What Nerdle does

Nerdle (legal entity Tensa Ventures Ltd; IP held by Nerdlegame Ltd) is a UK-based, family-run operator of a portfolio of 20+ free daily math and number puzzle games known collectively as the nerdleverse. The flagship product, Classic Nerdle, is a Wordle-style game in which players guess a hidden 8-character mathematical equation in six attempts using color-coded positional feedback; the company has since extended this to size variants (Micro/Mini/Midi/Maxi), multi-grid simultaneous puzzles (Bi/Quad/Octo), timed and logic modes (Speed, Instant), crossword and Sudoku-style puzzles (Cross Nerdle, Maffdoku, Sudoku, Corner Sudoku, Calc Sudoku), number games (Targets, Decoy, Connect, Nanagrams), word and head-to-head games (NerdDuel, Nerdle Cup, WordDuel, Twords, WordGPT), and an arcade category (Fruit Nerdle, Adder, DigitDrop).

Underlying technology is a web-first platform built with HTML/CSS/JavaScript and served from nerdlegame.com, with native iOS and Android apps that wrap the web experience and provide cloud-backed stats for registered users; a beta Discord bot extends gameplay into community servers. Notable technical components include a curated dictionary of 17,723 valid equation combinations (sufficient for daily puzzles through 2070), a color-coded feedback engine with toggleable strict positional matching, a multi-grid simultaneous solver architecture, a Maffdoku engine combining arithmetic constraints with process-of-elimination logic, and a Math Mosaic Creator that uses two-pass rendering with HSL color-space matching and adjustable grid densities (50–200 columns) at 200 DPI print output.

The business model is ad-supported freemium with optional merchandise: the entire game catalog is free to play in browser or via the mobile apps with no signup required, and revenue is generated through personalized advertising served by Google and third-party ad networks, plus direct-to-consumer merchandise (t-shirts, hoodies, and custom mosaic prints via merch.nerdlegame.com on Stripe) and puzzle books on Amazon (UK and US). Customer segments are horizontal: general consumers and puzzle enthusiasts for daily play, math teachers and K-12 students for classroom warm-up use, and merchandise purchasers; the company explicitly maintains an ad-free classroom tier and a Positive Numbers charitable partnership with Save The Children's Numeracy Boost programme.

Name

Nerdle

Legal name

Tensa Ventures Ltd

Website

https://nerdlegame.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Nerdle operates a portfolio of 20+ free, browser-first daily math and number puzzle games built around the Wordle-style equation game, serving general consumers, K-12 teachers and students, and merchandise buyers globally, and monetizing through programmatic advertising, Stripe-powered apparel, and Amazon-distributed puzzle books.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Daily Puzzle Games

NAICS

Software Publishers (5132), Hobby, Toy, and Game Retailers (45912), Book Retailers and News Dealers (4592)

SIC

Games, Toys & Children's Vehicles (No Dolls & Bicycles) (3944), Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)

akta.pro primary industry

Math Games, Puzzles & Recreational Math Programs (EDAMAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Puzzle Books & Brain Teasers Retail (CRALALAL)

Keywords

• Daily math puzzles
• Number puzzle games
• Wordle-style games
• Browser puzzle games
• Math education games

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Operations

Revenue model

1. Personalized Advertising: The primary monetization of the free game is through personalized advertising served via Google and other ad networks. Third-party advertising companies use cookies, unique device identifiers, and hashed email addresses to target ads based on user visits to nerdle websites and other sites in their networks.
2. Merchandise Sales: Print-on-demand merchandise including t-shirts and hoodies sold through merch.nerdlegame.com. Products feature mathematical designs including the official nerdle logo, 'Mathemagician', 'Superpower' fan-favorite designs, and custom mathematical mosaics. Regional pricing for US ($24.99+), UK (£19.99 inc VAT), Europe (€24.99 inc VAT), and Rest of World ($24.99+ duties). Checkout powered by Stripe.
3. Puzzle Book Sales: Physical puzzle books sold on Amazon in UK and US markets, including the official Nerdle puzzle book, Cross Nerdle puzzle book, and Maffdoku puzzle book. Also includes a 2026 puzzle book edition.
4. Math Mosaic T-Shirt Ordering: Custom mosaic designs can be ordered as printed t-shirts or hoodies through the mosaic creator tool, creating a cross between digital product (mosaic generation) and physical goods fulfillment.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Nerdle operates a portfolio of 20+ free daily math and number puzzle games centered on Classic Nerdle, an 8-character equation guessing game inspired by Wordle. The games are delivered through a web platform (nerdlegame.com), native iOS/Android apps, and a Discord bot, with optional account creation for cloud-backed stats. Revenue is generated through personalized advertising on the free games and direct sales of print-on-demand merchandise (t-shirts, hoodies, custom Math Mosaics) plus physical puzzle books on Amazon.

Product overview

Nerdle is a portfolio of 20+ free daily math and number puzzle games centered around the original Classic Nerdle (8-character equation guessing game inspired by Wordle, launched January 2022). The portfolio includes: size variants (Micro 5-char, Mini 6-char, Midi 7-char, Maxi 10-char); multi-grid modes (Bi, Quad, Octo for 2/4/8 simultaneous puzzles); timed modes (Speed, Instant); crossword-style puzzles (Cross Nerdle); Sudoku variants (Maffdoku, Sudoku, Corner Sudoku, Calc Sudoku); number games (Targets, Decoy, Connect, Nanagrams, Guess What); word games (Twords, WordGPT, Shuffle, WordDuel); arcade games (Fruit Nerdle, Adder, DigitDrop); multiplayer (NerdDuel, Nerdle Cup, Discord Bot); and utilities (Replay, Answers Archive). Supporting offerings include free web games, iOS/Android mobile apps, merchandise (puzzle books, t-shirts, hoodies, custom Math Mosaic Creator), and educational resources. The company also runs the Positive Numbers charitable initiative. The platform operates through Tensa Ventures Ltd (UK).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• nerdleverse: The umbrella brand for all nerdle games and related math puzzle games including classic nerdle, mini, maxi, crossnerdle, targets, maffdoku, and more.

Products and services

• Classic Nerdle The original flagship daily math puzzle game where players guess a hidden 8-character equation in 6 tries using green/purple/black color-coded tile feedback. Inspired by Wordle but using digits 0-9 and operators (+, -, *, /) with standard order of operations (PEMDAS/BODMAS/BIDMAS). Free to play in any browser with no signup required.
• Mini Nerdle A gentler 6-character version of the daily math equation guessing game, designed as a quicker coffee-break experience for players who want a shorter puzzle.
• Micro Nerdle The easiest 5-character entry-point variant of the daily math equation guessing game, intended for new players and casual fans.
• Maxi Nerdle The hardest 10-character variant of the daily math guessing game, featuring brackets and exponents in addition to digits and basic operators.
• Speed Nerdle The timed version of Classic Nerdle with time penalties, where players race against the clock to solve the daily equation.
• Bi Nerdle A dual-grid math puzzle where players solve two Nerdle equations simultaneously using shared guesses, analogous to Dordle.
• Quad Nerdle A four-grid simultaneous math puzzle analogous to Quordle, where players solve four equations at once using the same set of guesses.
• Octo Nerdle An eight-grid simultaneous math puzzle analogous to Octordle, where players solve eight equations using one shared set of guesses.
• Cross Nerdle A crossword-style math puzzle in which every row and column of the grid must be a valid equation. Available in daily and unlimited practice modes.
• Maffdoku A 3x3 math sudoku variant in which outer-ring clues represent the sum (Σ) or product (Π) of each row and column. Uses process-of-elimination plus arithmetic constraints to generate solvable puzzles, with three difficulty levels.
• Nerdle Sudoku (Classic, Corner Sudoku, Calc Sudoku) Classic 9x9 Sudoku plus two variants: Corner Sudoku (where each box's four corner cells must add to a revealed total) and Calc Sudoku (a 6x6 calcudoku grid with target-and-operator cages). Three difficulty levels.
• NerdDuel A real-time head-to-head two-player duel where opponents race to solve the same math equation against a human or bot opponent.
• Nerdle Cup A knockout-style multiplayer tournament competition for players who want to compete head-to-head across multiple Nerdle rounds.
• Nerdle Mobile App Native iOS and Android mobile applications providing full access to the nerdleverse portfolio of 20+ math and number puzzle games, with optional account creation for cloud-backed stats.
• Nerdle Discord Bot A Discord bot (in beta) that brings the classic Nerdle daily math puzzle game into Discord servers, with /nerdle, /stats, /leaderboard, and /create commands, color-coded emoji feedback, and cross-server progress tracking.
• Math Mosaic Creator An online tool that transforms uploaded photos into mathematical mosaics composed of numbers and math symbols, using a two-pass HSL rendering pipeline that supports full-color preservation, 50-200 column grid densities, automatic transparency detection, and 200 DPI print-ready output.
• Nerdle Puzzle Books Official physical puzzle books published and sold on Amazon UK and Amazon USA, including the Classic Nerdle puzzle book, the Cross Nerdle puzzle book, the Maffdoku puzzle book, and a 2026 edition.
• Nerdle Merchandise Store Official direct-to-consumer merchandise storefront at merch.nerdlegame.com selling Nerdle-branded t-shirts, hoodies, and custom Math Mosaic prints via print-on-demand fulfillment. Stripe-powered checkout with regional pricing (US $24.99+, UK £19.99 inc. VAT, Europe €24.99 inc. VAT, Rest of World $24.99+ duties).

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• TrainWreck Labs (Globle and Metazooa)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerTrainWreck Labs operates Globle (geography puzzle) and Metazooa (animal guessing game). These games are featured on the nerdleverse 'Geography & Science' section with referral links from nerdlegame.com. Nerdle earns affiliate referral credit for traffic sent to these external games. The partnership expands the nerdleverse content breadth without requiring Nerdle to build these games internally.
• maff.games (Adder and DigitDrop)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerAdder (snake-inspired number game) and DigitDrop (arcade-style number game) from maff.games are featured in the 'Math arcade games' section of the nerdleverse with referral links. Nerdle acts as a discovery platform for these adjacent games in exchange for referral traffic/credit.
• Save The Children (Numeracy Boost)coreOthersNerdle's 'Positive Numbers' initiative supports Save The Children's 'Numeracy Boost' programme, which helps develop math skills inside and outside classrooms. Nerdle directs users to donate to this charity. This partnership aligns with Nerdle's stated mission of making math more accessible and less scary. The company encourages players to support via donation links on the positive numbers page.
• StripecoreTechnology or IntegrationStripe processes payments for the nerdle merchandise store (merch.nerdlegame.com), handling checkout for t-shirts, hoodies, and custom mosaic prints. Stripe manages regional pricing, tax calculation, and payment processing for all e-commerce transactions.
• Google and ad networks (personalized advertising)coreTechnology or IntegrationGoogle and third-party ad networks serve personalized advertising on nerdle websites. These networks use cookies, device identifiers, and hashed email addresses to target ads based on user behavior across nerdle sites and their broader ad network. This partnership is the primary revenue source for the free game.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Worldle: Daily geography puzzle with country-shape clues; independent developer build with similar viral mechanics and a 2022-era wave similar to Nerdle. Comparable indie daily-puzzle trajectory and audience.

Broad incumbents

• NYT Games: The New York Times' portfolio of daily puzzles (Wordle, Connections, Spelling Bee, Sudoku, Crossword) representing the broader incumbent category that Nerdle competes against for daily-puzzle attention and could potentially acquire or partner with Nerdle.
• Brilliant: Subscription math-and-science learning platform that overlaps with nerdle's educational use case and teacher adoption, but in a deeper, paid curriculum format. Comparable in audience (math learners, teachers) rather than daily-puzzle mechanics.

Direct peers

• Globle: Daily geography guessing game operated by TrainWreck Labs and featured on the nerdleverse with referral links. Same daily-puzzle, color-tile-feedback, single-guess-per-day format adapted to geography; comparable production scale and audience.
• Wordle: The original daily word-guessing puzzle from which Nerdle directly adapted its mechanics, tile-color feedback, and daily-habit loop. Acquired by The New York Times in 2022 and now sits inside NYT Games, making it the closest functional and format comparable.
• Mathler: Direct competitor offering daily math equation puzzles with a similar color-tile feedback system and Wordle-style mechanics. Competes head-to-head with Nerdle for math-puzzle enthusiasts and is referenced in nerdle's own 'Math Wordle' blog content.
• Numberle: Daily math equation puzzle competitor explicitly named in nerdle's competitive analysis. Same core category (math Wordle) with slight rule variations, serving the same daily-puzzle player persona.
• Quordle: Multi-grid word puzzle (4 simultaneous Wordles with shared guesses) that nerdle directly adapted into its Quad Nerdle mode. Same indie daily-puzzle mechanics and multi-grid product family.
• Metazooa: Daily animal-class guessing puzzle from TrainWreck Labs, also featured on the nerdleverse. Same indie daily-puzzle mechanics and audience overlap, with the same distribution strategy of cross-promotion via niche aggregators like nerdle.
• Octordle: Eight simultaneous Wordles with shared guesses; nerdle's Octo Nerdle is the direct math analog. Same indie-scale daily-puzzle mechanic in a multi-grid format.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/richardajmann
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nerdle

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Nerdle