Color-blind modeAdd patterns so color is not the only cue
Solver display
Show candidates by defaultShow remaining answer candidates in the Solver
Show advanced metricsDisplay detailed word statistics
What “best” means
Rank openers byChoose how the Solver and opener rankings define “best”
Fewest guesses: first maximizes the chance of solving within six, then minimizes average guesses among those wins. Most info: highest entropy on the first guess. Fewest left: smallest average shortlist after the first guess.
Data
Sync profileOptionally keep streaks and progress across devices
This is the spoiler-safe story of the road to puzzle #2,000. Every count stops at the latest date that has finished everywhere in the world. A puzzle that may still be live in one timezone stays out.
By FiveLetterWords · Published · Editorially reviewed · Data through
#1,95297.6% of the way to #2,000#2,000
Expected calendar dateDecember 10, 202648 puzzle numbers remain in the completed record
1,953completed appearances
1,925distinct answer words
28repeat appearances
607repeated-letter puzzles
777in 3+ word trap families
205in the hardest 10% for solver pressure
The cards above separate dated puzzle appearances, distinct answer words and later uses of repeated answers.
Learn the counting terms
One archive, several useful totals
Choose a measure to see exactly what it includes.
Answer counts
A date count is not a vocabulary count
The completed record has 1,953 dated appearances but 1,925 distinct words. The 28 repeat appearances create the difference. The living repeat tracker contains the full dated evidence and counting definitions.
The dated archive records what has appeared. The working answer pool records what the solver still treats as possible. Neither one is a public future schedule.
Difficulty has several causes
Traps and doubled letters create different problems
607 completed puzzles contain at least one repeated letter. 777 sit in a one-letter family of three or more possible answers.
The pressure metric combines those features with opener branches and an example solver route. It is a reproducible solver comparison, not a claim about the global player average.
It repeats P; the example solver route takes 5 turns.
Completed record by calendar year
Puzzles by year
2021196 puzzles
2022365 puzzles
2023365 puzzles
2024366 puzzles
2025365 puzzles
2026296 puzzles
Separate opt-in player sample
What the Observatory can add, and what it cannot
The public Observatory currently contains 40 voluntary game reports across 36 puzzles. Its thresholded overall result is kept separate from the solver-pressure counts above because contributors are self-selected and do not represent all players.
Every metric is rebuilt from the completed-answer record and the same difficulty rows used by the public explorer. A new date enters only after the live-answer safety window closes in UTC−12. The page, fact sheet and SVG must all match snapshot current-2026-10-23-e0f96dee79637871. If they do not match, the report becomes unavailable instead of showing a partial total.
Scope and sources
No live or future answer is used.
Answer appearances and distinct words are labeled separately.
Solver pressure is a percentile within the archive.
The mutable data URLs carry the snapshot ID and data-through date in headers.
The latest frozen checkpoint is v2026-09-01, data through 2026-08-31; it is labelled separately when it trails this living report.
Each fact-sheet row carries its definition, universe, data-through date, snapshot ID, source file and supporting fields. For a correction, method question or a different aggregate, use the press and research contact. Material corrections are dated; live data advances are not presented as editorial rewrites.