Comparison

NYT Games vs Plotquist

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

NYT Games

Engage your mind with a variety of daily word, logic, and number puzzles. Solve popular games like Wordle and the Crossword, or explore new challenges. Track your progress and compete with friends.

Highlights
  • Daily Wordle, Crossword, and Midi Crossword
  • Spelling Bee and Connections word games
  • Sudoku and Strands puzzles
  • Pips and Tiles logic games
  • Progress tracking and stats
  • Leaderboards and friend challenges
  • Puzzle archive for subscribers
Read full description

New York Times Games is the essential app for anyone who loves word, logic and number games. Guess the Wordle, solve the Crossword or build words in Spelling Bee. Free to download, the app offers new puzzles daily for every skill level. App Features and Games: NEW: THE MIDI CROSSWORD - Crush this clever midsize word puzzle. - Just-right size between the Mini and the Crossword. - Enjoy approachable clues, special puzzles and a path to daily wins. THE CROSSWORD - The classic daily New York Times puzzle you love. - Crack clues and fill the grid with answers. - Crosswords increase in difficulty throughout the week. WORDLE - The official Wordle, a word-guessing game. - Can you guess the 5-letter word in 6 tries or less? - Analyze your guesses and improve your skills with Wordle Bot. CONNECTIONS - Group words that share a common thread. - Organize 16 terms into four categories using word associations and strategy in this brain teaser - Analyze your guesses and see how you stack up with Connections Bot. SPELLING BEE - Is spelling your strong suit? - See how many words you can create with 7 letters. - Build more words to earn more points. SUDOKU - Looking for a numbers game, minus the math? - Fill each 3x3 set of boxes with numbers 1 to 9. - Play a new puzzle every day in easy, medium or hard mode. STRANDS - Try this classic word search, with a twist. - Find hidden words and uncover the day’s theme. - How many words can you find? THE MINI CROSSWORD - All the fun of the Crossword, but you can solve it in seconds. - A spin on our original word game, with simpler clues. - Puzzles don’t increase in difficulty throughout the week. PIPS - Find the right spot for each domino. - Leverage logic and arrange dominoes in this brain teaser. - Play three puzzles daily: Easy, medium and hard. TILES - Unwind with a pattern-matching game. - The key is to match elements consecutively. - Can you keep your chain going? LETTER BOXED - Build words using letters around the square. - Test your word-making skills with daily puzzles. - Connect characters and see how many words you can create. BADGES - Earn badges for Spelling Bee, Wordle and Connections. - Celebrate your streaks and wins. STATS - Looking for your longest solving streak? - Wondering how many puzzles you’ve solved? - Track your progress with stats for the Crossword, Spelling Bee, Wordle, Connections and Strands. - Plus, monitor your average solve times. LEADERBOARD - Add friends and follow daily scores across Wordle, Connections, Spelling Bee and the Mini. - Plus, explore your score history to see how your word game scores stack up over time. PUZZLE ARCHIVE - Subscribers can solve over 10,000 past puzzles from New York Times Games. - Explore puzzle archives for Wordle, Connections, Strands, Spelling Bee, the Crossword and the Mini. HINTS - Find tips and strategize with fellow solvers in the forums. Just tap the light bulb while playing. - Available for Wordle, Connections, Spelling Bee and Strands. BY DOWNLOADING THE NEW YORK TIMES GAMES APP, you agree to: • The New York Times Privacy Policy: https://www.nytimes.com/privacy/privacy-policy • The New York Times Cookie Policy: https://www.nytimes.com/privacy/cookie-policy • The New York Times California Privacy Notices: https://www.nytimes.com/privacy/california-notice • The New York Times Terms of Service: https://www.nytimes.com/content/help/rights/terms/terms-of-service.html • Apple Terms of Sale: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/us/terms.html

About

Plotquist

Features
Read full description

Plotquist is the word game where you and your friends write a story together -- one phrase at a time. Vote on a topic. Take your turn. Add your phrase. Watch something hilarious, surprising, or completely unhinged come to life. Invite your friends and write together in real time. If you need to fill a spot, AI players jump in to keep the story going so you're never stuck waiting alone. Every game is different. Every story is shareable. The best ones will have your whole group screaming. Write a Little Story in minutes or go all in with a Big Story.

Screenshots

NYT Games4 screens
Plotquist4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Plotquist at none against NYT Games's 10. Plotquist also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (16.4 vs 18.0). NYT Games's advantage is chart position (#1 vs unranked). On price, update cadence and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. NYT Games sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Plotquist asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

NYT Games ships an update weekly, Plotquist every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
NYT Games versus Plotquist: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNYT GamesPlotquist
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (299K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews31.7% of reviews—
Number of ratings299K — better—
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
Best chart rank#1 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS18.016.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size149 MB49 MB
Age rating12+17+
DeveloperThe New York Times CompanyPocket Basement LLC

Bugs and requests

NYT Games

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Crossword progress not syncing
  • Puzzles not loading properly
  • Streak resets unexpectedly
  • Keyboard disappearing
  • Inconsistent behavior across devices

Requested features

6 requests
  • Leaderboards for all games
  • Access to full Spelling Bee archive
  • Dark mode
  • Better navigation and cursor controls
  • Remote collaboration for crosswords
Show 1 more
  • More detailed stats and achievements

Plotquist

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

8 purchases

NYT Games

Subscriptions6
  • Games - Monthly$4.991 Month
  • Games - Monthly7 Days trial3 variants$5.991 Month
  • Games - Monthly$5.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • Games - Monthly1 Month trial$5.991 Month
  • New York Times Crossword Subscription$6.991 Month
  • New York Times Crossword Subscription$39.991 Year
One-time2
  • Free Starter PackFree
  • Introducing the MidiFree
None

Plotquist

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is NYT Games free?
NYT Games is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Plotquist free?
Plotquist is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do NYT Games or Plotquist have ads?
NYT Games shows ads; Plotquist does not.
Which is updated more often, NYT Games or Plotquist?
NYT Games ships an update weekly, and Plotquist every 2 weeks. Most recently, NYT Games was updated on November 3, 2026 and Plotquist on October 25, 2026.

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