Opener Lab
Compare WHELM
Pick a word to compare against.
How WHELM performs
Played first, WHELM removes about 89.2% of the possible-answer list on average and scores 4.19 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, WHELM left an average of 252 possible answers standing after the first guess. Its largest group in that replay came on July 13, 2026, when the answer was STOUT and 528 candidates survived.
First-guess odds
| Outcome | WHELM |
|---|---|
| First-turn solve* | 0% |
| At least one green | 22.2% |
| Any green or yellow | 77.6% |
| Whole row gray | 22.4% |
| Worst case answers left | 528 |
*Treating every word in the possible-answer list as equally likely.