Opener Lab

Compare KESTS

Pick a word to compare against.

KESTS F
88.7%
of words eliminated

How KESTS performs

Played first, KESTS removes about 88.7% of the possible-answer list on average and scores 3.96 bits of information. It is not on the possible-answer list, but it can still be useful because of the feedback groups it creates.

Tried against 1,859 past Wordle answers, KESTS left an average of 267 possible answers standing after the first guess. Its largest group in that replay came on July 19, 2026, when the answer was CHURN and 568 candidates survived.

First-guess odds

OutcomeKESTS
First-turn solve*0%
At least one green20.5%
Any green or yellow75.9%
Whole row gray24.1%
Worst case answers left568

*Treating every word in the possible-answer list as equally likely.