How to Play
Every day, one congressional district. You get six guesses to name it — and every wrong guess teaches you geography. Here are the full rules, a worked example, and some tips.
The basics
- A new mystery district appears every day — the same one for all players, using the current district boundaries.
- You have 6 guesses to identify it.
- Guess in two steps: first click a state on the reference map; once you nail the state, pick the district number within it.
- Your timer starts when you submit your first guess.
- Sign in (free) to track your statistics, keep your streak, and compare with other players on the leaderboard.
Hot / cold elimination
Wrong state guesses aren't wasted — each one comes back with a geographic clue:
- Hot / Adjacent — the correct state borders the state you guessed. Only that state's neighbors stay in play; everything else is eliminated.
- Cold / Not adjacent — the correct state is farther away. The guessed state and all of its neighbors are eliminated.
Eliminated states grey out on the map and in the state list automatically, so you can always see exactly which states are still possible. Playing the clues well usually matters more than your first guess being close.
A worked example
Say the day's outline is a huge, blocky, sparsely populated district.
- Guess 1 — Missouri. The game answers Hot: the mystery district's state borders Missouri. Everything except Missouri's eight neighbors is eliminated — you're down to Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska.
- Guess 2 — Kansas. Correct state! The enormous outline fits a plains state with a handful of districts.
- Guess 3 — Kansas's 1st. Kansas has four districts, and the vast shape covering most of the state can only be the "Big First," which spans western and central Kansas. Solved in three.
Tips for getting better
- Size is a population clue. Every district holds roughly 760,000 people, so a physically huge district means rural (think Montana or western Kansas) and a tiny one means a dense city.
- Look for borders you know. Coastlines, the Great Lakes, and big rivers like the Mississippi and Rio Grande often form one edge of a district and give the state away.
- Weird shapes are information. A long, contorted district often connects separated communities — common in and around large metro areas.
- Study between puzzles. Every answer links to its district profile; browsing neighboring districts after each game builds the mental map fast.
Frequently asked questions
When does a new puzzle come out?
Once a day, every day. Everyone in the world gets the same district on the same day.
Is it free?
Yes. Daily District is free to play, supported by ads and by donations and sponsorships.
Do I need an account?
No — anyone can play. A free account adds saved statistics, streaks, and the leaderboard.
Which district boundaries does the game use?
The congressional districts currently in effect, as described on the Data & methodology page.