Birdle: the free daily bird Wordle
How to play Birdle
- Press Play today's Birdle. The bird word game opens straight away, with no sign-in.
- Pick Hard or Easy mode before your first guess. You cannot switch once you have guessed.
- Type a five-letter word and press Submit.
- Read the colours on each tile, then guess again.
- You have six guesses. Solve it or run out and the game shows today's word.
What the colours mean
- 🟩 Green: the letter is in the answer and in the right place.
- 🟨 Yellow: the letter is in the answer but in a different place.
- ⬜ Grey: the letter is not in the answer.
Repeated letters follow Wordle rules. If the answer has one E and your guess has two, only one E is coloured. A keyboard under the grid tracks every letter you have tried.
Easy mode and Hard mode
- Hard mode is the default. Every guess must be on the game's list of bird words, so you need birding vocabulary to get started. It pays up to 12 bonus points.
- Easy mode accepts any five letters, so you can open with your usual Wordle starter. It pays up to 6 bonus points.
| Solved in | Hard | Easy |
|---|---|---|
| 1 guess | 12 | 6 |
| 2 guesses | 10 | 5 |
| 3 guesses | 8 | 4 |
| 4 guesses | 6 | 3 |
| 5 guesses | 4 | 2 |
| 6 guesses | 2 | 1 |
Win in Hard mode to unlock the Birdle fanatic badge. Bonus points count towards the leaderboard once you are signed in.
Which words are in Birdle?
The list holds just over 300 five-letter words. The answer is always bird-related, but it is not always a species. Expect:
- Bird names: ROBIN, EAGLE, HERON, FINCH, GREBE, PIPIT, EIDER.
- Parts of a bird: TALON, CREST, PLUME, WINGS.
- Behaviour: ROOST, PREEN, MOULT, HOVER.
- Habitat: MARSH, HEATH, COAST, CLIFF.
- Birding kit and habits: SCOPE, PATCH, HIDES, TICKS.
Weather, food and plumage colours fill out the rest.
Tips for solving Birdle
- Learn the five-letter British birds. RAVEN, EGRET, SNIPE, SCAUP, TWITE, SERIN, CRANE and HOBBY (the Hobby is a small summer falcon) are all on the list.
- Test for a final S. Many words are plurals: GULLS, TERNS, WRENS, ROOKS, KITES.
- Know your field guide terms. LORES are the feathers between the eye and the bill. The ALULA is the small tuft at the bend of the wing. VANES are the flat webs either side of a feather shaft.
- Old and specialist names turn up. OUZEL as in Ring Ouzel. BRENT is a goose. A REEVE is a female Ruff. PEWIT is an old name for the Lapwing.
- Collective nouns count. A COVEY is a group of partridges and a CHARM is a flock of Goldfinches. An EYRIE is an eagle's nest.
- Pick a legal opener for Hard mode. STARE, SLATE, CRANE and TERNS are all accepted and cover common letters.
When does Birdle reset?
A new word appears at midnight. For players in Britain that is midnight UK time: the game goes by the date on your device. Everyone gets the same word on the same date. There is no archive, so a missed day is gone.
Birdle FAQ
Is Birdle the same as Wordle?
No. Birdle is our own bird word game. It uses the format Wordle made famous (five letters, six guesses, coloured tiles) and makes every answer a bird word. It is not connected to Wordle or The New York Times.
Where do I find today's Birdle answer?
In the game. Birdle shows today's word as soon as you solve it or use your sixth guess. We do not publish answers anywhere else, so nobody gets a spoiler.
Is Birdle free?
Yes. There is no charge and nothing to install. It plays in your browser.
Do I need an account to play Birdle?
No. Guests can play every day, and today's progress is kept on your device. Sign in with Google if you want your bonus points banked on the leaderboard.
Does Birdle work on a phone?
Yes. It runs in a phone browser as well as on a tablet or desktop. There is no app to download.
Is this a UK version of Birdle?
Yes. The word list was written for British birders: British bird names, UK habitats such as LOCHS, MOORS and TARNS, and UK spelling such as MOULT. A few birds from elsewhere appear too, such as VIREO and JUNCO.