Word search maker
Make your own word search on any topic, in about a minute. Give it a title and between 10 and 30 words, and you get a puzzle that plays in the browser, prints as a free PDF with its solution, and has its own link you can send to anyone.
Your recent puzzles
Made in this browser. They live here only, so keep the secret edit links if you clear your history.
How do I make my own word search?
Type a title, then type your words into the boxes above, one word per box, between 10 and 30 of them. Press Create and the grid is built instantly. You get a puzzle that plays in the browser, a printable PDF, a separate solution sheet and a permanent link, in about a minute. The rules the builder follows:
- Between 10 and 30 words. Fewer than 10 makes a puzzle that is not worth sharing.
- Words can be 3 to 14 letters long.
- Letters only. Spaces and dashes are allowed but are removed from the grid, so NEW YORK hides as NEWYORK.
- Accents come off the grid the way word searches work, but the letter N with a tilde stays: ARANA hides with its own letter.
- Stick to one theme. A puzzle about one topic is far more fun to solve than a random list.
- Your words hide across, down and diagonally, forwards and backwards. The grid grows with your list.
What happens when I press Create?
We build the grid, render a printable PDF and a separate solution sheet, and give your puzzle its own permanent link. Nothing is published to our galleries and search engines are asked not to index it: it is yours to share, not ours to promote.
Frequently asked questions
Is the word search maker free, and do I need an account?
The maker is free and there is no account, no email and no sign-up. You type your words, you press Create, and the puzzle is yours. Nothing is charged and nothing is held back behind a login. The puzzle you build belongs to you, not to us.
How big will my grid be?
The grid sizes itself to your list. It starts at 12x12 and grows as you add words: past 14 words it is at least 14x14, past 20 words at least 16x16, and past 26 words at least 17x17. A very long word will also push the grid out, since it has to fit.
Can I edit my word search after I create it?
Yes. Every puzzle you create comes with a secret edit link. Open it and you can change the title, the description and the word list, and the grid, the PDF and the solution sheet are all rebuilt. Keep that link: it is the only key, and we cannot recover it for you.
Can I make a word search in Spanish?
Yes. Switch the site to Spanish and build it there. Accents come off the grid the way they do in any word search, so JIRAFA and CAFE hide without their tildes, but the letter N with a tilde is kept as its own letter: ARANA hides with it intact.
Can I print the word search I make, and is there an answer key?
Yes to both. Every puzzle you create renders a printable PDF and a separate solution PDF, both free, both downloadable straight after you press Create and from the puzzle page afterwards. The answer key is a second file on purpose, so you can hand out clean copies and keep the answers.