Letter Ladder

Climb from one four-letter word to another by changing a single letter at a time. Beat par with the fewest steps. A new ladder every day.

How to play

You get a start word and a target word. Change exactly one letter of the current word to make a new real word, and repeat until you reach the target.
Type the next word and press Add. Each word in the chain must be a valid four-letter word and cannot repeat.
Par is the length of the shortest possible ladder. Reach the target in par steps or fewer for the best result.
Undo removes your last word, and Hint shows the next word on a shortest route from where you are.

Work from both ends. Think of words near the target and aim at those, not just away from the start.
Vowels are usually the hardest letters to swap, so change consonants first and keep a vowel change for later.
If you are stuck, undo a step or two and try a different first letter change.
Hints are counted in your share text, so use them only when you really need to.

Does the ladder have only one solution?: No. Many ladders have several routes of the same length, and any valid chain that reaches the target counts.
Can I use rare words?: Yes. The accepted list is large, so uncommon but valid words work as stepping stones even though the start and target are everyday words.
What counts as par?: Par is the length of the shortest ladder between the two words, found by a search of the whole word list.