How much did Wordle sell for?

Wordle was acquired by The New York Times for a price reported to be in the low seven figures (approximately $1,000,000 - $3,000,000).

Wordle was created by software engineer Josh Wardle and initially launched in October 2021 as a small passion project for his partner Palak Shah. The game quickly went viral after Wardle added the ability for players to share their results in December 2021.

Here's an overview of Wordle and its rise to fame:

• Wordle is a daily online word game where players have six tries to guess a five-letter word.
• After each guess, the letters change color to indicate how close the guess was to the word.
• The game went viral on social media as people began sharing their results using emoji grids.
• Wordle amassed millions of daily players within months of its public launch in October.
• Wardle created the game for his partner Shah, who helped him refine the word list.
• Wardle said the game's growth became overwhelming for him as a solo developer.
• In January 2022, the New York Times announced its acquisition of Wordle for over low seven figures.

The New York Times stated that Wordle will initially remain free for new and existing players. However, it leaves open the possibility of eventually putting the game behind a paywall.

Why did the New York Times acquire Wordle?

• Games and puzzles are an important part of the Times' business model. They help drive digital subscriptions.
• The Times has over 1 million subscriptions to its Games app.
• Wordle brings a huge new audience that the Times can try to convert into subscribers.
• The Times can cross-promote its other games like Spelling Bee to Wordle's audience.
• Acquiring popular digital content aligns with the Times' growth strategy.

It remains to be seen how long Wordle will stay free under its new ownership. But for now, fans of the viral word game can keep enjoying it daily on the New York Times website.

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