51.8 | 1.80 | 0.53 | #7 |
| ARISE | 53.7 | 1.76 | 0.56 | #8 |
| AROSE | 53.9 | 1.79 | 0.57 | #9 |
| CRATE | 57.7 | 1.72 | 0.60 | #20 |
| TRACE | 58.3 | 1.72 | 0.59 | #22 |
| STARE | 58.5 | 1.78 | 0.60 | #23 |
| ALERT | 58.9 | 1.80 | 0.40 | #29 |
| SLATE | 58.9 | 1.70 | 0.64 | #31 |
| LATER | 59.1 | 1.80 | 0.43 | #32 |
| SALET | 61.0 | 1.70 | 0.56 | #46 |
| CRANE | 62.5 | 1.66 | 0.62 | #70 |
| LEAST | 64.8 | 1.70 | 0.47 | #94 |
| ADIEU | 101.6 | 1.50 | 0.31 | #401 |
| AUDIO | 153.0 | 1.33 | 0.27 | #402 |
| OUIJA | 210.9 | 1.18 | 0.23 | #403 |
Is ADIEU a good starting word?
ADIEU is famous because it tests four vowels at once. In our test, though, it left 101.6 answers on average. That's about 2.0× as many as RAISE. The reason is simple: almost every answer has one or two vowels, so finding them is easy, while common consonants like R, S, T and L sort out far more words. AUDIO and OUIJA have the same problem.
Best opener for green letters
If you'd rather get letters in the right spot straight away, these common words gave the most greens on average:
- SLATE: 0.64 greens per game (58.9 answers left)
- CRANE: 0.62 greens per game (62.5 answers left)
- SHARE: 0.62 greens per game (69.7 answers left)
- SAUTE: 0.60 greens per game (70.9 answers left)
- CRATE: 0.60 greens per game (57.7 answers left)
Best second word after RAISE
Many players use a fixed pair of words to cover ten letters. Among common words that share no letters with RAISE, these left the fewest answers after both guesses:
- RAISE + CLOTH: 4.6 answers left on average
- RAISE + COUNT: 4.8 answers left on average
- RAISE + MOULT: 5.1 answers left on average
- RAISE + NOTCH: 5.2 answers left on average
- RAISE + DONUT: 5.2 answers left on average
A fixed second word is easy, but it's not always best. After your first guess, our Wordle solver can suggest the second word that fits your actual colours.
Which letters show up most in Wordle answers?
Here is the share of answers that contain each letter. This is why words with E, A, R, O and T do so well:
Most common letter in each position
| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
|---|---|---|---|
| Letter 1 | S 15% | C 9% | B 8% |
| Letter 2 | O 13% | A 12% | R 12% |
| Letter 3 | A 14% | O 11% | I 11% |
| Letter 4 | E 13% | N 8% | I 7% |
| Letter 5 | E 20% | Y 14% | T 11% |
Position matters because it makes greens. S is the most common first letter and E and Y are common last letters, so openers like RAISE that put common letters in their usual spots get more greens.
How to pick your own Wordle starting word
- Use five different letters. Repeating a letter wastes a slot on your first guess.
- Include two vowels, not four. A and E or O are enough.
- Fill the other three spots with R, T, S, L, N or C.
- Put letters where they usually sit, like S first or E last, for more greens.
- Pick one word and stick with it so you learn its colour patterns.
Already played your opener today? Get today's Wordle hint, or enter your colours in the Wordle solver.
FAQ
What is the best word to start Wordle?
In our test against all 1,950 past answers, RAISE was the best common English starting word. On average it left 51.6 possible answers after the first guess. The best word overall was ROATE (47.2 left), but it is an unusual word most players don't know.
Is ADIEU a good Wordle starting word?
It's below average. ADIEU left 101.6 possible answers on average and ranked #401 in our test, because it skips common consonants like R, S, T and L.
Should I use the same starting word every day?
Using the same opener helps you learn its colour patterns, and our numbers show a few strong words are close to each other. Since answers can repeat, you can also start with a word that has already been an answer.
What are good Wordle starting words with lots of vowels?
If you like vowel-heavy openers, AROSE, RAISE and ARISE test three vowels and still use common consonants. In our test they did much better than ADIEU and AUDIO.
How did you test these starting words?
We played every one of the 14,855 valid five-letter guesses as a first guess against every Wordle answer from #0 to #1949, using the game's real colour rules, including double letters. For each word we measured letters found, greens, and how many answers were left on average.
Method: every valid guess was scored against answers #0–#1949 using exact Wordle colouring. "Answers left" is the expected number of answers still possible after one guess (the sum of each colour group's size squared, divided by 1,950). Answer data is updated daily.