The official NYT WordleBot evaluates millions of human turns daily to determine mathematically optimal play. Historically, the algorithm favored CRANE, later shifted its preference to SLATE, and in recent revisions often models TRACE or CARTE in default mode.
The table below contrasts the highest-performing opening picks based on average remaining solution pools after guess one:
| Starting Word | Vowels Tested | Key Consonants | Avg. Words Remaining |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLATE | A, E | S, L, T | 71 |
| TRACE | A, E | T, R, C | 73 |
| CRANE | A, E | C, R, N | 79 |
| ADIEU | A, I, E, U | D | 124 |
While casual solvers frequently rely on ADIEU to eliminate vowels early, data shows this strategy backfires on tighter boards. English words are constrained by consonant clusters; discovering whether a word carries an R, S, or T narrows the search tree far quicker than confirming an I or U.
