Written byShutterfly Community Last Updated: Nov 13, 2023
When planning a party, you need to have great food and great people. However, if you really want to make your party memorable for years to come, you’ll need great party games. We sometimes overlook the pure joy that can come out of playing a great party game with a room full of friends, so we have a list of the 40 best party games.
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Whether you are looking for a nice, low-activity party game for adults, a fun jigsaw puzzle, or a wet and wild birthday party game for kids, there are thousands of fun party activities to choose from. By the time it takes you to pick the best one, your guests may have already left. But not to worry, because we have put together a list of 40 of the best party games you can play to entertain your guests. Use the filters to choose the size of your party, activity level, and type of game you are looking to play. You can plan your whole party around a fun game, like a family reunion Tug of War. Then, tell everyone in your personalized party invitations to be sure they come prepared for some laughter and fun.
Players ‘react’ to a made up scenario and others have to guess what it is.
Players try to guess the word that their teammate is drawing on a piece of paper on their back.
Children sit back to back in pairs and try to stand up together without using their hands.
Players try to lift a bag off the ground with nothing but their teeth. Their feet can’t leave the ground.
Couples guide their blindfolded partner to the prize using only words.
Players try to get their teammates to guess a movie, TV show, or person they are acting out - all without making a sound.
Each player must eat 5 cherries with their hands behind their backs.
Players spin around a baseball bat with their foreheads pressed against the bat handle. After getting dizzy, they attempt to hit a tennis ball.
Children (ducks) sit in a circle and one standing child chooses another to become the goose. The goose must chase the child around the circle and try to tag him/her.
Try to get others to guess the song you are playing using an instrument you don’t know how to play.
Children divide into two lines and attempt to transfer all of the water from a bucket at the start of the line to a measuring cup at the end. Whoever transfers the most wins.
Children dance when the music is on, but when it is turned off they must immediately freeze. Anyone caught still dancing is out.
One person draws a picture and the others try to guess what it is.
Any time the hat man/woman takes off his/her hat, everyone else must do the same.
Kids pass a ball to each other. One designated player sits eyes closed and then yells ‘hot potato’ at any random time. Whoever is stuck with the ball loses.
Players are each given an ice cube. Whoever can melt the icecube the quickest (without putting it in their mouths, stomping on it or using any equipment) wins.
Two competing teams try to blow a ping pong ball off of opponents’ side of the table.
Kids race to eat a piece of cake using only their mouth with their hands behind their back.
All players write down one thing they like and one thing they don’t like. Then you try to figure out who wrote what.
Players try to walk under a horizontal pole by leaning backward. They cannot fall or touch the pole.
Two teams must try to wrap a player in a roll of toilet paper.
Children parade around a group of chairs as music plays. When the music stops they must sit.
Players take turns writing a story adding one line at a time on a piece of paper.
If a guest is caught saying a forbidden word, they must give up their necklace to whoever catches them saying it.
Players attempt to pass an orange to the next person without using their hands.
Kids take turns sticking their hands into the party bag and trying to guess what the objects are.
Everyone tries to get a $10 bill with their arms all interlocked in a circle.
Children are blindfolded and attempt to tape a paper tail to a paper cut-out of a tail-less donkey that is on the wall.
Players take on the role of another person in the room. One person (the psychiatrist) has to figure out who they really are.
Kids race to the finish line, but can only run when the ‘traffic guard’ says so.
Take turns trying to make people laugh using only a rubber chicken.
All kids race to the finish line holding an egg on a spoon in their hands. Whoever crosses the finish line first without a broken egg wins.
Two teams stand on a line and attempt to grab a ball that is placed in the middle of the field. Whoever grabs the ball has to make it back to their line without the other team tagging them.
Throughout the night, players must stick stickers on other players without them noticing.
Teams compete to find hidden objects based on clues.
Two equal teams on either side of a rope attempt to pull it across the finish line.
Players are only allowed to ask 20 questions to correctly guess an object.
Players take turns saying two truths and one lie about themselves and other players have to guess which one is the lie.
Players whisper a phrase from one person to the next and try to keep it the same.
Players must guess the identity of the name written on a card they cannot see.
Actors
Description
Choose one person as the actor. Then someone whispers a scenario in their ear. The player must act out the scenario so that others can guess what they are reacting to.
Example
Kyle is up. Andre whispers to him that he has to react to ‘getting stung by a bee’. Kyle then pretends to get stung by a bee by grabbing him arm and saying ‘OW’! The other players guess that he is stung by a bee!
Back Draw
Description
Players break into teams. One player is given a pen and paper and has to write a word. Start a timer. They place the paper on the back of their teammate and carefully write on the paper so that their teammate can try to guess what they are writing. Whichever team figures out the most correctly wins!
Example
Eric chooses a word from a hat to write and gets ‘horse’. He then grabs his pen and paper and places it on his teammates back. The timer starts and Eric then begins to write the letters H-O-R-S-E. His teammate guesses correctly and they win!
Back Up
Description
Break children into two equal teams. Two teammates sit back to back. When the game starts, the children lock arms and bend their knees. They then attempt to stand up without using their hands. Whichever team can stand up first wins.
Example
Ross and Eric are on a team. Sitting back to back, they link arms and bend their knees. When the match starts they push backward with equal force while pushing up with their legs to stand up in tandem before the other team. They win!
Bite the Bag
Description
Place a brown paper bag on the ground. Players take turns bending over to grab the bag with their teeth. If they can lift it without leaving their foot, you roll (or cut) the bag edges one inch shorter. Whoever stumbles is out. Play until there is no one left.
Example
John leans over and picks up the edge of the bag with his teeth. Julie leans over but stumbles forward leaving her feet. She is out.
Blindman’s Swag
Description
Break into partners and blindfold one. The non-blindfolded partners place a prize somewhere in the room. The non-blindfolded then have to guide their partners to the prize without any physical contact.
Example
The prize is on a box at the other end of a room. Julie is guiding her blindfolded partner Emily across the room towards the box. She says things like, ‘take three steps forward’, ‘now turn right at take two steps, but watch out for the chair!’ Finally Emily reaches the box and grabs the prize!
Charades
Description
Players break up into teams and write the names of movies/shows/famous people onto a piece of paper. The papers are gathered together into a hat. Then they start a timer and one player has to choose a piece of paper and try to act out the movie/show/famous person without making a sound. His/her teammates try to guess and if they are successful, the player continues choosing papers until the timer runs out. Whichever team can get through the most wins!
Example
Vince chooses the term ‘Abraham Lincoln’ and begins to mime the Gettysburg Address. He then points to an imaginary top hat and long beard. His teammates finally guess Abraham Lincoln and they move onto the next card until the timer runs out.
Cherry Pie
Description
Place 5 cherries in front of each person. Whoever can eat all 5 cherries using only their mouths, and their hands behind their backs is the winner.
Example
5 cherries are placed in front of Carol. She puts her hands behind her back and tries to eat them all using only her mouth!
Dizzy Bat
Description
Place a baseball bat upside down with the handle side standing up. Then place your forehead on the bat handle. Spin around in a circle keeping your forehead planted against the bat. After spinning around 10 times, pick up a tennis ball and the bat and attempt to hit the ball.
Example
Caroline spins around the bat until she is very dizzy. She then leans over and picks up the tennis ball and throws it up in the air. Using the bat, she tries to swing to hit the ball. Since she is so dizzy, she cannot orient herself correctly and misses.
Duck Duck Goose
Description
One child is ‘it’. The rest sit in a circle. The ‘it’ child walks around the perimeter of the circle tapping each child on the head saying ‘duck’. When the ‘it’ child calls someone a ‘goose’, the ‘it’ child must make it around the circle to the sitting place of the ‘goose’ child, while the ‘goose’ child must attempt to tag the ‘it’ child before he/she makes it to where the ‘goose’ was sitting.
Example
All of the children are sitting in a circle and Isabelle is walking around tapping everyone on the head, saying ‘Duck’ for each person she taps. Then she taps Linda on the head and says ‘Goose’. Linda gets up to chase Isabelle as Isabelle runs around the circle and tries to get back to Linda’s vacated space in the circle. Isabelle makes it before Linda can tag her, so now Linda gets to be the tapper.
Everyone is a Musician
Description
Each player writes a song onto a card and adds it to a bowl. Hand out any/all instruments in the room. Take turns choosing a song from the bowl and trying to play it with the instrument given.
Example
Gabriel chooses a cowbell as his instrument. The song that he picks is ‘Happy Birthday’. He then tries to play ‘Happy Birthday’ on his cowbell.
Fire Department
Description
Break up the children into two equal teams and have them stand in a line. One end of the line has a bucket and the other has a measuring cup. All of the children are given empty paper cups. The children then attempt to pass the water from the bucket down the line to the measuring cup. The team that transfers the most wins.
Example
Team 1 and Team 2 begin transferring the water from the bucket side to the measuring side. Team 1 spills a lot in their transfers, and Team 2 wins.
Freeze Dance
Description
All children begin dancing when the music is playing, but when the music is turned off by the judge they must freeze in place. The judge determines who was still moving and eliminates those children. The last player standing wins!
Example
Dad turns the music on and all the kids start dancing. He stops the music abruptly and the children freeze. Little Jamie is caught doing an extra dance move after the music has stopped, so he is out!
Guess the Picture
Description
Have everyone write the name of an object or famous person on pieces of paper and then mix them all together. Break into two teams. Each team chooses an artist who will have one minute to pick clues and draw them on a sheet of paper so that his/her team can guess what he/she is drawing. The artist cannot talk or write words or letters.
Example
John chooses the clue ‘elephant’ and then tries to draw it. His teammates guess it correctly so he moves onto the next clue. They repeat until the one minute is up.
Hats
Description
All players wear hats throughout the evening - pass them out at the beginning of the night. At the beginning of the night, one person is chosen to be the hat man/woman. Whenever he/she takes off their hat throughout the night, everyone in the room must follow suit. Whoever still has the hat on loses!
Example
Taylor is the hat woman. During the night, Uncle Jimmy is in the middle of a story and Taylor discreetly takes her hat off. Most people see her and take their hat off. Only Uncle Jimmy is left because he does not notice. He loses.
Hot Potato
Description
All children should sit in a circle with one standing with his/her eyes closed. The players sitting in the circle pass a ball to each other. No player can hold the ball for more than a second. At any point the standing player can yell ‘HOT POTATO!’ and whoever is holding the ball at that time is the out!
Example
All children are sitting in a circle, except for Susie. She is standing with her eyes closed. The sitting children are throwing the ball to each other, being careful not to hold it for more than a second. Then Susie yells "Hot Potato!" and Melinda is holding the ball. She is out!
Ice Cube
Description
Hand out ice cubes to everyone. When the game starts, players can try everything they can to melt the ice cube quicker than their opponents. They can rub it between their hands or on their shirt, or blow on it. Whoever melts it first wins! No cheating (you cannot put it in your mouth or stomp on it or use equipment to melt it).
Example
John is given an icecube. At the start of the game he blows hot air on the ice cube with his mouth to try to melt it. He does it faster than anyone else and wins.
It’s a Ping Pong Ball
Description
Two children sit on opposite sides of a table on their knees with their arms behind their back. A ping pong ball is placed in the middle of the table. When the judge says GO, they both try to blow the ping pong ball off the opponents’ side of the table.
Example
Gregory and Allison are at separate ends of the table. The ping pong ball is placed in the middle and the judge signals to start blowing. Allison blows so hard that the ball falls off of the table on Gregory’s side. Allison Wins!
Let Them Eat Cake
Description
Set slices of cake on plates around the table in front of each child. When the game starts all children begin to eat the cake using only their mouth and keeping their hands behind their back.
Example
Cameron has a piece of cake in front of him. The game starts and he works to eat the piece of cake using only his mouth. He is able to finish the entire piece before everyone else, so he wins.
Like and Dislike
Description
Each person grabs a blank card and writes one thing they love and one thing they hate. Then, shuffle the cards and redistribute. Each player takes guesses at who wrote the card they received.
Example
After everyone writes down their dislike and likes on a card and then shuffles and redistributes, Caroline chooses to read first. She reads ‘I like baseball, but I hate snakes.’ Then, each player takes turns guessing who it was that wrote that card. Caroline chooses Vince, while Eric and Stefanie think it was Fred. It was Vince!
Limbo
Description
Have two people hold opposite ends of a pole. Players take turns trying to walk under the pole by leaning backwards. If a player falls or touches the pole, he/she is out. Each round the pole gets slightly lower.
Example
Julissa is trying to walk under the pole. She leans backwards so that she can make it under. Unfortunately she hits the pole with her forehead so she is out. Next Sherry tries to make it under the pole and does so without touching it or falling so she gets to move onto the next round.
Mummy Wrap
Description
Divide children into two teams and assign each team a ‘mummy’. Give each team one roll of toilet paper. When the game starts, the kids must wrap the ‘mummy’ in toilet paper. Whichever team finishes their roll of toilet paper first is the winner.
Example
Vince is chosen to be the mummy. His team hurries to wrap him up in toilet paper. They finish their roll before the other team, therefore they are the winners!
Musical Chairs
Description
Set up chairs so that there is one less chair than there are number of players. Children are instructed to walk in a circle around the chairs as music plays. When the music stops, the children must sit in a seat. Whoever is without a seat is out. Each round you take away a chair until there is only one player left!
Example
Four kids are walking around a group of three chairs. When the music stops, Jim tries to get to a chair but Timmy, Alice, and Trevor sit in seats before he can get to one. Jim is out. The game continues until there is only one person left sitting.
Novel
Description
Assign one person to start the game. He/she writes a sentence that starts a story then passes the pen and paper to the next person in line. They add a sentence, continuing the story. This continues until the last person gets to write a sentence to finish the story. Then you read the mashup story aloud.
Example
Derek starts the story by writing, ‘A man is walking down the street...’, then Leslie goes next and writes, ‘and then he trips and falls.’ Then Samuel takes the paper and continues the story to say, ‘when he gets up he realizes he has lost his glasses...’ They continue taking turns writing until they last person goes or they decide the story is finished.
Off Limits Necklace
Description
The host of the party announces a forbidden word at the start of a party, and then hands out a beaded necklace to every player. Anytime a guest catches another guest saying that word, they must give up their necklace. Whoever has the most necklaces at the end of the party wins!
Example
The party host, Liz, determines the word at her party is "cute". In her first conversation with Susie, Susie says the word "cute". Liz catches her and Susie has to give up her necklace.
Orange Pass
Description
Players hold an orange between their chin and neck. They then attempt to pass an orange from one player to another without using their hands.
Example
Fred is holding the orange between his neck and chin. He positions his body sideways so that Cindy can grab the orange with her neck and chin. They drop the orange so they lose.
Party Bag
Description
Start by placing assorted items into a brown paper bag without the children seeing. Try everyday objects like candy, fruit, toothpicks, or Q tips. Each child then takes turns feeling into the bag and guessing what the objects are. Whoever guesses the most wins.
Example
Frank feels inside the bag and thinks he is feeling a toothbrush, sunglasses, and rubber band. Susan then goes and thinks she feels a hairbrush, sunglasses and string. Frank was correct, so he wins!
Pick Up
Description
Everyone links arms facing outward. Place a $10 bill in the center. Players try to get the prize while still keeping their arms linked in the circle.
Example
Five friends link arms facing outward. There is a $10 bill placed on a pillow on the ground. Someone uses their feet to grab the $10. They win!
Pin the Tail on the Donkey
Description
Tape the image of a donkey (without a tail) onto the wall. Each child is given a paper cut-out of a donkey’s tail with a small piece of tape. The child is then blindfolded and attempts to walk over and tape the tail to where he/she thinks it should go on the donkey image. The tail that is closest wins!
Example
Mom tapes a donkey to the far wall in the room. She gives little Susan a tail cut-out and blindfolds her. Susan then slowly tries to tape the tail to the correct spot on the donkey. Then her friend Zoe attempts the same. Zoe is closest so she wins!
Psychiatrist
Description
One person (the psychiatrist) leaves the room. Everyone remaining agrees to impersonate someone else in the room. This must be done in a pattern. Then the psychiatrist comes back in and asks everyone questions (which they answer as if they are the person they are impersonating) and tries to figures out the pattern.
Example
Greg leaves the room. Everyone else in the room decides that they will impersonate the person to their left. Greg comes back and asks the first person what color hair they have, or what their age is. This helps Greg figure out the pattern and win the game.
Red Light/Green Light
Description
One adult (or child) is appointed traffic guard. They stand at the finish line. Everyone else starts at the starting line. The traffic guard yells GREEN LIGHT, and the kids can race to the finish. But, they must stop when the guard yells RED LIGHT. Whoever is caught running during RED LIGHT must go back to start. Whoever crosses the finish line wins.
Example
Franklin is the traffic guard. He yells, ‘GREEN LIGHT’ and all of the other kids run towards the finish line. He then yells, ‘RED LIGHT’ and everyone stops. However, he sees that Jenny took a few extra steps after he said ‘RED LIGHT’, therefore she has to go back to the start.
Rubber Chicken
Description
Everyone sits around a rubber chicken. Players take turns trying to make at least one person laugh using only the rubber chicken as a prop. They only have one minute to do this.
Example
Susie takes the rubber chicken and whips it around the room yelling, ‘I’m a cowboy!’ Fred laughs! Susie wins.
Spoons and Eggs
Description
All contestants hold an egg in a spoon and wait at the starting line. Then, they race to the finish line. Whoever can cross the finish line first without breaking the egg is the winner.
Example
James and his friends all receive spoons and eggs. James’ mother yells GO and they swiftly walk towards the finish line. James drops his egg but it does not break, so he picks it up with his spoon and continues to the finish line, narrowly beating out his friends.
Steal the Bacon
Description
Two teams stand an equal distance apart. A ball is placed right in the middle of the playing field. One parent calls out the names of one or two children from each team. The children then race to grab the ball. Whichever team grabs the ball first must then make it back to their line without the other team tagging them.
Example
Erica and Doug are called from opposite sides. Doug makes it to the ball first, grabs it, and turns to run back to his line. Erica tags Doug after he takes a few steps away so Doug loses. Erica’s team gets a point.
Tag ‘n Bag or Sticker Stalker
Description
Everyone starts with 10 stickers. Over the course of the evening, whoever can place the most stickers on other people, without getting caught, wins.
Example
Eric gets to a party and is handed 10 stickers. Throughout the evening, he strategically and sneakily places stickers on the backs of all of his friends without them noticing.
Treasure Hunters
Description
One person hides items in a designated area. Then they write clues as to where each item is. The players break into teams and try to find all of the items on the list in a given time limit. Whichever team finds the most wins!
Example
John’s team has a clue that says ‘This item is kept with the apples’. So, they check to see if the item is the apple tree in the yard. However, Jane’s team chooses to look in the refrigerator where the apples are kept cold. Jane’s team finds the item!
Tug of War
Description
Place a flag or marker in the middle of a thick rope. Then break up children into two equal teams and have them stand behind lines equidistant from the middle of the rope. When the game starts, each side pulls on the rope to try to get the flag over their line.
Example
Judy’s team stands on one side of the rope, with Tyler’s team on the other. Both teams pull extremely hard, but since Tyler’s side is stronger, they end up pulling the rope over their winning line.
Twenty Questions
Description
One person thinks of an object or person. Then players are only allowed to ask 20 Yes or No questions to try to guess what it is. If they correctly guess the object, the next person goes.
Example
John is thinking of actor Harrison Ford. The players ask questions like, ‘Is this a person?’, ‘Is this a famous person?’, ‘Is it a male?’. Finally, the players narrow it down enough so that Susan guesses, ‘Is he Harrison Ford.’ Susan wins!
Two Truths and a Lie
Description
Each player tells three statements about themselves, except only two are truths and one is made up. The other players go around the room guessing which they think the lie is.
Example
Frank says that he is 25, was captain of his baseball team, and once caught a 25 lb fish. All of the other players guessed that his age was the lie. They were right! He was only 22.
Whisper Down the Lane
Description
Everybody arranges in a circle. One player starts the game by whispering a phrase in the ear of the person on his/her left. This gets repeated all the way around the circle until it reaches the start.
Example
Mitzi whispers, ‘I took a drink from the fountain’ into the ear of Taylor. Then Taylor whispers what she thought she heard into the ear of the person next to her. By the end of the line, they realize that at some point something was miscommunicated, because the last person says ‘I snuck a drink from a falcon’.
Who Am I
Description
Each player writes a name of a famous person on a card. The card is then given facedown to the person to their left. Then the cards are taped (or held) to each player’s forehead. Players take turns asking only yes or no questions to figure out the identity of the person on the card.
Example
John has the name ‘President Obama’ on his card. He asks, ‘Am I famous?’, and the group answers, ‘Yes’. Next, Gwen, who has the name ‘Pocahontas’ on her forehead, asks ‘Am I male?’ and the group says, ‘No’. They keep asking questions until Gwen guesses the correct name on her card before John.
Wrapping Up
Whether you play these party games with your family or friends, these memories you create while playing these games will last a lifetime. Cherish all the moments you’ve spent together playing these games and make everlasting bonds with your loved ones. Be sure to capture these memories with pictures that you can add in a custom photo book and on film to reminisce on for years to come. For more ways to celebrate parties, browse our custom yard signs, bunting banners, selfie frames, and celebration photo boards.
Additional Personalized Games Resources:
- Shop Photo Jigsaw Puzzles
- Shop Custom Playing Cards
- Shop Personalized Memory Games
