Puzzle Cottage
How it works — same mechanic, no paywall
Our Connections puzzle follows the same rules as the New York Times version. You’re shown a grid of 16 words. Four of them belong together under a hidden category. Another four share a different theme. So do the next four, and the last four. Your job is to find all four groups in four tries.
What’s different from NYT is what happens after you solve it. NYT locks yesterday’s puzzle behind NYT Games+ unless you subscribe. Our archive stays open: every past daily puzzle is one click away, forever, at no cost.
Puzzle Cottage vs. NYT Connections
| Feature | Puzzle Cottage | NYT Connections |
|---|---|---|
| New puzzle daily | Yes | Yes |
| Sign-up required | No | Yes |
| Full archive access | Free forever | Subscription-only |
| Streak tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Other daily puzzles included | 9 more (Sudoku, Scramble, Connections…) | Crossword & Spelling Bee paywalled |
| Mobile app | Installable web app (PWA) | iOS & Android |
| Price | Free | $7.20/mo for full access |
Why people switch
The three reasons we hear most often from new players:
- The paywall hit. NYT offers a free daily Connections but locks old puzzles behind a $7.20/month subscription. For casual players, that’s a lot to pay to replay one puzzle you missed.
- They want more than one puzzle a day. The daily cadence is great, but sometimes you finish the NYT one at 8 AM and want another. We have 10 other daily puzzles — Sudoku, Word Scramble, Trivia, and more — all free.
- They like our streak system. Our streak counts every daily puzzle you complete across all 10 games, not just one. Play any game today, your streak ticks up one. Miss a day, it resets. It’s a stronger habit loop than tracking one game in isolation.
How we write the puzzles
Every Connections puzzle on Puzzle Cottage is written fresh. The word-grouping mechanic itself isn’t copyrightable (any more than “crossword” or “word search” is), but the specific puzzles absolutely are. We don’t copy NYT’s word sets. Our themes lean a bit wordier and a bit less cryptic than NYT — some players say it feels more approachable, others prefer NYT’s trickier editorial style. Play one of each and decide.
Is it legal to offer a free Connections alternative?
Yes. A puzzle mechanic (groups-of-four, 16 words, 4 mistakes, color-coded difficulty tiers) isn’t subject to copyright. What’s protected is the specific puzzle content — the actual words, categories, and editorial voice. Our puzzles are written from scratch. The same principle is why there are thousands of Wordle-style and Sudoku-style games without legal issues.
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Other daily puzzles you’ll like
If Connections is your favorite, there’s a good chance you’ll love these too: