High-Scoring Words With Friends Words You Can Actually Play

Words With Friends looks like Scrabble with a fresh coat of paint, but its tile values are different enough that the best words are not always the same. L, N and U are worth 2 points instead of 1, B, C, M and P are worth 4, and J jumps to 10. This guide collects the high-scoring words that come up in real games: short words you can squeeze into tight spots, everyday words that score far more than they look, and a few long ones worth recognising when the tiles fall your way.

Every score below is the plain tile value in Words With Friends, before premium squares, and every word is in the ENABLE word list that the game's dictionary grew from. Zynga edits its own list, so a handful of rare words may be treated differently in the app; the everyday words here are safe.

The tile values that matter

So in Words With Friends, many "ordinary" consonants are worth more than in Scrabble. HELLO scores 9 instead of 8, PLAYING 16 instead of 13 and JUMBO 21 instead of 16. If you are coming from Scrabble, expect your B, C, M, P, L, N and U tiles to pull more weight than you are used to.

Two-letter words for big tiles

Two-letter words are how high-value tiles get onto crowded boards. You play the J or X on a premium square and let a short word do the work, often scoring in two directions at once.

Note what is missing. QI and ZA, the two best friends of Scrabble players, are not in the ENABLE list, and ZO and JA are Collins-only words. Do not count on them in Words With Friends.

Three-letter words

ZAX (a tool for cutting roofing slates) is the one to memorise. Placing it so the X lands on a triple-letter square while the word also forms a second word through the X is one of the biggest short plays in the game.

The V deserves a special mention because it is worth 5 in WWF but has no two-letter word at all. Short V words such as VEX, VOW, VIA, REV, LUV, GUV and IVY are your escape routes when a V is stuck on your rack.

Four-letter words that punch above their weight

Four letters is the sweet spot: short enough to fit almost anywhere, long enough to carry a 10-point tile and a 4-point tile together.

• QUIZ: 23 points, and the shortest common way to play Q and Z in one go
• JINX: 21 points; J and X together
• JACK, JUMP: 20 points each
• JAMB, JUNK: 19 points
• HAZY, JERK, JOKE, QUIP, ZINC: 17 points
• FAZE, FLUX, FOXY: 16 points

These are ordinary words you will spot naturally once you start looking for them. When you hold a J, scan for an A, U or O and one of B, C, K, M or P. Most of the list above follows that pattern.

Longer words worth knowing

You will not see these every game, but when the tiles line up, recognise them:

Using all seven tiles adds a 35-point bonus in Words With Friends, so JACKPOT or QUICKLY played as a seven-tile move is worth more than 60 points before any premium squares.

Where Scrabble instincts mislead you

Because WWF values H and Y at 3 instead of 4, some words that look juicy to Scrabble players are slightly worse here. ZEPHYR scores 23 in Scrabble but 22 in Words With Friends. Meanwhile, words heavy in B, C, M, P, L, N or U gain ground: JUMBO is 16 in Scrabble and 21 in WWF, and JUMP rises from 15 to 20.

The practical lesson: in WWF, do not dump your 4-point consonants for small plays. A single C or M is worth as much as an H or Y in Scrabble, so treat them with the same respect.

Getting the most out of premium squares

High-value words only reach their potential on premium squares. A few habits help:

1. Put the expensive tile on the letter premium. A Z on a triple-letter square is worth 30 by itself.
2. Score in two directions. Lay a short word alongside an existing one so that every tile forms a second two-letter word. Lists like JO, XU and OX make this possible.
3. Watch what you open up. A great play that leaves a triple-word square open for your opponent can cost you more than it earns.
4. Keep a J or X for a good spot, but not forever. Late in the game, an unplayed 10-pointer counts against you.

Find your best play

When you are stuck, our Words With Friends word finder scores every option from your rack using WWF tile values, and the word checker tells you whether a word is accepted before you risk it. For a deeper look at how the two games differ, read our Scrabble vs Words With Friends comparison, and for the full set of Q options, see Q without U.