Yes. Connections is free and does not ask you to register or hand over an email address before you can use it.

How long does Connections take?

Five to fifteen minutes of proper attention. We file it under "Coffee break" — sixteen words, four secret groups, four mistakes allowed.

Does Connections work on a phone?

Yes. Connections works on a phone as well as it does on a laptop.

Mind Benders

Connections

Sixteen words, four secret groups, four mistakes allowed

Visit nytimes.com More Mind Benders

nytimes.com

Coffee break · Works anywhere

Free, no sign-up · online since 2023

What Connections actually is

A grid of sixteen words hides four groups of four, and your job is to find the idea binding each set together. The trap is deliberate overlap: several words fit two categories at once, and the puzzle is built so that the tempting grouping is usually the wrong one.

Why it is worth your time

Difficulty comes from misdirection rather than vocabulary, so the moment a category finally clicks feels like catching the setter out.

Common questions

Is Connections free?: Yes. Connections is free and does not ask you to register or hand over an email address before you can use it.
How long does Connections take?: Five to fifteen minutes of proper attention. We file it under "Coffee break" — sixteen words, four secret groups, four mistakes allowed.
Does Connections work on a phone?: Yes. Connections works on a phone as well as it does on a laptop.
What kind of site is Connections?: We list it under Mind Benders — one more round, then bed. definitely. Difficulty comes from misdirection rather than vocabulary, so the moment a category finally clicks feels like catching the setter out.

Keep going

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Mind Benders

Connections

Sixteen words, four secret groups, four mistakes allowed

Visit nytimes.com More Mind Benders

nytimes.com

Coffee break · Works anywhere

Free, no sign-up · online since 2023

What Connections actually is

Why it is worth your time

Difficulty comes from misdirection rather than vocabulary, so the moment a category finally clicks feels like catching the setter out.

Common questions

Is Connections free?: Yes. Connections is free and does not ask you to register or hand over an email address before you can use it.
How long does Connections take?: Five to fifteen minutes of proper attention. We file it under "Coffee break" — sixteen words, four secret groups, four mistakes allowed.
Does Connections work on a phone?: Yes. Connections works on a phone as well as it does on a laptop.
What kind of site is Connections?: We list it under Mind Benders — one more round, then bed. definitely. Difficulty comes from misdirection rather than vocabulary, so the moment a category finally clicks feels like catching the setter out.