Opener Lab
SLANE vs ZEALS
See which word leaves you with the easier game.
These game-length figures come from the previous complete opener benchmark against its 2,354-answer snapshot, ranked by average guesses among games solved within six. Its answer snapshot and continuation policy are separate from today's solver recommendations.
The same solver played from both openers. SLANE has the lower average in games solved within six: 3.54 guesses to 3.74 for ZEALS.
Looking only at the opening row, SLANE has higher entropy (5.77 bits versus 4.72). That describes first-guess separation, not the full solve on its own.
| Metric | SLANE | ZEALS |
|---|---|---|
| Elimination | 96.8% | 93.8% |
| Information | 5.77 bits | 4.72 bits |
| Avg remaining | 76 words | 147 words |
| Avg turns | 3.54 | 3.74 |
| Win rate | 99.9% | 99.8% |
| Tier | A | C |
What to expect from the first guess
| Outcome | SLANE | ZEALS |
|---|---|---|
| First-turn solve* | 0% | 0% |
| At least one green | 46.3% | 28.9% |
| Any green or yellow | 90.0% | 85.3% |
| Whole row gray | 10.0% | 14.7% |
| Worst case answers left | 235 | 346 |
*Treating every word in the possible-answer list as equally likely.
A fully gray row is rarer with SLANE: it happens 10.0% of the time, against 14.7% for ZEALS.
Neither word is on the possible-answer list, so neither can solve the game on turn one here. Both can still be useful guesses.
How these two openers fit together
SLANE and ZEALS share 4 of their 5 letters (A, E, L, S), so as a pair they only cover 6 distinct letters. Treat them as alternatives rather than partners, because playing both wastes most of the second guess.
Played back to back, SLANE then ZEALS earns 6.32 bits of information in total, 0.56 bits more than the better word manages alone.
Past Wordle answers
- SLANE: Has not been a past Wordle answer in this site's history.
- ZEALS: Has not been a past Wordle answer in this site's history.