LA Times Crossword answers — today's puzzle and full archive
Daily LA Times Crossword solutions with every Across and Down clue solved, plus per-clue search across the full archive. Verified daily.
Today's LA Times Crossword
All clues solved — tap to view
View today's full grid solutions with every Across and Down answer for May 13, 2026.
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About the LA Times Crossword
The LA Times Crossword is a daily American-style crossword published by the Los Angeles Times. It has been edited by Patti Varol since 2022, following Rich Norris's long tenure as editor (1999–2022). The puzzle is widely syndicated to dozens of US newspapers and is one of the most-played daily crosswords in the country.
Difficulty escalates through the week: Monday and Tuesday are the easiest, Wednesday–Thursday medium, and Friday–Saturday the hardest. The Sunday puzzle is a larger 21×21 grid with a theme — it's bigger than the weekday 15×15 but typically medium difficulty.
This archive contains every LA Times Crossword puzzle we've indexed, organized by date with all Across and Down clues, verified answers, and per-clue search. If you've seen a clue elsewhere, you can search it directly.
How to play the LA Times Crossword
Open latimes.com/games/daily-crossword or grab the print edition. Today's grid will load in your browser.
Read the clues. Across clues are listed first, Down clues second. Each clue is numbered to match a square in the grid.
Click a numbered square and start typing. Letters fill horizontally for Across clues and vertically for Down. Click a clue to highlight which squares it covers.
Use crossings: each square belongs to one Across clue AND one Down clue. If you're stuck on one, the crossing letters from the other will narrow the answer fast.
Solve the entire grid. Sunday is bigger (21×21 with a theme), and difficulty increases Monday → Saturday. A new puzzle is published every day at midnight US Pacific time.
Recent LA Times Crossword answers
Strategy & tips
Start easy
Fill in the gimmes first
Run through every clue once and fill in only the ones you know cold. Common 3- and 4-letter answers like OREO, AREA, ERA, EWE appear constantly in crosswords — these are gimmes.
Crossings are king
Use crossings to crack hard clues
When a clue stumps you, fill the easier crossings instead. Two or three correct crossing letters often make the answer obvious. Don't waste time staring at one clue — jump around the grid.
Theme awareness
Find the theme by Wednesday
Themed puzzles (Wed–Sun) usually have 3 or 4 long themed answers that follow a pattern. Crack one and the others fall into place. The grid often shows the theme entries with extra-long horizontal answers.
Question marks
A ? in the clue means wordplay
When a clue ends with a question mark, expect a pun or non-literal interpretation. "Eggsactly?" might clue YOLK; "Tour de force?" might clue BIKE RACE. Question marks are warnings.
Difficulty by day
Match your tactics to the day
Mon–Tue: read clues literally and fill the gimmes. Wed–Thu: hunt for the theme early. Fri–Sat: expect heavy wordplay, no themes, and rely entirely on crossings to break in. Sunday: the puzzle is huge but follows Wed–Thu difficulty.
Stuck?
Search a specific clue here
If a single clue is blocking your finish, use the search bar on our homepage. We index every LA Times Crossword clue across all dates, so you can type the clue and jump straight to a verified answer.
Frequently asked questions
What are today's LA Times Crossword answers?
All clues for today's LA Times Crossword (May 13, 2026) are solved on the daily archive page — every Across and Down answer with verified solutions.
What time does the LA Times Crossword release?
A new LA Times Crossword is published daily at midnight US Pacific time. Sunday's larger 21×21 puzzle releases the prior Saturday evening for many digital subscribers.
We post verified solutions shortly after each new puzzle goes live so they're available no matter your time zone.
Who edits the LA Times Crossword?
The current editor is Patti Varol, who took over in 2022. Before her, Rich Norris edited the puzzle from 1999 through 2022. Both editors have built the puzzle's reputation as one of the most accessible yet well-constructed daily crosswords in syndication.
Constructors submit puzzles individually — the LA Times pays roughly $300 per Mon–Sat puzzle and $1,000 per Sunday.
How does difficulty change through the week?
Monday–Tuesday: easiest, with literal clues and minimal wordplay.
Wednesday–Thursday: medium, with themed grids and some misdirection.
Friday–Saturday: hardest, often themeless with heavy wordplay and tricky clues.
Sunday: a 21×21 themed grid — bigger than weekdays but typically medium difficulty.
If you're new, start with Monday and work up.
Is the LA Times Crossword free?
The daily puzzle is free to play on latimes.com/games. You can also play it free on syndication sites like Cruciverb, AmuseLabs, and many newspaper sites that license the puzzle.
The full archive of past puzzles is typically restricted to LA Times digital subscribers. This site indexes the answers to every past puzzle as a free reference.
What's the difference between Across and Down clues?
Crossword clues are split into two lists. Across clues are answered horizontally (left to right) in the grid. Down clues are answered vertically (top to bottom).
Each numbered square in the grid corresponds to one or both — a numbered cell with a black square to its left or above starts a new clue.
Can I search for a specific crossword clue?
Yes — every LA Times Crossword clue has its own permanent page on this site. Use the search bar on the AppWalkthrough homepage to look up a clue you've seen before, and we'll show you the verified answer along with the date it appeared.
Are these answers official?
No. AppWalkthrough is an independent fan site. The LA Times Crossword is a property of the Los Angeles Times, and we're not affiliated with the publisher.
We solve and verify each daily puzzle ourselves before publishing.