Scrabble® Points Guide
The same letter is not worth the same everywhere. W costs 4 points in English and 10 in French, because French barely uses it.
Letter Points by Language
High Value (8-10 pts)
Medium-High (4-7 pts)
Medium (2-3 pts)
Common (1 pt)
Notable Words Across Languages
One of the highest-scoring two-letter words, valid in multiple languages. A slang term for pizza.
The vital force in Chinese philosophy and medicine. A valuable Q-word that doesn't require a U.
Exceedingly idealistic. Features both Q and X for maximum scoring potential.
An eight-letter word that uses high-scoring letters Z and X.
A Central American bird and currency, maximizing both Q and Z points across languages.
Geographic term using the valuable F and J combination, scoring well in French.
Dance term combining the high-value W and Z, particularly valuable in French.
Uses K twice, scoring especially well in French where K is worth more points.
Musical term utilizing double Z for maximum scoring potential across all languages.
Scientific term combining the valuable X and Y letters effectively.
Beverage term using both W and K, particularly high-scoring in French.
French loanword ending in X, valid across multiple languages.
Letter Distribution & Insights
Letter Values & Language Patterns
The values come from counting letters. Alfred Butts worked out the English set in the 1930s by tallying letter frequencies on the front page of the New York Times, and every later language edition was built the same way, from its own counts.
Special Characters
Distribution Statistics
Common Letters
Distribution Facts
- Vowels make up ~40% of all tiles
- High-value letters appear 1-2 times
- S is limited to prevent plurals
- Most languages have 2 blank tiles
High-Value Letters
Language Variations
A word can be worth twice as much in one language as another, and the rare letters are not the same ones. Worth knowing before you sit down to a game in a language you do not usually play.
Special Characters
- SpanishCH, LL, Ñ, RR as unique tiles
- GermanÄ, Ö, Ü as separate tiles
- PortugueseÇ as distinct character
Scoring Rules
- SpanishCannot use C+H for CH or L+L for LL
- Germanß always played as SS
- AllMost accent marks ignored in scoring
Find The Perfect Words
Check a word against all four languages at once and see what it scores in each.
English, French, German and Spanish word lists