Yes. The daily puzzle and unlimited mode are free, with no subscription and no account.

Can I play more than one puzzle a day?

Yes. Unlimited mode generates a new 7-letter puzzle on your device whenever you want, with 20 to 45 everyday words and at least one pangram in each.

Is Wordfrost the same as the NYT Spelling Bee?

No. It's a different game in the same family: 7 letters, a required center letter, and pangrams, but with its own puzzles, word list and scoring. Wordfrost isn't affiliated with The New York Times.

Does it work offline?

Yes. Add wordfrost.com to your home screen and it keeps working without a connection. Your progress is saved on the device.

A free Spelling Bee alternative, with no daily limit

If you like the New York Times Spelling Bee but not the paywall, or you finish the day's puzzle by 9am and want another one, Wordfrost is built for exactly that. Same kind of challenge: seven letters, one of them mandatory, find as many words as you can. But it's free, it has an unlimited mode, and it doesn't ask you to sign up for anything.

Play today's puzzle or jump straight to Unlimited.

What's the same

7 letters, and every word has to use the center letter.
Words are at least 4 letters long. Letters can be reused.
Finding the pangram (a word with all seven letters) is the big moment. Every Wordfrost puzzle has at least one.
Ranks as you score. Ours run from Flurry up to Aurora, which needs 70% of the puzzle's maximum.

What's different

Free. No subscription, no "you've reached the limit for today" wall. The daily puzzle is playable to the end, always.
Unlimited puzzles. The official game gives you one puzzle a day. Wordfrost Unlimited generates a fresh one on your device whenever you tap New puzzle. Each is tuned to 20-45 everyday words so it doesn't drag.
Hints that actually help. Two free hints per puzzle show a grid of first letter by word length, so you know where the missing words hide.
No account. Your streak and stats live on your device. Nothing to log into, nothing to email you.
Works offline. Add it to your home screen and it keeps working on the train.
The word list is open. We use SCOWL, a public English word list, trimmed to common words with proper nouns and offensive words removed. If a word seems missing, that's usually why, and you can tell us on the support page.

Is it the same puzzle as the NYT one?

No. Wordfrost has its own letter sets, its own word list and its own scoring. It's a different game in the same family, the way one crossword isn't another crossword. Wordfrost isn't affiliated with The New York Times.

How the daily puzzle works

Everyone gets the same puzzle each day, and it switches at midnight in your local time. Yesterday's full word list, pangram included, is on the answers page the next morning. If you want to compare notes with someone in another time zone, the puzzle number in the share text tells you which one you both played.

Coming to iPhone

An iOS app is in testing now. It's the same game with a proper home screen icon, haptics and Game Center leaderboards for the daily. Until it's out, the web version on this page installs like an app: open it in Safari, tap Share, then Add to Home Screen.

Ready? Today's puzzle is here. Rules and scoring are on the how to play page.