Looking for something to do with the kids? How about playing a game together? Board games are a brilliant way to spend quality time together as a family – here are some of the best board games for families, recommended by MyKidsTime parents.
Don’t miss our best content straight to your inbox! Sign up now and get our FREE newsletters packed with fun ideas and things to do with the kids, family-friendly recipes, expert advice, parenting tips and great competitions.
Playing a board game is a really fun family activity – it’s amazing how competitive everyone gets, no matter what age they are! Whether you’re looking for ways to occupy the kids on a rainy day or planning a family game night, these are definitely some of the best board games around.
You May Also Enjoy 15 Completely Different Board Games To Play With The Family
Best Board Games for Families
#1. Monopoly
Buy! Sell! “Go directly to Jail!” Buy real estate, collect rents, build hotels – but don’t go bankrupt as you wheel and deal in one of the world’s most popular games ever published.
2–8 players, ages 8+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#2. Scrabble
The classic crossword game that families have enjoyed for generations.
Build crosswords for points, add to your score by building words on special spaces on the gameboard. If you can use up all seven of your letter tiles on your turn, you get an extra 50 points!
There is also a Scrabble Junior version available.
2–4 players, ages 8+ (5+ for Junior version)
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#3. Connect 4
The well-known vertical game played with “checkers”. The board sits in its stand and players drop checkers into one of the 7 slots, until one player succeeds in getting 4 in a row – horizontally, vertically or diagonally.
2 players, ages 5+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#4. Frustration
The aim of Frustration is to bring your 4 coloured pieces or counters around the board and up to your “home”. The first person to do this wins. You have to roll a 6 to start a piece on its journey.
The frustration sets in when you can’t get the dice roll you want, or a rival player lands on the same space as your counter – then your piece has to go back to space 1, even if you’re very near the end!
2–4 players, ages 5+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#5. Pictureka
Find it fast! Find it first! Discover your Pictureka moment with this exciting, visual twist on everyone’s favourite game, hide and seek! Pick up a card and try to find the matching object on the 9 game board tiles.
In this game it’s finders keepers – you get the card if you find the object fast or first, but watch out, the gameboard can change on any turn. Special mission cards instruct players to turn over, rotate or switch one of the 9 gameboard tiles.
Players take turns rolling the dice, selecting a mission card and trying to find objects fast or first. Three different card decks keep the game exciting – players either have to find a matching image or objects that fall into a category like “things that can fly”. Collect enough cards and you’re the Pictureka champ!
2–4 players, ages 6+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
—
Looking For More?
Don’t let the weather dampen the fun – we’ve got 25 of the best indoor games for 8–12 year olds to keep everyone happy!
—
#6. Ludo
A simple but classic board game for two to four players, in which the players race their four tokens from start to finish according to dice rolls.
2–4 players, ages 4+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#7. Boggle
Boggle begins by shaking a covered tray of sixteen cubic dice, each with a different letter printed on each side. The dice settle into a 4×4 tray so that only the top letter of each cube is visible.
Each player then searches for words that can be constructed from the letters of sequentially adjacent cubes, where “adjacent” cubes are those horizontally, vertically or diagonally neighbouring.
2+ players, ages 8+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#8. Articulate
Articulate is the fast-talking description board game. Players try to describe as many card entries as possible within 30 seconds – no “rhymes with” or “sounds like” allowed!
There is also an Articulate For Kids version of the game for ages 6+.
4+ players, ages 12+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#9. Rummikub
This is one of our favourite family games – and it’s great for maths skills too!
Rummikub is played with a set of 106 elegant tiles that are as durable as they are easy to handle. You need 30 points to “meld” and start the game, and then, like the card game Rummy, players build up runs of the same colour (e.g. Red 7, Red 8, Red 9) or sets of the same number (e.g. Blue 8, Red 8, Black 8). The first person to get rid of their tiles wins.
2–4 players, ages 8+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
You May Also Enjoy 15 Fun Card Games for Kids
#10. Cluedo
This popular murder-mystery deduction game is one of the best board games around!
The object of the game is for players to strategically move around the game board (a mansion), in the guise of one of the game’s six characters, collecting clues to deduce which suspect murdered the game’s perpetual victim, and with which weapon and in which room.
3–6 players, ages 8+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#11. Dixit
Dixit is a multi-award-winning, beautifully illustrated game where the main player is your imagination. It tests your logic, your ability to bluff and your powers of deduction, while keeping the rules to a minimum.
In every round a player becomes the storyteller, calling out a phrase or word that describes one of their cards. The other players then choose one of their own cards that best matches what the storyteller calls out. The cards are uncovered and everyone votes secretly to try to guess the storyteller’s card.
Dixit is simple and great fun. It adapts to any age, and expansion packs mean it never gets boring – ideal for family playing or an evening with friends.
3–6 players, ages 8+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#12. Jungle Speed
In Jungle Speed you must rely on your keen sense of observation and quick reflexes – and a steady hand, which can be hard to maintain during the many fits of laughter!
The wooden Totem sits in the middle of the table, waiting for the player with the fastest reflexes to snatch it up. Each player is dealt a hand of cards, and to win you must be first to get rid of all of yours. Each turn, all players reveal a card; if two are identical, those players must grab for the Totem, and the faster player passes their cards to their unlucky opponent.
To add to the difficulty, some cards are almost identical, which can trick a player into grabbing the Totem by mistake. Other cards force all players to grab at once or change the method of play. Do you have the reflexes to win?
2+ players, ages 7+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#13. Villa Paletti
A long time ago in Italy, a man named Paletti tried to build the tallest castle in the world. But before he could finish, he ran out of money and decided to take columns from the ground floor to construct higher levels above it.
The result was an amazing masterpiece, the Villa Paletti. Can you repeat his daring feat?
Players attempt to get their own columns onto the highest possible level of the Villa Paletti. The game ends when the Villa Paletti collapses, or when players can’t build any further – quick, fun and challenging for the whole family.
2–4 players, ages 8+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#14. Carcassonne
Carcassonne is a clever, exciting tile-laying game for 2–5 players that develops the area around the southern French medieval city of Carcassonne. Players build roads, cities, cloisters and meadows, then deploy their followers – “meeples” – as farmers, knights, monks and thieves.
The rules are easy, and the game is never boring because the board is built from scratch each time, with an endless number of tile combinations and strategies. A firm favourite for many families and a real board game collection staple.
2–5 players, ages 8+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#15. Jenga
Classic block-stacking, stack-crashing fun with JENGA! How will you stack up against the law of gravity?
Stack the wooden blocks in a sturdy tower, then take it in turns to pull out blocks one by one until the whole stack crashes down.
Is your hand steady enough to pull out the last block before the tower collapses?
2+ players, ages 6+ (younger kids can master this too)
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#16. Hungry Hippos
The four hungry hippos want to munch a bunch of marbles! The faster you press their tails, the more marbles they try to chomp. Whoever’s hippo gobbles the most, wins!
This game is a great way to develop your preschooler’s hand-eye co-ordination. Start with one marble in the middle for the littlest players, and add more as their skills improve.
2–4 players, ages 3+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#17. Guess Who
Another family favourite in our house!
It’s the flip-and-find face-guessing game you know and love. Each player chooses a person, and the other has to “guess who”.
Narrow down your guesses with yes or no questions like “Do you have brown eyes?” or “Are you wearing a hat?” Once you have your answer, make your guess.
2 players, ages 6+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#18. Candy Land
This nostalgic favourite has been charming young children for generations.
In this classic board game, you choose your sweet character and dance your way along the rainbow path to Peppermint Forest, the Lagoon of Lord Licorice and Princess Frostine’s Ice Palace.
Watch out for tiles that send you backwards as you make your way to King Kandy’s Castle to win. One of the best board games for preschoolers.
2–4 players, ages 3+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
#19. Junior 30 Seconds
Junior 30 Seconds is described as the “Quick Thinking, Fast Talking Irish Board Game”. Ideally played in teams (though it works fine with just two players taking turns), teams advance along the board by correctly identifying the names their team-mates are describing.
You have 30 seconds to identify as many of the 5 names as you can. Describers can describe names in any way they wish, but can’t say the actual names on the card.
The first team to reach the FINISH square wins.
4+ players, ages 7+
#20. Pie Face
A fun and messy party favourite, Pie Face is filled with suspense – and somebody’s bound to get splatted! Just put some whipped cream (or a wet sponge) on the “hand” of this hilarious game unit and start turning the handles.
It could go off at any time, so keep your fingers crossed and hope you’re not the one who gets a splat in the face! You score a point for every turn without getting pie-faced, and whoever scores 25 points first wins.
PS… whipped cream not included.
2+ players, ages 5+
Available on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
You May Also Enjoy 10 Insanely Easy Ideas For a Fun Family Game Night
#21. Hearts (Online)
Hearts, known for its mix of strategic gameplay and a dash of luck, is a family favourite. Players exchange cards across multiple rounds, aiming to end the game with the fewest points – which means strategically avoiding high-penalty cards, particularly the Queen of Spades. The game’s popularity has grown significantly with its online presence, making it one of the most-played card games around.
1–4 players, ages 8+
Available for free at Hearts.Land
#22. Spades (Online)
Spades is a strategic card game where the objective is for players or teams to accurately bid and win the number of “tricks” they predict, with the goal of reaching 500 points first.
It makes an excellent family game as it encourages teamwork, sharpens critical thinking, and provides an enjoyable way to spend quality time together – all while creating a bit of friendly competition around the table.
1–4 players, ages 8+
Available for free at Spades.co
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best board games for younger children?
Games with simple rules and short turns work best for preschoolers and young children – think Hungry Hippos, Candy Land, Ludo and Guess Who. These games rely more on luck and quick reactions than reading or strategy, so little ones can join in and win too.
What board games work well for mixed-age family game nights?
Games that don’t depend heavily on reading or complex strategy tend to bring the whole family together, whatever the age gap – Jenga, Connect 4, Pie Face and Dixit are all good options where younger and older players can compete on a fairly level footing.
Are there good board games for building vocabulary or word skills?
Yes – Scrabble, Boggle and Articulate are all great choices if you want a game night that also gives language and quick thinking a workout.
Can we play some of these games without buying anything?
Yes – both Hearts and Spades are available to play online for free, which is handy if you fancy a family card game night without adding to the games shelf.
Related Articles
- 15 Completely Different Board Games To Play With The Family
- 25 of the Best Indoor Games for 8–12 Year Olds
- 15 Fun Card Games for Kids
- 10 Insanely Easy Ideas For a Fun Family Game Night
Browse More Rainy Day Ideas
Fancy more inspiration for the next wet weekend or quiet evening in? Take a look through our rainy day activities for more games, crafts and ideas the whole family can enjoy together.
Don’t Miss Our Best Ideas
Want more family game ideas, activities and parenting tips delivered straight to your inbox? Sign up for our free MyKidsTime newsletter for weekly inspiration, competitions and expert advice.
Which of these best board games are your family’s favourites? Leave a comment below and let us know – we’d love to hear from you!
