Beginner's guide · How to play

What Is NYT Spelling Bee?

Learn the seven-letter hive, the center-letter rule, and the scoring system that turns a few letters into a satisfying daily word hunt.

Updated September 1, 2026 · 8 minute read

What is NYT Spelling Bee?

NYT Spelling Bee is a daily word game built around a honeycomb of seven letters. You make words from the letters shown, but every accepted word must include the highlighted center letter. The letters can be rearranged in any order and reused as often as needed, so the challenge is finding the vocabulary hidden inside a very small alphabet.

The format first appeared in The New York Times in print and later became part of the NYT Games browser and mobile experience. It feels different from a crossword because there is no clue list and no single path through the puzzle. You choose the words, chase a higher score, and decide when you have done enough for the day.

The core rules

• Every answer has at least four letters.
• Every answer contains the center letter.
• Only the seven letters in the hive may be used.
• Letters may be repeated any number of times.
• Proper nouns, hyphenated forms, and many obscure terms are excluded by the curated word list.

The center letter is the anchor. A word that uses six outer letters but misses the center is not valid. When a word feels almost right, check the letter in the middle first; that one requirement explains many rejected guesses.

How scoring and ranks work

Scoring rewards both length and breadth. A four-letter word earns one point. A word with five or more letters earns one point for each letter. A pangram receives the normal word score plus a seven-point bonus.

Your score moves through a set of ranks, usually beginning with Beginner and progressing through Good, Great, Amazing, Genius, and Queen Bee. The exact thresholds depend on the total points available in that day's puzzle. That is why a 100-point puzzle and a 300-point puzzle do not ask for the same score to reach Genius.

What is a pangram?

A pangram is a valid answer that uses all seven letters at least once. Repeated letters are allowed, so a pangram is often longer than seven characters. Some puzzles also contain a perfect pangram, a word that uses each letter exactly once, though those are unusual.

Pangrams are valuable for two reasons: the seven-point bonus makes them efficient, and their letter pattern often points toward several smaller words. When you find one, inspect its prefixes, suffixes, and shorter stems before moving on.

A friendly way to start

1. Write down the center letter and pair it with each outer letter.
2. Try familiar four-letter words to learn the puzzle's vocabulary.
3. Extend a word with common endings such as -ing, -ed, or -er when the letters allow it.
4. Look for one long word that uses several outer letters, then test for a pangram.
5. Stop when the game stops being fun. Queen Bee is an optional finish line, not a requirement.

Frequently asked questions