MyCrossword is 5!

18

1 min read · Tue 13 Jan 2026

MyCrossword is 5!
Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash

It's been five years to the day since I pressed a big red button to launch the site. Okay, the button was purple and I spent a few hours debugging why it didn't work, but that's less pithy. What started as a small side project has grown into a thriving community of users and contributors.

I was convinced that it would just be me and a few friends from work using it, but now we have thousands of active users from all over the world.

These numbers will inevitably be out of date almost as soon as I publish this, but here are a few stats from the first five years:

  • Published Crosswords: 3,581
    • Mini: 201
    • Quick: 329
    • Cryptic: 3,028
    • Jumbo: 21
    • Featured: 2 (and counting!)
  • Unpublished Crosswords: 3,396
  • Clues: 193,454
  • Comments: 37,882
  • Likes: 82,062
  • Code Releases: 382
  • Full Site Rebuilds: 1 (18 months of work)
  • Hours of Coding: ? (I'm not sure I want to know, it's in the thousands)

I’m very grateful to everyone who’s helped me or the site over the years, whether by sending suggestions, reporting issues, writing crosswords, leaving comments, or recommending it to others. That ongoing appreciation and support is what keeps me motivated to continue improving it.

Here's to many more years of crosswords and community.

And here's a completely unrelated crossword to celebrate.

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27 comments

Congratulations, and here's to many more!

R
Last reply last moView thread

The thanks go to you of course for all the time, enthusiasm and effort you put into this baby (now starting school 😆) so heartfelt gratitude from me for something that genuinely changed my life, in the nicest possible way!

R
Last reply last moView thread

For those of us who took up setting during lockdown (and subsequently), MyCrossword has been a godsend. I guess that makes you a god, Raider, which stacks up. Many thanks for creating this amazing site and for all of your ongoing efforts.

R
M
Last reply last moView thread

Congratulations Raider, and huge thanks!

R
Last reply last moView thread

Nice one Raider, thanks a million

R
Last reply last moView thread

Thank you so much, Raider. Amazing place.

t
R
Last reply last moView thread

This was the site that reignited my very sporadic setting journey, and where I found "my people". Thank you for that, truly, and there's another Guinness owing the next time we meet. I'm often busy, so my contributions can be patchy, but I hope to be more consistent in future.

R
Last reply last moView thread

Congratulations

R
Last reply last moView thread

As with others below, MyC was what I had been searching for. Occasionally contributing my own idea for a clue in 225 blogs was always met by the sound of tumbleweed and this platform gave me that opportunity to dip my toe in the water. 100 puzzles later, I am still in awe of the site and it remains my primary compiling tool. And the community that has grown up alongside it is fantastic. Thanks, Raider, for the idea, the hard work, the support and the friendship. Here's to the next 5(0) years!

R
Last reply last moView thread

Thanks Raider, as ever, for the wonderful site and all the work you put into it. As fun as it has always been to solve and share crosswords, I’ve always been equally in awe of the quality of the product. 5 years and counting! Testament to the friendly and supportive community you have built. Here’s to many more years! Cheers!

R
Last reply last moView thread

You have single-handedly changed the crossword landscape, Raider. Bravo and keep going!

B
R
Last reply 4 wk agoView thread