If you’re hooked on Connections — The New York Times’ wildly popular word-association puzzle — you’re not alone. This clever game challenges players to group 16 words into four secret categories, pushing both vocabulary and critical thinking skills. But once you’ve played the daily puzzle, what’s next? Luckily, there are plenty of similar games that combine wordplay, logic, and pattern recognition to keep your brain buzzing.
In this article, we’ll explore the best games like Connections that appeal to puzzle enthusiasts, casual gamers, and word nerds alike.
1. Wordle
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Platform: Web, iOS, Android
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Why It’s Similar: Like Connections, Wordle delivers a daily brain teaser with a minimalist design. Instead of categories, you guess a five-letter word in six tries using logic and deduction.
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What Makes It Fun: It’s quick, addictive, and encourages pattern recognition with a strong social-sharing aspect.
2. Knotwords
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Platform: iOS, Android, PC
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Why It’s Similar: This crossword-puzzle-meets-Sudoku experience challenges you to fill in a grid with correct words using logic instead of clues.
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What Makes It Fun: Each puzzle feels like cracking a code — perfect for players who enjoy thinking outside the box.
3. Red Herring
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Platform: iOS, Android
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Why It’s Similar: Like Connections, Red Herring tasks you with sorting words into categories. However, it mixes in “red herring” words to throw you off track.
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What Makes It Fun: The balance of challenge and simplicity makes this a go-to for fans of word grouping puzzles.
4. Typeshift
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Platform: iOS, Android
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Why It’s Similar: A modern twist on word searches and anagrams, Typeshift makes you slide columns of letters to form words and solve themed challenges.
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What Makes It Fun: Stylish design, varying difficulty, and satisfying “a-ha” moments.
5. Waffle
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Platform: Web
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Why It’s Similar: Waffle blends the logical swapping of tiles with a grid-based word puzzle. Your goal is to rearrange a scrambled waffle-shaped puzzle into correct words with limited moves.
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What Makes It Fun: A daily puzzle that combines strategic thinking with visual wordplay.
6. Spelling Bee
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Platform: Web, NYT App
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Why It’s Similar: Another hit from The New York Times, Spelling Bee requires you to create as many words as possible using a central letter.
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What Makes It Fun: It’s competitive, brain-stretching, and encourages creative vocabulary.
7. PuzzGrid
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Platform: Web
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Why It’s Similar: Designed with a format nearly identical to Connections, PuzzGrid is often more challenging and less forgiving. It’s based on the British quiz show Only Connect.
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What Makes It Fun: Offers countless user-generated puzzles and difficulty levels — great for hardcore solvers.
8. 7 Little Words
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Platform: iOS, Android, Kindle
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Why It’s Similar: This hybrid of crossword and trivia asks players to match clues with sets of word fragments.
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What Makes It Fun: Short, smart, and satisfying — perfect for puzzle-solving on the go.
Final Thoughts
If you love Connections, there’s a whole world of engaging, thoughtful games waiting for you. Whether you prefer word deduction, logic grouping, or grid-based puzzles, these alternatives offer fresh ways to challenge your mind daily. Try them out — your next obsession might be just a tap away.
