- Where do the prices come from?
- The US Bureau of Labor Statistics: average prices across US cities, by year. Every chart names its series.
- How is a chart scored?
- 60 points for where your line ends and 40 for the path on the way: the end by the gap in the last year, the path by the average gap over the hidden years. Gaps are measured against how high the real line climbs on the chart. A small miss costs little, and a 30% gap scores 0 for that part. The gap round has no open end, so it scores on the path alone. A perfect line scores 100.
- Why does 2025 average 11 months?
- BLS has no October 2025 prices, because of the 2025 lapse in appropriations. The months that exist are averaged.
- When is there a new puzzle?
- Every day at midnight Eastern time, for everyone at once.
- Do I need an account?
- No. Your streak and stats stay on this device. Clearing your browser data clears them too.
- Why can I only play once a day?
- Everyone gets the same puzzle, so everyone is compared fairly. Past puzzles can be replayed in the archive for practice.