Privacy & terms

01

Privacy

Underwordle is run by an independent developer in Finland, who is responsible for the personal data described here. You can reach us at support@underwordle.com.

What we collect

Guest play

Your progress and settings are saved only in your browser. Nothing is sent to us unless you switch on anonymous game statistics.

Your account

Your email address, an account ID, whether the address is verified, and when the account was created and last signed in. Every account starts as “Wayfarer”. You can choose a display name of up to 20 characters, shown only to you above your fighter; change it whenever you like, and don't use your real name if you'd rather not. If you sign in with Google, we receive only your email address and Google account ID. We don't keep Google's sign-in tokens, your name or your photo.

Your game

When you're signed in: your saved runs (including your guesses), settings, banked rewards and the results of finished runs. If you sign in after playing as a guest, that run moves to your account.

Game statistics, only if you switch them on

If you choose Share stats (or switch on Share anonymous stats in Settings), each finished run sends us a short summary: the language and game version, how the run ended, how far you got, your guesses and words solved, which supplies and relics you used, how many guesses each word took and which words they were, and roughly how many minutes you played. It contains no account, name, email, address, device details, run ID or time of day, and we don't keep your IP address with it. We keep summaries apart from accounts and never combine them, so we don't know whose run a summary is, or which summaries come from the same player. Statistics are off until you switch them on, and you can switch them off in Settings at any time; nothing is sent after that.

Security

Cloudflare, our host, receives the technical details of each request, such as your IP address, to deliver the game and protect it from attacks. We don't store IP addresses. To stop abuse, we keep short-lived counters based on one-way codes made from a network or address, an email address or an account, never the values themselves. They are deleted within a day.

Why we use it

We use account data only to run your account: restoring your progress, showing your statistics and crediting each reward once. This is necessary to provide the account you ask for. Security counters are kept in our legitimate interest in protecting the game. Game statistics are sent only with your consent, which you give and withdraw in the game, and we use them only to balance the game: how far runs get and how hard words and fights are in each language. We don't use your data for advertising or profiling, and nothing in the game makes decisions about you with legal or similar effects.

Who handles it

Cloudflare

Hosts the game, stores account data and game statistics in a database kept in the European Union, and sends sign-in emails. Cloudflare handles this data for us under its Data Processing Addendum. Pages may be served from the data centre nearest to you, which can be outside the EU; for such transfers Cloudflare relies on the EU–U.S. Data Privacy Framework and the European Commission's Standard Contractual Clauses.

Google

Only if you choose to sign in with Google, under Google's own privacy policy. Email sign-in doesn't involve Google.

We don't sell your data or share it with anyone else.

How long we keep it

Sign-in codes

Five minutes, and each works only once.

Sessions

Seven days, or until you sign out.

Account and game data

Until you delete your account, or automatically after 24 months without a sign-in or a saved game.

Game statistics

25 months, then deleted automatically.

Security counters

Up to one day.

Backups

The database keeps a recovery history for up to 30 days, so a deleted account leaves it within 30 days.

Children

Underwordle is for everyone. Guest play needs no personal information at all. Game statistics stay off unless switched on, and contain nothing that identifies a player.

02

Cookies & storage

We use only what the game needs to work, plus the anonymous statistics you can choose to switch on in the game. There are no advertising or analytics cookies, so there's no cookie banner: the game asks about statistics itself.

Sign-in cookie

__Secure-underwordle.session_token keeps you signed in. Page scripts can't read it, and it's sent only over HTTPS to this site. It expires after seven days or when you sign out.

Google sign-in cookie

__Secure-underwordle.state exists only while a Google sign-in is in progress, to protect it from forgery. It expires after five minutes.

Saves

Your progress, settings and offline copies of your account's saves are kept in your browser's local storage under names starting wordward., the game's earlier name, so older saves keep working. They hold no sign-in codes or session tokens. If a save can't be read after an update, one copy is kept with .unreadable added to its name instead of being deleted. Signing out or deleting your account removes the account copies from this browser.

Statistics choice

wordward.stats.v1 remembers whether you share anonymous game statistics. While they're on, wordward.stats.run.v1 keeps the current run's tally until the run ends, so a reload doesn't lose it. Nothing is stored for statistics until you switch them on.

Playtests

wordward-local-playtests, wordward.playtest.… and wordward.trial.…, only if you use the playtest launcher.

03

Your rights

1. Download your data: Account → Download my data. You get your account details, saves and results; sign-in secrets are left out.
2. Delete your account: Account → Data and privacy → Delete my account, then confirm with the code we email you. Your account, saves and results are removed from the game and from this browser.
3. Clear guest data: use your browser's settings to clear this site's data.
4. Game statistics: switch Share anonymous stats off in Settings to stop sending them. Summaries already sent carry nothing that tells us whose they are, so we can't find or delete one person's; they're deleted after 25 months.

You can also ask us to access, correct, delete, restrict or transfer your data, or object to how we use it. Email support@underwordle.com; we reply within one month. If you're unhappy with our answer, you can complain to a data protection authority, such as Finland's Data Protection Ombudsman.

04

Playtests

Playtests are optional and separate from the normal game. A session started from the playtest launcher records your participant code, language, game actions, timing and any ratings or comments you give. Recordings stay on your device; nothing is uploaded, and you decide whether to export and share a file.

A participant code doesn't guarantee anonymity, so don't put names or other personal details in codes or comments.

05

Terms

Free to play

Underwordle is free, and guest play is always available. Accounts are free and optional.

No purchases

Gold, items and other rewards are part of the game. They have no money value and can't be bought, sold or exchanged. If paid features are ever added, this page will be updated before they appear.

Early release

Rules, balance, words and features may change. Progress can be lost through bugs or cleared browser data, and we can't promise the game will always be available.

Fair use

Use only an email address that's yours. Don't try to access other players' accounts or disrupt the game.

Independence

Underwordle is an independent game, not affiliated with or endorsed by The New York Times or Wordle.

Nothing in these terms limits rights you have under consumer law.

06

Credits

Underwordle's word lists are adapted from these sources and keep their own licences. Our changes are recorded in each notice; older notices use the game's former name, Wordward. No endorsement by the authors is implied.

Word-data source downloads

The source inputs, licence notices, selection records and build tools are available below. To rebuild all ten published answer pools, extract the shared tools and all nine language archives into the same empty folder, then follow the build instructions. English data and tools are in the shared archive. The archives preserve their original notices; these word-data licences do not relicense unrelated game code or artwork.

Source and archive SHA-256 manifest. Additional sources for languages in preparation are retained in development; those language packs are not distributed as part of the public game.

07

Contact

For questions, privacy requests or accessibility feedback, email support@underwordle.com. You don't need an account to write.

The game supports keyboard play, sound controls and reduced motion. It hasn't had a formal accessibility audit yet.

This page is in English. The game itself is available in ten languages.