Every Wordle player has a favourite first word, and most of them picked it from someone else's list. We wanted to know which openers actually do the most work, so we tested 11 popular choices against every Wordle answer in our archive: 106 real puzzles, from #1848 to #1953. This page recalculates itself each time a new puzzle is added.
The results
For each opener we measured three things: how many green and yellow letters it earns on average, how often it lands at least one green, and the most useful number, how many valid five-letter words are still possible after that first guess (out of 12,653). Fewer words left means a better start.
| Opener | Words left on average | Greens | Yellows | At least one green |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. RAISE | 277 | 0.57 | 1.19 | 45% |
| 2. ARISE | 309 | 0.60 | 1.15 | 42% |
| 3. SLATE | 321 | 0.59 | 1.03 | 48% |
| 4. SALET | 322 | 0.50 | 1.12 | 42% |
| 5. STARE | 325 | 0.53 | 1.21 | 41% |
| 6. ROATE | 346 | 0.56 | 1.12 | 48% |
| 7. CRATE | 489 | 0.53 | 1.04 | 41% |
| 8. CRANE | 498 | 0.55 | 1.02 | 41% |
| 9. TRACE | 502 | 0.53 | 1.04 | 36% |
| 10. ADIEU | 658 | 0.35 | 1.03 | 32% |
| 11. AUDIO | 969 | 0.22 | 0.97 | 21% |
Tested against 106 Wordle answers from our archive. "Words left" counts every word in our 12,653-word list that would give exactly the same colours, so it slightly overstates what you face in practice, since the real answer is almost always a common word.
What the numbers say
RAISE came out on top, leaving about 277 possible words on average. At the other end, AUDIO left about 969. That gap is the difference between needing two more guesses to narrow things down and needing three.
The leaders all share a pattern: they test common consonants (S, T, R, L, N, C) alongside A and E, the two vowels that show up most in answers. Consonants do more work than vowels because once you know a word's consonants, the vowels usually follow.
That is why vowel-heavy openers disappoint. AUDIO ranked 11 of 11: it landed at least one green in only 21% of puzzles, against 45% for RAISE, and left about 969 words on the table. Its yellows are mostly vowels you could have worked out anyway.
Rule of thumb: a first guess should test the letters you can't easily infer. Vowels are easy to infer; consonants are not.
Pairing with a second word
If your opener comes back mostly grey, don't chase it. Play a second word with five completely new letters. These pairs cover ten different common letters between them:
- SLATE + CORNY: tests S, L, A, T, E, C, O, R, N and Y.
- CRANE + MOIST: tests every vowel except U, plus five strong consonants.
- AUDIO + CREPT: if you like starting with vowels, this fixes AUDIO's consonant gap.
Two-word openers cost you one guess but often make the third guess a near-certain solve. They suit players who care about a steady streak more than the odd two-guess win.
Which opener should you use?
Any of the top five in the table is an excellent choice, and the differences between them are small compared with how you use the information. Pick one you'll remember, stick with it so you learn how it behaves, and spend your energy on guesses two and three. Our Wordle strategy guide covers exactly that.
If you want to check how today's answer treats your favourite opener, today's Wordle answer page shows how SLATE, CRANE and AUDIO score against it, and the Wordle solver lists every word that fits your colours.
Latest puzzle in this test: Wordle #1953.