Daily Puzzles vs Practice Mode: What's the Difference?

• Sarah Chen
getting-started tips

New to Letter Star? Understanding the difference between Daily Puzzles and Practice Mode is crucial for managing your stats and leaderboard position.

Daily Puzzles

Daily puzzles are the “official” games that everyone plays simultaneously:

Key Features:

  • One new puzzle each day at midnight UTC
  • Same puzzle for all players worldwide
  • Counts toward your streak
  • Appears on daily leaderboards
  • Affects your all-time statistics

Strategy Note: Most serious players treat the daily puzzle as the most important game of the day. Take your time and play when you’re most alert.

Practice Mode

Practice mode lets you play unlimited games with random words:

Key Features:

  • Unlimited plays anytime
  • Different word for each game
  • Counts toward total games played
  • Affects win rate and average attempts
  • Does NOT affect your streak
  • Great for testing strategies

Common Use Cases:

  1. Warming up before the daily puzzle
  2. Testing new starting words
  3. Improving vocabulary and pattern recognition
  4. Recovering mentally after a tough loss

Impact on Rankings

Both modes affect your leaderboard position, but differently:

All-Time Leaderboard

  • Includes both daily and practice games
  • Ranked by win rate, then average attempts
  • More total games = more established ranking

Daily Leaderboard

  • ONLY daily puzzles count
  • Ranked by speed (lowest attempts, then fastest time)
  • Resets each day

Streak Leaderboard

  • ONLY daily puzzles count
  • One missed daily = streak resets to 0
  • Practice games don’t help or hurt streaks

Pro Tips

For Leaderboard Climbers:

  • Play practice mode to improve skills
  • Save your daily puzzle for when you’re at your best
  • Don’t risk your streak by playing the daily puzzle when tired

For Casual Players:

  • Practice mode is perfect for stress-free play
  • You can still climb the all-time leaderboard with practice games
  • Mix of both modes gives best overall experience

Statistics Breakdown

Your profile shows separate stats for:

  • Total games: Daily + Practice combined
  • Win rate: (Wins / Total games) × 100
  • Current streak: Consecutive daily wins only
  • Max streak: Longest streak ever achieved

Understanding these distinctions helps you choose the right mode for your goals. Whether you’re chasing the top spot or just enjoying the game, both modes have their place in your Letter Star journey!