Poople Hints

Poople #396 · Mon, Sep 14

Poople #396 Answer: CARS to POOP

CARS POOP

Hints for Poople #396

Sniff test (How many steps?)RevealHide
The shortest path takes 5 steps.
Which letter stinks? (Which letter changes first?)RevealHide
Change the 3rd or 4th letter first.
First plop (The first word)RevealHide
Good first moves: CABS, CADS, CAMS, CANS, CAPS, CARP, CATS, CAWS.
Answer (Full shortest path)RevealHide

CARS → CAMS → CAMP → COMP → COOP → POOP

All 10 shortest paths
  1. CARS → CABS → COBS → COOS → COOP → POOP
  2. CARS → CADS → CODS → COOS → COOP → POOP
  3. CARS → CAMS → CAMP → COMP → COOP → POOP
  4. CARS → CAMS → CAMP → COMP → POMP → POOP
  5. CARS → CANS → CONS → COOS → COOP → POOP
  6. CARS → CAPS → COPS → COOS → COOP → POOP
  7. CARS → CARP → CAMP → COMP → COOP → POOP
  8. CARS → CARP → CAMP → COMP → POMP → POOP
  9. CARS → CATS → COTS → COOS → COOP → POOP
  10. CARS → CAWS → COWS → COOS → COOP → POOP

Play Poople #396

Try the ladder yourself before you open the answer. Old puzzles do not count toward your streak.

Unrolling…

Sniffing out the word list…

Shortest path: 5 steps Easy

Finish in 5 steps for a Royal Flush

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How the Poople #396 answer works

Poople #396 asks you to turn CARS into POOP by changing one letter at a time, and every word on the way has to be in the Poople word list. The shortest path takes 5 steps. There are 10 different shortest paths; the one explained below is the path the official game shows.

Step-by-step explanation (spoiler)
  1. Change the 3rd letter from R to M: CARS → CAMS. 4 steps to go.
  2. Change the 4th letter from S to P: CAMS → CAMP. 3 steps to go.
  3. Change the 2nd letter from A to O: CAMP → COMP. 2 steps to go.
  4. Change the 3rd letter from M to O: COMP → COOP. 1 step to go.
  5. Change the 1st letter from C to P: COOP → POOP. That spells POOP, so you are done.

First-move traps for CARS

CARS has 23 words one letter away in the Poople word list. Only 8 of them move you closer to POOP.

Of the others, 7 take you further away and 8 keep you at the same distance.

Which first moves to avoid (may reveal the first move)

Further away, so skip them: GARS, JARS, MARS, OARS, SARS, TARS, WARS.

Sideways, at the same distance from POOP, which costs you a step: BARS, CARB, CARD, CARE, CART, CURS, EARS, PARS.

How hard is Poople #396?

At 5 steps, Poople #396 is rated Easy. Across the 105 Poople puzzles on this site, the shortest path averages 5.7 steps. Of the other puzzles, 56 had the same length and 48 were longer. No puzzle on this site was shorter.

Try other words in the Poople solver, or play endless practice ladders in Poople Unlimited.

FAQ

What is the Poople #396 answer?+−
Poople #396 (Sep 14, 2026) starts from CARS. The shortest path is CARS → CAMS → CAMP → COMP → COOP → POOP.
How many steps does Poople #396 take?+−
The shortest path from CARS to POOP takes 5 steps. There are 10 shortest paths.
What is the first move in Poople #396?+−
The official best path starts CARS → CAMS. Other shortest paths may start differently; the hints above list every good first move.
Can Poople #396 be solved in fewer than 5 steps?+−
No. 5 steps is the minimum: every word one letter away from CARS is at least 4 steps from POOP.
What was the Poople answer the day before #396?+−
Poople #395 started from PAID. The shortest path was PAID → PAIL → PALL → POLL → POOL → POOP. Its hints are on the Poople #395 page in the archive.