Getting Started
What is CluedIn? CluedIn is a free word guessing game. Each puzzle has a hidden word and a short series of clues. You guess the word in as few attempts as possible — each wrong guess reveals the next clue.
How do I start playing? Pick any puzzle from the Official, Daily, or Community tabs on the home page. You can play as a guest under any nickname, or sign in for cross-device sync and creator tools.
Do I need an account? No. Every puzzle is fully playable as a guest. A free account adds sync across devices, leaderboard ranking, and the ability to publish your own puzzles.
Is CluedIn really free? Yes. All puzzles in every mode are free. There are no in-app purchases, no premium puzzles, and no paywall.
Do I need to install anything? No. CluedIn runs entirely in your browser. There is no app to download.
Is there gambling, wagering, or real-money prizes? No. CluedIn has no gambling element of any kind and offers no cash prizes. Optional advertising covers hosting costs; that is the only commercial element.
Gameplay
How do clues work? Each puzzle ships with a fixed number of clues — usually between two and eight — ordered from broad to specific. You see the first clue immediately, and each wrong guess reveals the next one. You get one guess per available clue.
How do hints work? Some puzzles include optional hints that fire automatically when your guess shares letters with the answer in the same position. When a hint triggers, the clue panel lights up and reveals which letters matched. Hints are a bonus — many puzzles solve cleanly without ever triggering one.
What do "short", "medium", and "long" word labels mean? Short = 4–6 letters, medium = 7–8 letters, long = 9 or more letters. The label appears above the input so you can check the answer length before typing.
How many guesses do I get per puzzle? One per available clue. So a four-clue puzzle gives you four chances, a six-clue puzzle gives you six, and so on.
What happens if I run out of guesses? The puzzle ends as a loss. You can review the answer and the full clue list afterwards.
Is there a time limit? No. CluedIn enforces a short cooldown of 10–20 seconds between submissions on the same puzzle to prevent spam-guessing, but there is no overall timer. Take as long as you need to read each clue.
Stats, Streaks, and Leaderboards
What stats are tracked? Games played, games won, current streak, max streak, and average guesses per win. All of these are recalculated from your full game history rather than stored as simple counters, so they always reflect reality.
How do streaks work? Your current streak grows with consecutive wins on official games and resets to zero on a loss or forfeit. The max streak is your personal best and never goes down.
Why only official games for streaks? Community puzzles vary wildly in difficulty and would distort the standings. Official puzzles are curated and edited to a consistent quality bar, so they are the fair basis for comparison.
How does the leaderboard rank players? A composite of wins, streak, and efficiency, computed only over official games. Guests appear under their chosen nickname; signed-in players appear under their account nickname.
Can I see my stats without an account? Yes. Guest stats are stored in your own browser. Signing in moves those stats to the cloud so they follow you across devices.
Badges
What are badges? Permanent achievements awarded for meaningful milestones — your first five games, your hundredth win, hundred-game streaks, top-50 leaderboard placement, top-3, number one, and a handful of rarer ones.
Can I lose a badge? No. Once earned, badges are permanent and appear on your profile and your shared results.
Are badges retroactive? Yes. If you reach a threshold today that you also met yesterday, the badge is awarded based on your full history.
Creating Puzzles
Can I make my own puzzles? Yes. Sign up for a free account, open My Games, and start drafting. You write the answer, then add between two and eight clues ordered from broad to specific.
How is my puzzle moderated? Submitted puzzles are reviewed against 16+ content rules before they appear publicly in the community library. Puzzles that violate the rules are removed without notice.
Privacy and Accounts
What data does CluedIn collect? For guests, a local browser identifier and your gameplay stats stored in your own browser. For signed-in players, additionally an email address, chosen nickname, and the same stats stored in our database for sync.
Do you sell personal data? No. The full privacy policy covers what we collect and how to remove it.
How do I delete my data? Guests can use the Start Fresh feature to clear local stats. Signed-in users can request account deletion through support.