What is a cryptogram?
A cryptogram is a short piece of text written in a simple secret code. Each letter of the alphabet has been swapped for a different letter, and the swap stays the same all the way through. If G stands for T once, it stands for T everywhere. Your job is to work out the swaps and read the hidden message.
The puzzles here are cryptoquotes: the hidden text is always a famous quote or proverb, and the name of the person who said it sits underneath. Newspapers have printed puzzles like this for over a hundred years, often next to the crossword, and they are still one of the most satisfying word puzzles to solve with a cup of coffee.
How to play this cryptogram game
- Pick a level or the daily quote. Easy uses short quotes, gives you two or three letters to start, and shows the author in plain text. Medium gives one letter and codes the author too. Hard uses longer quotes and gives you nothing.
- Tap a letter in the quote. Every tile with the same code letter lights up, so you can see the pattern.
- Type your guess. Use the keyboard on screen or the one on your computer. Your letter fills in every matching tile, and the game jumps to the next empty one.
- Fix and refine. Use Erase or Backspace to clear a letter and Undo to step back. If you use the same letter for two different code letters, both turn red until you sort it out.
- Decode everything. When the last letter is right, the quote turns over tile by tile and you see your time.
A worked example
Here is a small cryptogram to show how solving feels:
Q MZKW ZF XJP JQFW ZL VYKXJ XVY ZF XJP MCLJ
Step 1: the one-letter word. Q stands alone, so it is A or I. Try A.
Step 2: the repeated three-letter word. XJP appears twice. The most common three-letter word in English is THE, so try X = T, J = H and P = E.
Step 3: use what you have. JQFW now reads H A _ _. With the two-letter word ZF in the quote, HAND is a strong guess, which gives F = N and W = D. Then ZF reads _ N, and the only common fit is IN, so Z = I.
Step 4: keep reading. MZKW is now _ I _ D. XVY is T _ _. VYKXJ is _ _ _ T H. A bird in the hand? Try BIRD, TWO and WORTH: M = B, K = R, V = W and Y = O.
Step 5: finish. ZL is I _, so IS, and MCLJ becomes B _ S H, which is BUSH. The full proverb: A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
Notice that no step needed a lucky guess. Each new letter came from a pattern, and every letter you placed made the next word easier. That is the whole game.
Tips that solve most cryptograms
Short words first. One-letter words are A or I. Two-letter words are usually OF, TO, IN, IT, IS, BE, AS, AT, SO, WE, HE, BY, OR, ON, DO, IF, ME, MY or UP. Three-letter words are very often THE, AND, FOR, ARE, BUT, NOT, YOU or ALL.
Apostrophes are a gift. One letter after an apostrophe is S or T. Two letters after it are usually LL, RE, VE or the D of I’D.
Letter frequency. Turn on Count in the dock and each tile shows how often its code letter appears. The most frequent letters in English are E, T, A, O, I and N. In a quote of fifty letters or more, the top code letter is very likely E or T.
Patterns inside words. Double letters (LL, SS, EE, OO, TT) and common endings (-ING, -ED, -LY, -TION) jump out once you have a few letters. If the same three code letters end several words, they are often ING.
When you are stuck, check. Check marks wrong letters in red but does not give the answer, so you keep the fun of solving. If you are truly stuck, Hint fills in one letter for you.
Why people love cryptograms
Cryptograms train the same skills as a good logic puzzle: noticing patterns, testing an idea and dropping it when it does not fit. They also reward what you already know about English, from common words to how sentences usually sound. And every solved puzzle hands you a small reward: a quote worth reading, from Shakespeare’s plays to Benjamin Franklin’s almanac or one of Oscar Wilde’s one-liners.
The daily quote is the same for every player, so it makes a nice small habit: one puzzle with the morning coffee. Your progress is saved in the browser, so you can stop halfway and come back later.
More word games
If you like decoding, try Hangman, where you guess a hidden word one letter at a time, or Code Breaker, which asks you to crack a secret color code with clues. For a calmer word hunt, Word Search and Word Connect are a good next stop.
How to play Cryptogram
- The quote is written in a secret code. Every letter has been replaced by a different letter, and the same code letter always stands for the same real letter.
- Spaces and punctuation are not coded, so you can see where words start and end.
- Tap a letter in the quote and type the letter you think it stands for. Every tile with that code letter fills in at once.
- No letter ever stands for itself, and two code letters can never stand for the same real letter. If you use a letter twice, both are shown in red.
- Decode every letter to reveal the quote and its author. Easy shows the author in plain text; on Medium and Hard the author is coded too.
Cryptogram tips
Start with one-letter words
A coded word of one letter is almost always A or I. Try A first; I usually appears near the start of a sentence or before a verb.
Look for THE and AND
A three-letter word that shows up two or three times is very likely THE. The next most common three-letter word is AND. Once T, H and E are in, much of the quote opens up.
Use apostrophes
A single letter after an apostrophe is usually S or T (IT'S, DON'T). Two letters after it are often LL, RE or VE (YOU'LL, THEY'RE, I'VE).
Watch double letters
Pairs like LL, EE, SS, OO and TT are common in English. A coded word such as XYZZX narrows the choices a lot.
Count the letters
Turn on Count to see how often each code letter appears. In English the most frequent letters are E, T, A, O, I and N (often remembered as ETAOIN), so the most common code letter is a good guess for E or T.
Frequently asked questions
How do you solve a cryptogram?
Start with what English gives away for free. One-letter words are A or I, a repeated three-letter word is usually THE, and a letter after an apostrophe is usually S or T. Fill those in, then read the partly solved words and guess the missing letters from the pattern. Each new letter helps with the others.
What is the difference between a cryptogram and a cryptoquote?
A cryptogram is any short text written in a simple letter-swap code. A cryptoquote is a cryptogram where the hidden text is a famous quotation, often with the author's name coded too. Every puzzle here is a cryptoquote, so you can also call it a cryptoquote game.
What are the most common letters in English?
E is the most common, followed by T, A, O, I, N, S, H and R. In a short quote the order can shift a little, but the most frequent code letter is very often E or T.
What do Hint and Check do?
Hint fills in one letter everywhere it appears. Check marks any letters you have placed that are wrong, without telling you the right ones. Both count as a hint in your score.
Is there a new cryptogram every day?
Yes. Pick Daily quote on the start card for the puzzle of the day. Everyone gets the same quote and the same code, and it changes at midnight UTC. Unlimited mode gives you a fresh puzzle whenever you want one.
Where do the quotes come from?
They are well-known proverbs and quotes from writers and thinkers of the past, such as Shakespeare, Benjamin Franklin, Mark Twain, Oscar Wilde, Jane Austen and Confucius. Your progress is saved in your browser, so you can close the page and finish later.
