NYT Spelling Bee has been a fan-favorite puzzle game since its release over ten years ago. If you play often, or even if you have just learned how to play Spelling Bee, you know how different the game is compared to Wordle or Connections. It gives you a honeycomb letter grid and challenges you to find as many words as you can. Spelling Bee doesn’t rely on streaks to attract players. Instead, the game has a unique ranking system and badges to keep players coming back for more. But what exactly are these Spelling Bee badges, and what do you need to do to earn them? Let’s find out!
List of NYT Spelling Bee Badges
Check out all the badges for Spelling Bee that you will find in the NYT Games app, along with how to get them.
| Badges | How to Earn | Milestones |
|---|---|---|
 First Genius | Earned upon reaching Genius rank for the first time | First-time achievement |
 Genius | Earned upon reaching Genius rank | 5, 10, 15, 25, 50, 75, 100, 150, 200, 300, 500, 750, 1000 |
 First Queen Bee | Earned upon reaching Queen Bee rank for the first time | First-time achievement |
 Queen Bee | Earned upon reaching Queen Bee rank | 5, 10, 15, 25, 50, 75, 100, 150, 200, 300, 500, 750, 1000 |
 First Pangram | Earned upon finding a pangram for the first time | First-time achievement |
 Pangram | Earned upon finding a pangram | 3, 5, 10, 15, 25, 40, 60, 90, 150, 300, 500, 750, 1000 |
 Pangram First | Earned when you find the pangram as your first word in a puzzle | 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 35, 50, 75, 100, 125, 150, 200 |
 Long Word | Earned upon finding a word of 10 or more letters | 1, 10, 25, 50, 100, 150, 200, 300, 400, 500, 650, 800, 1000 |
| Seasonal Hat Badges | Reach Genius rank on a specific themed calendar date | Event-specific; one badge per event |
Now that you know what badges are on the list, let’s take a closer look at each Spelling Bee badge and what you need to do to earn it.
First Genius Badge
Now, this is a pretty simple badge. You earn the ‘First Genius Badge’ in Spelling Bee the first time you reach the Genius rank in Spelling Bee.
This is your introduction to Spelling Bee ranks and the Genius badge. Remember that this badge is a one-time achievement badge. So, once you’ve reached the Genius rank and earned this badge, every consecutive Genius rank counts toward the badge milestone.
Genius Badges
The Genius badge is tied directly to the Spelling Bee scoring system and ranks. As you find more valid words, you earn more points and move through different ranks. Once you reach the Genius rank, you are awarded the Genius badge.
This badge has milestones of 5, 10, 15, 25, 50, 75, 100, 150, 200, 300, 500, 750, 1000, and so on as you progress. Note that your badge will show the most recent milestone you have achieved.
So, if you’ve reached the 200 Genius rank milestone, your badge will display the number 200. This doesn’t mean your previous achievements are lost. You can still see them by tapping on the badge and scrolling through.
First Queen Bee Badge
As the name suggests, the First Queen Bee badge is awarded when you achieve the Queen Bee rank for the first time.
This is a separate, one-time badge and not just a milestone of the regular Queen Bee badge, which we discuss below. So, once you’ve managed to find every word in a Spelling Bee puzzle for the first time, you’ll have this one checked off your list.
Queen Bee Badges
You get the Queen Bee badge milestone every time you reach the Queen Bee rank. Queen Bee sits at the top in the Spelling Bee ranks. To reach there, you have to cross a lot of other ranks, starting from beginner to crossing the Genius rank.
If you’ve reached the Queen Bee rank, it means that you’ve found every possible word in the puzzle. This makes it one of the more challenging achievements in the game.
The Queen Bee badge has milestones of 5, 10, 15, 25, 50, 75, 100, 150, 200, 300, 500, 750, 1000, and so on, as you progress in the game.
Just like the Genius badge, only your most recent Queen Bee achievement count is displayed on the badge. To see your previous achievements, you can tap on the badge and scroll.
Pangram Badges
A Pangram is a word that uses all seven letters in a Spelling Bee puzzle at least once. If you play this game regularly, you must know that finding a Pangram in Spelling Bee is one of the most satisfying moments.
The Pangram badge has milestones of 3, 5, 10, 15, 25, 40, 60, 90, 150, 300, 500, 750, 1000, and so on. So, the more Pangrams you find, the more milestones you will unlock. Note that, like all other milestone badges, the Pangram badges also display only your most recent achievement.
First Pangram Badge
Now, this is the stepping stone to the Pangram badges. You earn the ‘First Pangram’ badge when you find a pangram in Spelling Bee for the first time.
Remember that this is not a part of Pangram badge milestones. It is a separate badge only awarded once. So, once you’ve received this badge, that’s it. The Pangrams found after getting this badge are added as milestones to the badge below.
Pangram First Badges
Finding a Pangram is satisfying; now, imagine your first word being a Pangram! Well, wouldn’t that be something!
While the task is difficult, it is rewarding. And to solidify this achievement, Spelling Bee gives you the Pangram First Badge.
There’s no special trick here. You’re awarded this badge when you start a game by finding a pangram. This badge has milestones of 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 35, 50, 75, 100, 125, 150, 200, and so on, as you progress in the game.
Long Word Badges
Spelling Bee isn’t just about finding lots of words. Sometimes, focusing on the length of the word also helps rack up achievements. The Long Word badge is awarded when you find a word that’s 10 or more letters long.
This Spelling Bee badge too has milestones. It starts at 1 and goes through 10, 25, 50, 100, 150, 200, 300, 400, 500, 650, 800, 1000, and so on. If you like to focus on the length of the words instead of their count, this is one badge you’ll naturally progress towards!
Seasonal Hat Badges
Spelling Bee also has special event badges tied to specific occasions. These work a little differently from the regular badges. Since they are one-time badges, they are available only on a specific date. This means that missing the event would result in missing the badge forever.
For example, the Halloween Hat badge was only earned by players who reached the Genius rank on October 31, 2025. Likewise, the New Year Hat, Valentine Hat, and April Fools’ Hat were available on January 1, February 14, and April 1, 2026, respectively.
How to Check Your NYT Spelling Bee Badges
Once you’ve started collecting badges, you can check your achievements through the NYT Games app. And no, they are not visible on the NYT website. The process is the same as checking Wordle badges.
All you have to do is tap on your ‘Me’ profile icon at the bottom of the screen. Then, select View all badges and find the Spelling Bee section.
Once you are there, you can browse through the Earned badges to see your achievements. To see the details of a specific badge, you can tap on it and check the milestone history. You can also scroll through the Unearned badges to see the badges or milestones you’re still working towards.
Tips to Earn Spelling Bee Badges Faster
If you’re yet to find today’s Spelling Bee answers, go through the tips and tricks given below. These can help you take a step towards your next achievement.
Start by Looking for a Pangram
Finding a Pangram in Spelling Bee can help you progress towards multiple achievements, including the Pangram, First Pangram, and even Pangram First badges. So, before you start entering random words, look at the seven letters and see whether you can spot a word that uses them all.
Look Beyond the Obvious Words
While solving a Spelling Bee puzzle, you may feel like you have found every possible word. The game can make you feel you have. But that usually isn’t true. So, once you have entered the obvious words, go back and look for plurals, less common combinations, and words with repeating letters. This can help you gain more points and climb the ranks faster.
Keep an Eye Out for Long Words
It’s easy to find four-letter words in Spelling Bee, but remember those words don’t award you with a lot of points. Instead, longer words do.
So, whenever you think you have found all the smaller, easy words, start experimenting. Try to find longer combinations and words with repeating letters. This will help you make progress towards the Long Word badge.
Aim for Higher Ranks Consistently
The highest ranks in Spelling Bee are Genius and Queen Bee. Reaching these ranks each time adds to their respective badge milestones. While reaching Queen Bee every day can be exhausting, you can still aim for Genius rank.
So, once you’ve got the hang of the ranking system, first try to make Genius your daily target. Then, after reaching the Genius rank, keep exploring the puzzle for more points. This way you can work towards both milestones.
Don’t Rush Through the Puzzle
This is an important point that most people miss. While looking at the letter honeycomb, we get in a rush to solve the puzzle. We look for all the big words and miss out on the simpler ones. Sometimes we even miss the words sitting in plain sight.
So, instead of rushing through the puzzle, spend a little time rearranging the letters mentally. This will help you spot words that you would’ve otherwise missed.
That was everything you need to know about Spelling Bee badges and how to earn them. Whether you’re chasing your first Genius badge, trying to reach Queen Bee, or simply hunting down a few pangrams, there’s always another achievement to work toward.
And if you’re still struggling to win NYT Spelling Bee, check out our Spelling Bee tips and strategies for more ways to find words and climb the ranks!
There are more than 70 NYT Spelling Bee badges at the time of writing. As of now, the puzzle has milestone badges for Genius, Queen Bee, Pangram, Pangram First, and Long Word, along with first-time achievement badges. The game also keeps introducing seasonal hat badges that keep adding to the total count.
The Queen Bee badge is awarded when you reach the Queen Bee rank, which means you’ve found every possible word in that day’s puzzle. It has multiple milestones, so as you keep reaching the Queen Bee rank, you progress through the badge.
You earn the Pangram First badge in Spelling Bee when the first word you find in the puzzle is a Pangram. It has its own milestones, so the more games you start by finding a Pangram, the more progress you make through the badge.
You can check your Spelling Bee badges on the NYT Games app. Open the app, head to your profile, and tap View all badges. From there, find the Spelling Bee section to see your earned badges, unearned badges, and milestone history.
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