Few daily rituals spark as much quiet satisfaction as sorting 16 words into four themed groups. NYT Connections, launched June 12, 2023, delivers that puzzle daily for free, but when the page stalls it’s easy to fear the game is gone — here’s what’s actually happening and how to get back to categorizing.
Launched: June 12, 2023 ·
Puzzles per day: 1 ·
Words per puzzle: 16 ·
Category groups: 4 ·
Mistakes allowed: 4 ·
Daily puzzle cost: Free to play
Quick snapshot
- 16 words per puzzle, 4 groups (NYT Help Center)
- Free daily puzzle on official web page (Tom’s Guide)
- 4 mistakes allowed (WordsRated)
- Whether a specific outage is active on a given day can’t be confirmed from static data
- NYT hasn’t published an official average success rate
- Archive access rules for older puzzles are not fully stated in official sources
- Released June 12, 2023 (Wikipedia)
- Daily puzzle resets at midnight local time (NYT Help Center)
- Still live as of 2026 (official NYT page) (Wikipedia)
- Check the official page daily for new puzzles
- If it breaks, try the troubleshooting steps below
- NYT may add more variants (e.g., Sports Edition)
Six facts that define the game at a glance:
| Label | Value |
|---|---|
| Game type | Daily category-matching puzzle |
| Publisher | The New York Times |
| Launch date | June 12, 2023 |
| Game editor | Wyna Liu |
| Category groups per puzzle | 4 |
| Official page | nytimes.com/games/connections |
Did NYT take away Connections?
The short answer is no. The official NYT Connections page is still live and indexed in search results. The NYT Help Center (official product documentation) lists Connections alongside Wordle and the Crossword, confirming it remains part of NYT Games. A temporarily unreachable game is not evidence that the puzzle was discontinued.
Is NYT Connections still free?
Yes — the daily puzzle is free to play on the web. Tom’s Guide (tech advice outlet) notes that the web version does not require a subscription, though access may be governed by the broader NYT Games paywall for older puzzles. The official NYT Games page confirms the game is accessible without payment.
Where is the official game still listed?
- Web: nytimes.com/games/connections (primary NYT Games portal)
- NYT Games app (iOS and Android)
- NYT News app (embedded puzzle section)
- Via nytimes.com/theathletic according to NYT Help Center documentation
The implication: if you can’t find it, the game hasn’t been removed — you’re likely facing a temporary access issue.
NYT hasn’t removed Connections. The daily puzzle remains free and available on the official NYT Games page. Players who see a missing or broken game should troubleshoot before assuming discontinuation.
Why isn’t NYT Connections working?
Most “not working” reports stem from browser cache, network errors, or temporary NYT outages. According to Tom’s Guide (tech troubleshooting authority), starting with a page refresh and a new browser session resolves many issues. The daily puzzle reset (midnight local time) can also make the page appear frozen or stale.
What happened to Connections today?
If you see a blank page or a loading spinner, check NYT Games support for confirmed outages. Try another browser or device before assuming the game was removed — the official page is still active.
Quick troubleshooting steps
- Refresh the page (Ctrl+F5 or Cmd+Shift+R).
- Clear browser cache and cookies for nytimes.com.
- Try a different browser (Chrome, Firefox, Safari).
- Try a different device (phone vs. desktop).
- Update the NYT Games app if using mobile.
- Check your internet connection.
- Visit the official page directly — avoid mirrors.
The pattern: most issues are client-side. Only after exhausting these steps should you suspect a server-side problem, and even then it’s almost certainly temporary.
How to access NYT Connections?
The official access point is nytimes.com/games/connections (NYT’s own game portal). No third-party software is needed — the daily web version opens directly in a browser.
Official URL and app options
- Web:
nytimes.com/games/connections - NYT Games app (free download, includes Connections)
- NYT News app (puzzle section)
- Bookmark the official page to avoid unofficial clones
Why this matters: using the correct URL ensures you see the authentic daily puzzle, not a misleading mirror or a site that scrapes answers.
Playing on desktop vs. mobile
The web version works identically on both desktop and mobile browsers. The NYT Games app offers a dedicated interface with streak tracking tied to your NYT account. NYT Help Center (official support) confirms both platforms are supported.
What are the 4 categories in Connections?
Each puzzle contains 16 words arranged in a 4×4 grid. Players must find four hidden groups of four words each. The groups are color-coded by difficulty: yellow (easiest), green, blue, purple (hardest), according to Wikipedia (reference source).
How the 16-word grid works
- 16 tiles, each with a word or short phrase.
- Select exactly four tiles that share a common theme.
- Submit your guess. If correct, the group is revealed with its category name and color.
- You can shuffle the grid to see new patterns (Tom’s Guide).
- Maximum of four mistakes before the game ends and shows the full solution (video tutorial on YouTube).
What the category colors mean
The four colors map to distinct difficulty tiers, with yellow being the most straightforward and purple requiring the most lateral thinking.
| Color | Difficulty | Example categories |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | Easiest | Colors, fruits, days of the week |
| Green | Medium | Weather phenomena, kitchen items |
| Blue | Hard | Wordplay, synonyms, abstract themes |
| Purple | Hardest | Obscure references, trick categories |
The catch: purple groups often rely on wordplay rather than straightforward categorization. Lifehacker (lifestyle and tech publication) notes that at least one group per puzzle involves wordplay, not just thematic grouping.
Is Connections harder than Wordle?
Wordle and Connections test different skills, so a direct difficulty ranking is subjective. Wordle rewards vocabulary and deduction from a single five-letter word; Connections demands pattern recognition across 16 words. Lifehacker describes Connections as “Wordle’s cousin” but with a very different cognitive load.
What’s the key to winning Connections?
- Start with the most obvious group (often yellow).
- Look for words with multiple meanings — they could be traps.
- Use the shuffle button to reset your visual perspective.
- Don’t force leftover words into a group; wait for a clearer pattern.
CNET (tech advice outlet) recommends shuffling before starting and scanning the grid systematically, such as from the bottom-right corner.
What is the average success rate for NYT Connections?
NYT does not publish an official average success rate in the provided materials. Community self-reported data on Reddit’s r/NYTConnections suggests most regular players solve the puzzle, but these figures are not official. The minimum number of guesses to solve is four (if you get each group first try), and the maximum is seven before you either win or exhaust your four mistakes, according to WordsRated (gaming analytics site).
Four differences between the two NYT puzzles:
| Aspect | Connections | Wordle |
|---|---|---|
| Format | 16 words, 4 groups | 1 five-letter word |
| Attempts | 4 mistakes allowed | 6 guesses allowed |
| Category logic | Find hidden themes | Deduce letters |
| Feedback | Color-coded groups | Green/yellow/gray tiles |
The trade-off: Wordle is a sprint of deduction; Connections is a puzzle of connections. Which is harder depends on whether you’re stronger with letters or with pattern matching.
Timeline
- June 12, 2023 — NYT released Connections as part of NYT Games. (Wikipedia)
- Daily — A new puzzle is published at midnight local time. (NYT Help Center)
- 2024–2025 — Multiple media outlets (Lifehacker, Tom’s Guide, CNET, Mashable) publish how-to guides and strategy articles.
- Current (2026) — Connections remains available on the official NYT Games page. The game has not been removed.
The timeline signal is clear: Connections has been running continuously since its launch, with no evidence of discontinuation.
What’s confirmed and what’s unclear
Confirmed facts
- The official NYT Connections game page is live and indexed. (NYT Games)
- Connections is a daily puzzle with 4 category groups. (Wikipedia)
- The official page is
nytimes.com/games/connections. (NYT Help Center)
What’s unclear
- Whether a specific temporary outage is active on a given day cannot be confirmed from static data.
- The exact average success rate is not published by NYT in the provided inputs.
- Archive access rules for older Connections puzzles are not fully stated in the provided inputs.
- Whether the daily puzzle will remain free to play in the long term cannot be confirmed from static data.
The implication: the core facts about Connections are well-documented, but maintenance and policy details depend on NYT’s ongoing operations.
“Connections is a word game that challenges players to find themes between words.”
— New York Times Help Center (official product documentation)
“The game presents you with 16 tiles that each have a word or short phrase on them.”
— Lifehacker (technology and lifestyle publication)
“When a player successfully identifies a group, its category is revealed along with a color-coded difficulty level.”
— Wikipedia (reference source)
Wyna Liu, the game’s editor, has spoken in interviews about how categories are designed to include traps — words that could fit into more than one plausible category. Community discussions on forums echo this, advising players to be wary of overlapping themes.
Players who rush to submit the first group they see often fall for a trap word. The puzzle designers intentionally include words that seem to fit multiple categories. Deselect and reshuffle before committing — the extra seconds pay off.
For the casual player, the implication is clear: NYT Connections is here to stay, free to play, and accessible from multiple devices. When it breaks, don’t panic — troubleshoot first, and you’ll almost always be back to sorting words within minutes. For the dedicated daily solver, the only real challenge is beating the purple category.
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For players who want to dive deeper into strategies and daily hints, the NYT Connections guide and hints offers a comprehensive companion to the official game.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get NYT Connections hints?
Many sites publish daily hints without giving away full answers. The official NYT page itself does not offer hints, but community subreddits like r/NYTConnections share spoiler-tagged hints each day.
Can I play old NYT Connections puzzles?
The daily web version only shows the current puzzle. The NYT Games app may offer a limited archive, but the provided inputs do not fully confirm archive access rules.
Can I play NYT Connections on my phone?
Yes. The web version works in any mobile browser, and the NYT Games app includes Connections. (NYT Help Center)
What is NYT Connections: Sports Edition?
Reportedly a variant of the game focused on sports-related words. It was introduced in 2024 as a separate daily puzzle, available through the same NYT Games page.
How many mistakes can I make in NYT Connections?
Four incorrect guesses end the game. A fifth mistake triggers a loss and reveals the full solution. (WordsRated)
Is there a Connections archive?
NYT does not currently offer a full archive of past puzzles in the public web version. Some third-party sites archive past puzzles, but those are not official.
Do I need an NYT subscription to play Connections?
No — the daily puzzle is free to play on the web. A subscription may be required for additional features or older puzzles, but the current day’s puzzle is always free. (Tom’s Guide)
Related reading
- Connections Unlimited: Guide, tips og arkiv — A guide to Connections Unlimited, a similar category-matching game.
- Wordle NY: How to Play, Get Hints, and Today’s Answer — Companion guide to the other NYT daily word game.
