Strands is released at midnight in your time zone. To accommodate players around the world, we publish two Strands Sidekicks each day, based on Eastern Standard Time. If you find yourself on the wrong Sidekick, check your puzzle’s number, and go to this page to find its corresponding Sidekick post.

Parade. Move over, Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword—there's a new NYT word game in town! The New York Times's recent game, "Strands," is becoming more and more popular as another daily activity fans can find on the NYT website and app.

Strands requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns.

By New York Times Games. Published July 7, 2025 Updated July 8, 2025, 2:18 p.m. ET. Hello, fellow word lovers. Welcome to Strands Sidekick. Our goal here is to help you solve each day’s puzzle.