Wordle spin-off games: 18 puzzles to try if you like 5 letter word game, from Quordle to Heardle

Wordle is the game that’s absolutely taken the internet by storm, with thousands of dedicated players opening up the web page every day to try their hand at cracking the secret word of the day.

They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery - and that couldn’t be more true with the online puzzle game.

Wordle creator, Josh Wardle, has said that he “loves” the seemingly infinite amount of spin offs that the game has created.

Talking to Slate, Wardle said: “As someone who creates stuff, to see people so inspired by something that you created that they want to riff on it, that’s amazing. That makes me feel so good.”

Before we get started with the Wordle spin offs you can play, first let’s go over the rules of Wordle, as many of its spin off games also operate by the same rules.

In Wordle, you’ve got six guesses to try and figure out a five letter word - when making your guesses, you’ll see that the letters may be highlighted as green, yellow or grey.

Green means you’ve got the correct guess in the correct place, yellow means you’ve got the correct guess but in the wrong place, and grey means that it doesn’t appear in the solution at all.

Now that we’ve covered the basics, here are 18 Wordle spin offs you can play online now.

Nerdle

Nerdle is the mathematics enthusiast’s answer to Wordle - but instead of guessing a word, Nerdle has its players trying to figure out an equation.

So in Nerdle, there are eight “letters” to guess, with each “letter” being one of “0123456789+-*/=”. The same way you cannot enter random letters to guess in Wordle, your Nerdle guess must also be mathematically correct.

The number on the right side of the equals symbol (=) is just a number, not another calculation.

Nerdle also says: “Standard order of operations applies, so calculate * (multiply) and / (divide) before + (plus) and - (minus).

“Order matters in Nerdle. If the answer we’re looking for is 10 + 20 = 30, then 20 + 10 = 30 isn’t close enough.”

Additionally, if your guess includes, for example, two ones, but the answer only has one, you will get one colour tile and one black tile.

If the standard version seems like it might be a bit too tricky, you can opt for “mini Nerdle” instead, which is described as “easier mode with six columns”.

You can change it by hitting the settings icon in the upper right corner.

Quordle

Quordle is exactly like Wordle, only this time, you’re attempting to solve FOUR of the tricky puzzles at once.

It sounds daunting, and loading up the game for the first time, just the sight of four Wordle boards was enough to put us off even attempting the feat.

But for the more word-brave out there, it’s likely an enticing challenge. Here’s how to play.

Octordle

Quordle too easy for you? Why not up the challenge level and take on Octordle?

It is slightly more lenient with the amount of guesses it gives players - you get 13 in total with Octordle.

But you’ll need to keep in mind your near misses and any letters that aren’t included in a word. Here’s more on how to play Octordle.

Lewdle

Lewdle employs all the same elements of Wordle - the five letter secret word, the method of figuring out the correct letters - but all of its solutions are rude words.

Sweardle

Sweardle is very similar to Lewdle, as it is also a ruder version of the original puzzle game, with players attempting to guess the secret four letter swear word.

Bikle

As the name of the game suggests, Bikle is a cyclist themed version of Wordle, with players trying to figure out the surname of a male or female cyclist.

The difficulty of the solution will vary from day to day, with the game stating the answer “could be a legend from the past, a well known name of the present, or a domestique who loves breaking away”.

Queerdle

Queerdle describes itself as the “yassification of wordle”, wherein players need to figure out the word which relates, in some way, to the LGBTQ+ community.

Speaking to Pink News, Jordan Bouvier, the creator of Queerdle, said: “I want it to be truly queer. So there are references to history, drag, slang, and of course the sexual references.

“There are words in the dictionary for all queer folks. I’ve also opened up word submission to everyone because I’m under no impression that I know all of the queer lexicon.”

Absurdle

Absurdle pitches itself as an “adversarial version” of the game, featuring a much more complicated playing style.

Where Wordle only has one correct answer for all players on a daily basis, Absurdle’s winning word actually changes with each guess.

The developers explain: “Wordle picks a single secret word at the beginning of the game, and then you have to guess it.

“Absurdle gives the impression of picking a single secret word, but instead what it actually does is consider the entire list of all possible secret words which conform to your guesses so far.”

While Wordle only allows users six tries to crack the code, Absurdle gives its players an unlimited amount of chances to try their luck - which is desperately needed as Absurdle is intentionally trying to prolong the game as much as possible.

If that sounds a bit confusing, the developers of Absurdle broke down the mechanics of the game in an extraordinarily detailed blog post, explaining exactly how the game functions.

Worldle

Where Wordle has its players trying to figure out a word, Worldle asks its players to figure out a country.

Users are faced with the silhouette of a country and have six guesses to try and figure out what country it is.

After each guess, players are then given hints as to the country by showing them how many kilometres away your guess is from the correct answer, with an arrow pointing to show what direction the country is from your guess, and a percentage that shows its proximity.

Users can opt to change the distance from kilometers to miles, and for those who find it a bit too easy, you can up the difficulty by enabling either the option to hide the image of the country, or to randomly rotate the image of the country.

Dordle

Dordle essentially consists of two Wordle grids positioned side by side. Either grid has a different word that you’re trying to figure out using the standard hint system of green, yellow and grey blocks - however the twist here is that you still only get six guesses to figure out both words.

So the words you guess will be applied to both games simultaneously - if there’s a correctly placed letter on the left grid, but that letter is wrong on the other grid, said letter on the keyboard will appear as coloured half and half on its corresponding sides.

If you get all green letters on one of the grids, you can then continue guessing as normal on the uncompleted side.

Daily Dordle offers up one new Dordle every day, whereas free Dordle lets users play as much as they want.

If you’re feeling especially smart, you can also try your hand at Quordle, which is the same as Dordle but instead of two grids, it’s four. At least with this version you get nine guesses to figure out all four words.

Squirdle

Squirdle is a Pokemon themed version of the game. You’ll need to figure out which Pokemon is the answer of the day, and you have eight guesses to do so.

Rather than giving hints based on the letters, you’ll be given hints based on the generation of the Pokemon, it’s height and weight, and what type it is - either one or two.

Players can choose to go for a game featuring generation one Pokemon only if they fancy, and you can play daily Squirdle which is one game a day, or regular Squirdle which lets you play as many times as you like.

Letterle

Instead of guessing a whole word, with Letterle you’re simply just getting one single letter.

You have an unlimited number of guesses to figure it out, so basically all you have to do is make your way through the alphabet - but can you guess the right letter faster than your friends?

Numble

Numble is very similar to Nerdle in the sense that players are tasked with figuring out the hidden equation.

You begin the game with a hint in the form of the solution the secret equation should equal and from there go through the usual method of figuring out the answer through green, yellow and grey squares.

Primel

Primel is yet another numbers based Wordle spin off, with users asked to guess five-figure prime numbers.

Heardle

Heardle involves people listening to the intro of a song and trying to name it - yet another fun twist on the Wordle format.

The music-based guessing game invites players to guess the track from a pool of the most streamed songs in the last 10 years, using only brief snippets from the intro.

You have six guesses (just like Wordle) to try and nail what the song is from the audio clues.

Wordle Unlimited

If your heart belongs to the original Wordle and the original Wordle only, but you wish you could play more than once a day, then Wordle Unlimited is the answer to all your wishes.

Exactly as the name describes, Wordle Unlimited allows players to play as many Wordle games as they please.

Missing 11

Finally, two Wordle spin-offs for football fans (that’s the soccer variety, for any American readers).

In Missing 11, you’re looking to fill in the starting line-up a team played in a famous game from footballing history. For example, on the day of writing, the challenge was to name all of the players that started for Arsenal in their 4-2 win against Liverpool in April 2004.

Here’s more info on how to play Missing 11.

Who Are Ya?

From the makers of Missing 11, Who Are Ya? is all about trying to work out which football player is that day’s solution.

But, rather than guessing a five-letter name - as in Bikle, which has you guessing the five-letter names of pro-cyclists - players are attempting to work out the player based on five different attributes.

You’ll have to take into account the player of the day’s nationality, the league they currently play in, their position on the field, age, and what team they play for.

Here’s more info on how to play Who Are Ya?.

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