How to play word with friends better

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Your Ultimate Guide to Winning at Words With Friends

Thanks for taking the time to check out my Words With Friends Tips and Strategy page. As you can see, I’m a geek in many ways, not just photography. I started playing Words With Friends on my iPhone about a year ago, and I’ve been addicted ever since. In the time I’ve been playing Words With Friends, I’ve developed a few strategies of my own to share with you here today.

What is Words With Friends?

Words With Friends is a crossword game made for mobile devices (iPhone, iPad, Android), and is based on the popular board game Scrabble. The basic directions can be found HERE. There are a few key differences between Words With Friends and Scrabble that I’d like to point out. It’s important to recognize these differences because you might be able to use them to your advantage. 

1. You are not playing face to face with your opponents. You could plausibly be playing against someone on the other side of the world!
2. A game is not completed in one sitting. It can last hours, days, weeks, or even months.

1.  There are no challenges. When you are playing a word, you can use trial and error as many times as you need, until you find a word that works.
2.  The tile distribution and count is slightly different. See the chart below:

1.  While both boards are 15×15 squares, the layout is a bit different, as shown in the images below:

Wording With Friends – Ground Rules

Keeping a 2-Letter Word List

Because of some of the new dynamics mentioned above, the friends that I play with regularly and I have agreed to a few rule clarifications for ease of play. First, we are allowed to keep a list of all 2 letter words. Since we are able to use trial and error to find words, it saves a ton of time to know what all the two-letter words are. If you use a list long enough, you will probably end up memorizing it anyway.

Sometimes the makers of Words with Friends add and delete words from its dictionary. Click over to my article 2 Letter Words For Scrabble and Words With Friends to view an updated (2020) list of two-letter words.

Keeping Track of Missing Tiles

Second, we have deemed it acceptable to keep track of the missing tiles if we like – much like counting cards in Blackjack. We figure that since there can be a relatively large amount of time between turns, why not use the time to keep track of what tiles have and have not been played yet. None of us ever really do this early in a game, or even in the middle. But as the game is nearing the end and it looks like it could be particularly close, we will definitely do it. I’m not sure if there is a rule that addresses this in regular Scrabble, but we’ve made it clear that it’s ok here. I put together a spreadsheet that takes care of this for me. Click the link below and you can use it too! You will need at least Microsoft Excel 97 to use the spreadsheet.

Handy Dandy Words With Friends Letter Counter (clicking this link will download a Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet)

It’s a good thing to agree on a few ground rules with the friends you play with regularly. In my group of friends, we have deemed it acceptable to keep the two-letter word list and keep track of tiles if we want, but NOT acceptable to use Words With Friends cheats, word generators or any other word lists, which are readily available online. If you and your friends agree that it’s ok to use word generators, my favorite one is wineverygame.com. I’m sure there are plenty of other good ones.

As I said before, in the time that I’ve been playing, I’ve developed some of my own Words With Friends tips and strategy that I will share with you here. Hopefully it will give you an edge against your opponents as well.

Lay *Along* Beats Lay Across

Let’s say your opponent plays AROSE. You have letters in your tray that spell “POWER”. You could use the “O” in AROSE and lay the P, W, E and R downward across it, for a cool 11 points…OR…you could you could lay POWER along the top of AROSE to create multiple new words (POWER, PA, OR, WO, ES, and RE) for a total of 26 points!

Start Small

It never fails, you play a 5 letter word to start the game, and your experienced opponent puts a nice lay-along next to it, effectively scoring double for his word and single for YOUR word too. When I start a game, I like to start with a 2 letter word, and use that turn to dump my two least desirable letters. Let your opponent be the first to open the board up.

Work the Colored Squares

The best way to maximize the value of your tiles is to play them on the colored squares. On the board, you can find Double Letter (DL), Double Word (DW), Triple Letter (TL), and Triple Word (TW). I like to call the TL and TW the “High-Dollar” Squares. Always look for the accessibility of these squares on the board – even before you examine your tray. Look for plays using these squares and try to work your letters to fit those plays. Even better, try and find plays that combine multiple letter scores with multiple word scores. Let’s say you play the word PARK on 4 Blank squares. You will score 11 points. Now let’s say you play where the “P” is on a TL and the “K” is on a TW. The score for this play will jump all the way up to 57 points!

Look for Vowels Next to Colored Squares.

Let’s say your opponent plays PLANE, and there is a TL directly above the “A”. You notice this, then upon examining your tray you notice that you have a “Z”. Remembering from the 2 letter word list that ZA is a valid word, you know you can play the “Z” on the TL, to create ZA for a total score of 31 points. Now you take it one step further and notice that you also have an “E” and an “N” in your tray. Now you can play ZEN in a lay-along above PLANE, creating ZA, ZEN, EN and NE, for a total of 70 points!

Bingo Was His Name-O

When you play all 7 tiles in your tray in one turn, it’s called a “Bingo.” Not only do you get the points for the word(s) you made, but you also get a 35 point bonus! If you can mix that with a few colored squares in the right places, then it’s not out of the question to score in the 100’s on one single play! One of the keys to winning games consistently is learning how to make Bingos. It takes a bit of practice, but the more you play, the more you will develop strategies that will help you create more and more Bingos. When I first started playing, I was lucky to average one Bingo for every 10 games played. Now I’d say I average about 9 Bingos for every 10 games, and I’m continuing to improve. Read on for some of my strategies for creating Bingos.

Defense Wins Games

Just as you will be looking for plays around the High-Dollar squares, your experienced opponent will be doing the same. Don’t give him the opening, even if it means you have to play a lesser word elsewhere. Unless I know I’m going to score big with my play, I generally try to avoid opening the TW TL areas for play. Even a 40 point play might not be worth opening up one of those areas, knowing that he could potentially score 50 or even more points by taking full advantage of the opening.

S’s are Precious. And so are BLANKs

The “S” and the BLANK are important tiles in the game. The “S” is important because it can be played at the end of so many words. If you have a word in your tray that contains an “S”, then you can place it at the end of a word that is already on the board, and play the remaining tiles for your word around it. Let’s say your opponent played COFFEE. In your tray you notice the word VEST. You could play VEST across one of the E’s in COFFEE, for a total of 8 points. I consider this to be wasting your S. If you look closer, you could put the S at the end of COFFEE and play the V, E and T around it, and score 24 points, with COFFEES and VEST! Mix in a few colored squares and you can easily clear 30 points.

Many people like to employ this strategy with the “Y” as well. I personally find that there aren’t nearly as many opportunities to use the “Y” in this way as there are for the “S”, so I generally treat the “Y” as just another letter. The BLANKS can work in the same way. Not only can you use them as an “S” to connect two words, but you can also use them as the missing link for a word you are working on in your tray. I’d say the BLANK is responsible for about 50% of all the Bingos I make. As a general rule of thumb, I try not to use an S or a BLANK unless they are directly responsible for scoring at least 30 points for me.

Swapping Tiles: All or Nothing

Swapping tiles is an art. Generally speaking, I swap tiles when there are no plays that I can make that will get me more than 15 or so points, and the letters in my tray don’t figure to offer any more help in the near future. Never try to swap tiles in order to create a word that you are trying to formulate in your tray. That will only lead to heartache, trust me. When I need to swap, I like to swap ALL 7 tiles, with a few exceptions: I never swap out the following letters:

S: See above
BLANK: See above
J, Q, X, and Z: these tiles are crucial in determining the winner. Never give them up if you have them. Giving them up gives your opponent a chance to use them with the colored squares for maximum value. I’d rather play one of those tiles on a blank square just to get rid of it before I see my opponent take advantage of it on the High-Dollar squares.
“ER” or “ED”: I’m a big fan of ER and ED. These combinations are very versatile in that they can be attached to the beginning or end of many 5 letter words, to make a Bingo. I would say that those two combinations are responsible for helping me with the other 50% of my Bingos.

Keep The Letters Moving

A high tile turnover rate is good for your tray. It increases the chance of getting J, Q, X and Z, and decreases your opponent’s chance of getting them and using them against you. If all other variables are equal (points, leave, etc.), play the bigger word over the smaller word if you have a choice.

Saving Letters Is Dangerous

It’s generally not a good idea to save letters while you wait on other letters to show up for a word. I’m not going to lie and say that I’ve never done it, but I do try and keep it at a minimum. Sometimes it is just too tempting. Obviously you have the best chances of a good score when you have all seven letters to choose from on each turn. For each letter that you hold back, you are potentially limiting your score for that play. If you do choose to save letters, try and keep it at a minimum, and if the letters you need don’t show up within 2 or 3 turns, cut your losses and stop waiting.

Further Reading on 2-Letter Words

It’s important to know the two-letter words because they can be used in a pinch, or as a connector to a much larger word. For reference, I’ve written an article that I like to call The Ultimate 2 Letter Words List 🙂 (updated in 2020).

Conclusion

Hopefully you found these Words With Friends tips useful. I’ll continue to make additions/changes to this document as my strategy and skill level evolves. Let me know if you disagree with anything I said, or if you find any errors.

Good Luck, and Happy Wording!

Words with Friends is a popular online game by Zynga similar to scrabble. What sets this game apart is in its title: you can play with your friends or other word game enthusiasts all over the world. This provides endless entertainment because you can have up to 30 games going at once. You’ll never run out of live opponents which keeps your puzzle-solving skills sharp.

The Basic Rules of the Game

There are some subtle differences between Words with Friends and Scrabble, but the rules are generally the same. Let’s talk about some of the main rules of Word With Friends to help you get started.

• 1. The first word is made by the challenger or the person who starts the game.
• 2. The first word is started on the + symbol in the center of the board.
• 3. Words can only be played horizontally and vertically.
• 4. All new words must connect to existing words on the board, just like scrabble.

Another fun aspect of Words with Friends is that you can chat with your opponent while playing the game. This is an enjoyable way to pass time with friends or even make new friends that were once random opponents.

The best way to improve at a game is with practice and time, but there are some tips and tricks to give you an edge when playing Words with Friends.

Learn the Board, Especially the Bonus Tiles

Strategy is everything in Words with Friends. When you place a word for your move, you should be thinking ahead about what opportunities you’re giving your opponent. For example, if you place the word POST horizontally on the board, you’re giving your opponent an open S and T to build many longer words than they would’ve with other letters. If there is a lot of space above your POST on the board, your opponent can make a plural form of just about any word, and they’re more likely to get a bonus tile alone the way.

If you’re familiar with chess, you’ll understand the requirement to think ahead and try and “read your opponent’s mind” to win the game. Every move you make whilst playing Words with Friends should be well thought out. Always be a few steps ahead of your challenger!

Pay Attention to Your Word Placement on the Board

Going off the previous tip, remember that there should be intention behind every move you make in a game of Words With Friends. If you’ve followed our first tip, you’ll have a good understanding of where the bonus tiles are on the board. Every time you make a move, consider what opportunities you’re giving your opponent. Is there a Triple Word tile next to an easy letter like S? Notice how all the triple letter tiles are on the outer edges of the board. When you’ve reached that part of the game, opportunities for long words are less, so be aware of giving your opponent an opportunity to form a 2 or 3 letter word with a triple word tile. Instead, place a more difficult letter to form a short word with, such as J.

Use Hooks to Score Big

What are hooks? Hooks are the technique of adding one or two letters onto a preexisting word on the board to form a new word. You can do this by changing the tense of a word or making it plural. If you have the letters ED, ET, ES, or just S, take note. You can use those letters to make a hook. If the original word you hook off of has high scoring letters in it, you’ll get the points from those with just a few letters!

Play Words Towards the Center, Not the Edges

When I first discovered this tip, it was like a lightbulb went off in my head. If you look at an empty Words With Friends board, you’ll notice that the bonus tiles are in a diamond shape and move out along the edges of the board. The biggest bonus tiles like the triple word tile are on the very outer edge of the board. Every time it’s your turn, see if you can play your word towards the center. When you move out to the edges, you’re giving your opponent way more opportunities to score big on bonus tiles.

The other benefit of playing towards the center is making it harder to form large words. You will set your opponent up to have less space to form words, especially long words, without running into a preexisting word on the board.

Use Your Powerups!

This seems obvious, but I’m prone to forgetting the powerups exist. Powerups are the bonus tools of Words With Friends that you use your coins to purchase. The powerups are Hindsight, Word Radar, Swap+, and Get Word Clue. Let’s explain what they mean!

Hindsight: If you’ve ever felt like your move could’ve been better, this is the powerup for you. This tool allows you to see what the best move could’ve been on your last turn. This is a great way to learn and improve at the game.

Word Radar: If you use this before your turn, it will show you the space where the longest word can be played. It’s your job to figure out which letters to use in that space!

Swap+: Use this powerup to swap all your tiles with new ones.

Get Word Clue: This clue will tell you which letters to use and which space to put them in. All you need to do is unjumble the letters to get the best possible word for your turn.

Study Up on Words

If you read a lot or have a large vocabulary, it may give you an edge in the game. To really excel at Words With Friends, you will need more than that! You will need to study and memorize words that will specifically help you in this game. At most, you’ll only have 7 letters to use each turn, which means any words longer than that aren’t of much use to you in this game.

You’re better off studying shorter words that use the higher scoring letters. How many three-letter words with the letter J do you know? What about two-letter words with the letter V? Begin memorizing some words that will help you out when playing Words With Friends. Check out these Word List where you get the curated list of words. You may even benefit from jotting them down in a little journal when you’re out and about. Those words might help you win a game one day!

We hope that these tips and tricks will help you on your journey to being a great Words With Friends player! Practice makes perfect, so the more you play, the better you’ll get. With these tips and some time, you’ll be on your way to being a champion.

Words With Friends Solver
Word List

Words With Friends is arguably the most addictive multiplayer mobile application in existence. I say multiplayer since Angry Birds is nearly impossible to catch with its addictiveness. Chances are if you got an iPhone in the recent months someone probably recommended you download Words with Friends and play with them. For those of you without an iPhone or a Droid, Words With Friends is pretty much identical to Scrabble except for maybe one or two minor tweaks. While extremely addictive, the game can be frustrating when you’re continually on the losing side of the spectrum. I used to find myself losing regularly and then I figured out how to truly play the game and now I rarely every lose at all. For those of you who can’t seem to figure out how to beat your opponent I’ve listed 10 tips on how to win at Words with Friends. Before I list them, apparently there is an application that you can download that chooses words for you (basically a cheating app) which I will NOT include here because I think it completely takes the fun out of the game.

1. Realize that it’s a game of MATH not VOCABULARY: You got an 800 on the English part of your SATs? Great, but doesn’t mean shit with Words with Friends. I hear all the time «I have a great vocabulary so I’ll win all the time at this». Words with Friends tells you that a «word is not acceptable» if you try to play it and it’s not actually a word. If you can try and maximize the amount of points you get every time by putting possible words together until something sticks you’ll do okay. I learned that Qi and Za are words this way and  both have helped me to win plenty of games.

2. A strong defense can be your best offense: Some of the people I play with have a bad habit of putting down a word right near a triple word tile. I beat these people every single time. Unless you have a really really kickass word, do not put a word down where your opponent can possibly get a triple word score. Triple words make and break games so don’t blow it by allowing your opponent to get a triple word so easily.

3. Bridge two words together with an S: Often times you’ll see that a horizontal word and a vertical word are separated by one letter. Most words can be added to by simply pluralizing it with an s. Why not obtain points from both of these words by simply putting an s and pluralizing both. This works great especially if the s  is on a triple letter tile.

4. If you have the opportunity go first: I don’t care what anyone says, going first is an advantage. If you go first you have the chance to both put points on the board first AND close out the game. This isn’t an option if you go second. The extra few points you can get by closing out a game (where it minuses points from tiles they have over and add it to you score) can be the difference in a win.

5. If you see an opportunity to use a triple letter twice in one turn for a Q, J, X, or Z DO IT: This could apply to five or four point letters to, but especially for your Q, J, X, and Zs. You know that ax and ox is a word right? If you put an x on a triple letter and form both words you get 8x3x2 plus the 2 points from the a and the o is 50 points right there. And this is basically a minimum since you might play wax and ox, or box and ax, etc. It might not seem significant before you play it since it’s two words, but some times this can be more valuable than a triple world.

6. Don’t waste your Qs, Js, Xs, or Zs: Similar to the triple letter suggestion on tip 5, do not waste your good letters. If you get a Q at the beginning of the game, don’t play Qi for 11 points, play Qi when you can for 31. If you get these later on in the game you might need to dump them to avoid negative points, but don’t waste them right off the bat. I generally do not use these letters unless I»m getting 30 points or higher for the round.

7. Don’t swap letters unless you have to: Swapping is better than passing if you have shitty letters, but generally you do not want to swap. If you can get rid of 3 letters on the board and only get 7 points out of it, it’s still better than swapping for 4 letters and taking a risk (and you might get the letters you’re looking for anyway). Take advantage of any opportunity you have to get points on the board.

8. Take advantage of opportunities to play a letter on multiple words: I’m always surprised by how some people don’t realize that if you play a letter on more than one word you get points for both words. Essentially the letter is as good as a double letter tile, but better since you’re getting points also from both words.

9. If you can get a guaranteed win by ending the game do it: If you see an opportunity to use 6 letters, end the game, win, but only getting 7 points it’s a lot better than playing 2 letters for 40 points and risking that your opponent pulls an awesome word out of their ass. End the game if you can guarantee a win.

10. Take your time: A simple, but important rule in winning. Don’t get pressured into rushing your turn so your opponent can go. Take time to find the word that will get you the most amount of points each and every time.

Word with Friends is a game that has been renewed for its massive popularity as a word game. Rather than playing some games with usual themes like fighting, actions and battling, this holds a unique theme, and it is about words. So today, let’s see how we can play Words with Friends on the computer along with its beginner tips.

Content

• Words with Friends on Computer
• Words with Friends on Computer – Beginner Tips
• Conclusion

Before playing the game, it is a must to know that Words with Friends is not just about handling words, it is strategy fame, and for winning, it has to maximize the bonus multipliers which a player holds. And they have to plan carefully for keeping their tiles, and those allow them to score continuously throughout the game.

So how do this Words with Friends on Computer gameplay come about?

Words with Friends on Computer

You can just use LDPlayer to play this amazing strategy game on a computer. It only requires an installation on your computer, and then you can go to the LD Store. You can download the game there.

What makes you more pushed towards playing this unique Words with Friends on the computer is that it gives you a more advanced gaming experience rather than playing on a mobile. It is not just only about having a keyboard or a mouse. The gaming will be more advanced with many added features than usual game-playing.

As an example, we can take the Keyboard Mapping feature. It will create its own keyboard for the players with their personal preference controls, and it does not require to depend on the default key settings. Instead, you can create your own.

Words with Friends on Computer – Beginner Tips

Playing Words with Friends on the computer using LDPlayer is not the only answer for a victory. You need to be aware of what to perform and what time it asks you to do it. 

So it is a must to know some tips, and here are some of the strategy tips to follow. These will help you to improve your entire gameplay with Words with Friends.

Learn Your Functional Words

It is a must to learn some word amounts like 2 and 3 letter words as a player. Those are helping players pass a long way towards improving their scores from the game, 3 and 3 letter words are not only the ones that give this feature as short vowel heavy words, and the JQXZ words are also helping them improve their scores more.

Use Some Bonus Multipliers

Bonus multipliers can be identified as the best ways of increasing scores, and those are capable of improving players’ scores most speedily. Players need to make sure that they take the maximum benefits from multi-coloured multiplier squares whenever they can.

Using More of Bonus Multipliers

You need to use bonus multipliers more than once. It makes the situation better whenever you use several bonus multipliers within a tandem. When a player combines their word multiplier with a letter multiplier, they will be able to score more points with only a few tiles.

Parallel Plays

Note that it becomes favourable for you if there is a parallel play. If a player plays words parallel to the existing plays and forms multiple letter words by two or three amounts, it becomes a great strategy. 

Those are really helpful for a player to rack up their points speedily, and it will be a great way to use many words you have already learned on step one.

Hooks with Massive Dividends

Sometimes, hooks are paying so many dividends on the game. If you hook to an existing word, it will be the most effective scoring method. Players can hook by adding one tile to the start or for the end of a word, and then they can try to create the newest word. 

And also, they can do it by creating a perpendicular play. Players can use this new technique to access the highest score bonus multipliers to earn big scores from the game.

Focus on your Rack Balance

When there is a chance, you need to try to have a good balance between consonants and vowels. And then you need to try to not keep duplicate files with you. It is OK to have a few from the high point files, but it is not identified as a great tactic if you decide to have more than two high point tiles.

Swap

As a player, you should never be afraid of swapping. There are some terrible tiles, and they can limit your scores within one turn, and they can affect multiple turns. 

So you need to swap. But when you are swapping, just make sure to keep some strongest tiles like X, Z and S with the blank tiles. And also have to keep the tiles that fit great with the board when swapping, as they are helpful for parallel plays and hooks.

Bingos

Look at your game board for bingos. Bingos are the greatest way to score with blanks and lower consonants’ scoring. These tiles are somewhat challenging to achieve, but they help make a bingo. And it can be done by using all the tiles and claiming 35 point bonuses.

Don’t Give Big Scores for your Opponents with Bonus Square.

You should never give a chance for your opponents to use some bonus multipliers to earn big points. The same type of bonus multiplier combinations with parallel plays that you have to use on scoring should never give away the opponents. You need to avoid it unless you hold an excellent option for huge scoring.

Hunt for your Words

Most of the players are looking for the words in this game way too fast. But you need to try for words that are unsure of you. If a player wants to know if a short word or hook is valid in the game, they have to type that hook in and create a gibberish play. The word checker will tell them whether the play is valid or not.

If you can see an immediate game, it may mean that there are multiple good plays for you to enjoy. And there will often be some good plays which are better than any other thing. Those will be single-handedly swinging games.

Conclusion

With those details, it ends our beginner tips with the guide for playing Words with Friends on the computer. Make sure to utilize these all tips in a maximum way to progress more on your game, and don’t forget to play Words with Friends on the computer to have a whole gaming experience from it.