Wordle is getting harder in 2026, study finds
Word-game news · Nov 2026
If your morning Wordle has felt tougher lately, the numbers agree with you. A study of every answer since the game began, reported on 5 November 2026, found that 2026 is the hardest year yet — 4.16 guesses on average, up from 3.91 in 2023. The words themselves have changed: more repeated letters, fewer everyday words, and a handful of near-identical answers that can trap even a careful solver.
What the study actually measured
The research comes from Unscramblex, which analysed every Wordle answer from the very first puzzle, CIGAR in June 2021, through to 2 November 2026. The team used the same solving method for each puzzle and recorded how many guesses it needed, so the difficulty of one year can be compared with another without the method itself changing. That fixed approach is what makes the year-on-year numbers worth taking seriously: the solver did not get worse, the words got harder.
The numbers behind the harder year
The average guesses needed rose steadily: 3.91 in 2023, the easiest year in the study, then 4.08 in 2024, 4.12 in 2025, and 4.16 in 2026. Two shifts in the answers explain most of it. The share of answers containing a repeated letter climbed from around 28% in 2023 to 37% in 2026, so a doubled letter now turns up in more than one puzzle in three. At the same time, the share of answers made up of common everyday words fell from 47% to 31%. Players are simply meeting more unusual words, and more words where a letter appears twice.
Why ROWER broke the solver
The single hardest answer in the study was ROWER, which needed an average of 6.76 guesses — more than a full guess beyond the 2026 average. The problem is its lookalikes: COWER, LOWER, POWER and TOWER share all but one of its letters. Once the ending is known, the answer is a coin toss between five near-identical words, and each wrong guess in that family only rules out one letter. It is the same trap that catches human players: a board full of green and yellow tiles can still leave several answers standing.
Two surprises: the takeover and the repeats
The study also settles a long-running argument about The New York Times buying Wordle in 2022. Puzzles from before the purchase, those from the original answer list, and those chosen by the paper's editor all averaged 4.06 guesses — the ownership change itself did not make the game harder. The second surprise is the reuse of old answers, which began in February 2026. By 2 November, 29 earlier answers had appeared again, and those repeats were easier, needing 3.80 guesses on average against 4.20 for new answers in the same period. So while the year's new words are tougher, a familiar answer can still feel like a gift.
What this means for your next game
Three habits follow directly from the findings. First, when several possible answers differ by only one letter, do not guess them one by one — spend a guess on a word that tests the letters that differ, so one move rules out several candidates at once. Second, stop assuming the answer is a common word: with everyday words down to 31% of answers, an unusual-looking guess is more often right than it used to be. Third, expect a repeated letter. A grey second copy of a letter still tells you something — it caps how many of that letter the answer holds — so treat duplicates as information, not as a dead end. One honest caveat: the study used a computer solver, not human players, so read the averages as a guide to the words, not as a verdict on your own play.
Frequently asked questions
Is Wordle actually harder in 2026? According to the study, yes, on average: 4.16 guesses per puzzle against 3.91 in 2023, measured with the same solver on every answer since 2021.
Did The New York Times make Wordle harder? The study says no. Puzzles from before the 2022 purchase and those chosen by the paper's editor both averaged 4.06 guesses.
Are old Wordle answers coming back? Yes, since February 2026. By 2 November, 29 earlier answers had been reused, and those repeats were easier on average than new answers.
Keep reading
Source: PC Guide, “Wordle is getting harder to solve, study suggests, with 2026 the most difficult year to date”, published 5 November 2026: pcguide.com
Wordle Find is independent and unaffiliated with Unscramblex and The New York Times. Wordle is The New York Times' game, and no daily official answers are published here.