Hangman is one of the simplest word games ever made — guess letters one at a time, fill in the blanks before the figure is complete. It's been played on paper for over a century and works just as well in a browser.
You can play hangman online for free right now with no install or login required.
How the Game Works
A word is chosen at random from the selected category. Every letter in the word is shown as a blank. You have 6 wrong guesses before the hangman is complete.
Guess letters by clicking the on-screen keyboard or pressing keys on your physical keyboard. Each correct guess reveals the letter in the word. Each wrong guess adds one body part to the gallows — head, body, left arm, right arm, left leg, right leg.
- Guess all letters before the figure is complete: you win
- 6 wrong guesses: the figure is complete, the word is revealed, start again
Four Categories
The hangman game online has four categories, each at a different difficulty level:
General — everyday words: COMPASS, LANTERN, BLANKET, RAINBOW. Good starting point for most players.
Animals — FLAMINGO, PORCUPINE, MONGOOSE, CROCODILE. Long animal names are hard when you miss the first few letters.
Countries — BRAZIL, NORWAY, VIETNAM, PORTUGAL. Geography knowledge matters here more than letter frequency.
Tech — ALGORITHM, RECURSION, TYPESCRIPT, DEBUGGING. Developer vocabulary. Easier if you're in that world.
Click a category tab to switch immediately — a new word starts from that category.
Controls
- Desktop: Click a letter on the on-screen keyboard or press any letter key on your physical keyboard
- Mobile: Tap a letter on the on-screen QWERTY grid
Correctly guessed letters turn green. Wrong guesses turn gray and dim. You can't accidentally guess the same letter twice.
Strategy: What to Guess First
Start with the most common English letters: E, T, A, O, I, N. Most English words contain at least one of these, so you're likely to reveal something early.
Category-specific tips:
- Countries: A and I are almost always present. Avoid Q, X, Z in the first few guesses.
- Tech: T, I, O, N are common. Many tech words end in -TION, -ER, -ING, -ION.
- Animals: Double letters are common (RACCOON, FLAMINGO). If you reveal one, guess it again.
Why 6 Wrong Guesses?
The six-guess limit comes from the classic pen-and-paper version — six body parts to draw: head, body, two arms, two legs. It gives enough chances to work through a word without making it too easy. A short 5-letter word is manageable; a 9-letter word with uncommon letters is a real challenge.
Play Without Friction
The hangman free online loads instantly. No tutorial, no splash screen, no ads interrupting gameplay. Select a category, start guessing. It works on desktop, tablet, and phone. Part of Ultimate Tools, a free collection of browser-based games and utilities.
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