Browser extension
The browser extension integrates the assistant seamlessly with the Spelling Bee website and is available for Chrome and Edge.
Spelling Bee Assistant is a handy add-on for the New York Times’ beloved word puzzle, Spelling Bee. Packed with features , it’s designed to enhance your experience without taking away the joy of the game.
Track your progress, uncover what challenges lie ahead, and – if you choose – get a hint or two to keep your momentum going. And when the ideas run dry, you can reveal today’s answers on your schedule – no more waiting for tomorrow!
The Spelling Bee Assistant adds a new layer of fun to this already excellent game, all without spoiling the magic. Promise!
What’s new in Version 5?
- Keyboard shortcuts for almost everything – each one can be disabled individually if needed.
- The Menu got a full makeover: fewer entries, bigger buttons, better accessibility
- Dark Mode settings are now simpler and more visual – just pick a scheme in the new interface and see it instantly
- Milestones offer a clearer picture of your progress through the ranks
Installation
This add-on, currently in version 5.1.0, is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0.
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Bookmarklet
Alternatively, you can use a bookmarklet to launch the assistant. To set it up, simply drag the amber badge to your browser's bookmarks bar.
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Feature Overview
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The main panel
Here, you can track your progress and see how you’re doing at a glance.
Each tool in the panel gives you a clear breakdown of your current status:
- Words you’ve found
- Still to go
- Total count
- Overview: Tracks your overall progress, including both words and points.
- Letter count: Groups words by their length.
- First letter: Groups words by their first letter.
- First two letters: Groups words by their first two letters.
- Pangrams: Displays the number of pangrams.
Greyed-out lines indicate that you’ve already found all the words in that row.
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The Assistant menu
Show Assistant: Toggle the main panel on or off.
Spill the beans : Validates your answers as you type.
Grid : A matrix that groups words by their first letter and word length.
Dark Mode : Customize your experience with a configurable dark color scheme.
Milestones : A detailed breakdown of what you’ve accomplished so far.
Community : Connect with like-minded hiveminds.
Today’s Answers : Your last resort for when you’re truly stumped.
Tip Jar : A simple way to show your appreciation.
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The Progress Bar shows how far you’ve come based on your current score – from Beginner to Queen Bee.
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As you type, the Spill the beans emoji reacts instantly, showing whether you’re on the right track – or way off.
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The Grid screen combines the First letter and Letter count views into a compact matrix, showing what you've found and what’s still missing.
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Prefer a darker interface? You can choose from twelve distinct color schemes, each with its own mood – ideal for low-light settings or just a different vibe.
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Track your progress through the puzzle’s scoring tiers. See which ones you’ve reached and how close you are to the next milestone.
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Where the hive mind gathers. Find out if there’s a perfect pangram today and check out a few places where players connect.
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Most features – and even some puzzle actions – are just a keystroke away. Shortcuts can be individually disabled if they clash with your setup.
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When you’ve reached your limit, this screen reveals the full list of answers. Each word links to a search engine – a chance to learn, not just peek.
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The interface adapts to different screen sizes and works on many phones and tablets – as long as the system requirements are met.
System requirements
Spelling Bee Assistant works best with a modern web browser in a recent version. Below is a chart of Browser/OS combinations that have been tested and are known to work in typical setups.
| Browser | Windows | MacOS | Ubuntu | Android | iOS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blink ¹|² | ² | ? | |||
| WebKit ³|⁴ | n/a | ³ | ⁴ | n/a | ³ |
- Chrome, Edge, Brave, Vivaldi…
- Kiwi
- Safari
- Gnome Web
Follow the steps below to install Spelling Bee Assistant on your mobile device.
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Android: Use the extension with Kiwi
- Download Kiwi Browser from the Google Play Store.
- Open Kiwi and navigate to the Spelling Bee Assistant’s page on the Chrome Web Store.
- Tap Add to Chrome to install the extension.
- Review the notice that appears; if acceptable, confirm by tapping OK.
The extension will now enhance your gameplay whenever you visit the Spelling Bee game in Kiwi.
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iOS / iPadOS: Use a shortcut on Safari
Special thanks to Alex for contributing the iOS instructions and hosting the shortcut.
- Open the Settings app. Navigate to Shortcuts > Advanced and enable Allow Running Scripts to let shortcuts run scripts like those of Spelling Bee Assistant.
- Access the shortcut by opening this link. Tap Get Shortcut and then Add.
- To use the shortcut, open Spelling Bee in Safari and access the Share menu. Find and run SB Assistant.
- Upon first run, a security warning appears. If you agree, tap Allow.
To keep it handy, pin SB Assistant to the top of your share sheet by tapping Edit Actions… and selecting the green plus next to the SB Assistant action.
Doesn’t it spoil the game?
Not at all! Spelling Bee Assistant is crafted to stay subtle and unobtrusive. User feedback – and plenty of gameplay testing – shows this strikes the right balance. The challenge and fun of the game remain the same. The Assistant simply gives you a set of helpful tools for those moments when you’re stuck in a corner.
What is a bookmarklet?
Bookmarklets are clever little tools that work like bookmarks but include small pieces of code to enhance how a website functions. You’ll find them in your browser’s bookmarks menu, just like regular bookmarks.
I discovered a bug | I’d like to give feedback
You can report bugs or suggest features at GitHub. Please remember, this is a fun weekend project, and I aim to keep it light. While I address issues occasionally, I can’t make any promises.
Is the NYT behind this or are you affiliated with the NYT?
No, I have no affiliation with the New York Times. Spelling Bee Assistant is an independent project.
Your privacy
Neither the Spelling Bee Assistant application (browser extension and bookmarklet) nor this website uses any technology to collect personally identifiable information about you. The website and the bookmarklet are hosted on GitHub Pages. For details on what data GitHub Pages may collect, please refer to their privacy policy. I do not have access to any data collected by GitHub.
When installing the extension from a browser add-on store, you might see a notice such as "This extension can read and change your data on www.nytimes.com [...]". This is a standard warning required by the browser and simply reflects the permissions needed for the extension to function. The extension is strictly limited to interacting with the Spelling Bee game interface and does not access, modify, or transmit any personal information.
Most add-on stores provide basic installation statistics, such as aggregate download numbers by country. These statistics are anonymized and do not contain any personally identifiable information.
About Spelling Bee Assistant
Spelling Bee Assistant is a personal side project by Dieter Raber — born out of lockdown boredom and kept alive by curiosity and caffeine. Along the way, folks like Alex and Anna have made numerous helpful contributions, for which I’m truly grateful. Isn’t open source a beautiful thing?