The 25 Best Party Card Games Ranked

The ultimate ranked list of the 25 best party card games for every occasion. Discover top picks for couples, large groups, and families, plus drinking game adaptations.

#1

Cards Against Humanity

The infamous party game for horrible people. Match hilarious and often inappropriate answer cards to a prompt.

Players 4-20+
Play Time 30-90 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating High
Best For Large Groups
#2

Exploding Kittens

A highly-strategic, kitty-powered version of Russian Roulette. Avoid drawing the exploding kitten or use defuse cards to survive.

Players 2-5
Play Time 15 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Families
#3

What Do You Meme

Compete to create the funniest meme by pairing caption cards with popular photo meme templates.

Players 3-20+
Play Time 30-90 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating Medium-High
Best For Large Groups
#4

Unstable Unicorns

Build a Unicorn Army. Betray your friends. Unicorns are your friends now.

Players 2-8
Play Time 30-45 min
Difficulty Medium
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Families
#5

Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza

A fast-paced slapping game where you must match spoken words with the cards played. Fast hands win!

Players 3-8
Play Time 10-15 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating None
Best For Families
#6

Throw Throw Burrito

A dodgeball card game. Collect matching sets of cards faster than your opponents while simultaneously ducking, dodging, and throwing squishy airborne burritos.

Players 2-6
Play Time 15 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating None
Best For Families
#7

Codenames

Two rival spymasters know the secret identities of 25 agents. Their teammates know the agents only by their CODENAMES.

Players 2-8+
Play Time 15 min
Difficulty Medium
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Large Groups
#8

The Mind

A cooperative game where you play cards in ascending order. The catch? You cannot communicate with each other in any way.

Players 2-4
Play Time 20 min
Difficulty Medium
NSFW Rating None
Best For Couples, Small Groups
#9

Wavelength

A social guessing game where two teams compete to read each other's minds and locate a hidden target on a spectrum.

Players 2-12+
Play Time 30-45 min
Difficulty Medium
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Large Groups
#10

Joking Hazard

From the creators of Cyanide & Happiness, build terrible comics together using a deck of delightfully awful cards.

Players 3-10
Play Time 30-90 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating High
Best For Large Groups
#11

Bad People

Find out what your friends really think of you in this hilarious and brutal voting game.

Players 3-10
Play Time 20-60 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating High
Best For Large Groups
#12

Telestrations

The telephone game turned into a sketching game. Miscommunications lead to hilarious drawings and guesses.

Players 4-8
Play Time 30 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Families, Large Groups
#13

Blank Slate

Pick a word that completes the phrase and try to match it with exactly one other player. Great casual fun.

Players 3-8
Play Time 20-30 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Families
#14

Sushi Go

Pass cards around the table to build the best sushi meal. A fast-playing card drafting game.

Players 2-5
Play Time 15 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating None
Best For Families
#15

Love Letter

A game of risk, deduction, and luck where you try to deliver your love letter to the Princess while keeping other players away.

Players 2-4
Play Time 20 min
Difficulty Medium
NSFW Rating None
Best For Couples, Small Groups
#16

Secret Hitler

A dramatic game of political intrigue and betrayal set in 1930s Germany.

Players 5-10
Play Time 45 min
Difficulty Medium
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Large Groups
#17

Coup

Bluff, bribe, and manipulate your way to power in a dystopian universe.

Players 2-6
Play Time 15 min
Difficulty Medium
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Small Groups
#18

The Resistance

A party game of social deduction. Are you an operative or an imperial spy?

Players 5-10
Play Time 30 min
Difficulty Medium
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Large Groups
#19

Monikers

A dumb party game that respects your intelligence. Guess names of people and characters over three increasingly difficult rounds.

Players 4-16
Play Time 30-60 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating Medium
Best For Large Groups
#20

Dixit

A beautifully illustrated game of creative guesswork and storytelling.

Players 3-6
Play Time 30 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating None
Best For Families
#21

Snake Oil

Pitch hilarious inventions to wacky customers using word cards from your hand.

Players 3-10
Play Time 20-30 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Families, Large Groups
#22

Superfight

Argue with your friends over ridiculous hypothetical fights between super-powered characters.

Players 3-10
Play Time 30 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Large Groups
#23

Poetry for Neanderthals

A competitive word-guessing game where you can only give clues in single-syllable words.

Players 2-12
Play Time 15 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Families, Large Groups
#24

Fluxx

The card game with ever-changing rules. Play cards to modify the goals, rules, and actions of the game.

Players 2-6
Play Time 5-30 min
Difficulty Medium
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Small Groups
#25

We're Doomed!

A frantic timed game where players collaborate (and betray each other) to build a spaceship before the world ends.

Players 4-10
Play Time 15 min
Difficulty Low
NSFW Rating Low
Best For Large Groups

Drinking Game Adaptations

Many of these party card games can be easily adapted into fun drinking games for adults:

  • Cards Against Humanity: Take a drink if your card is picked as the worst answer, or if you don't understand the winning reference.
  • Exploding Kittens: Drink when you draw an Exploding Kitten, or whenever you play an attack card.
  • What Do You Meme?: The person who plays the funniest meme assigns a drink to someone else.
  • Uno (DIY rules): Take a sip every time a +2 or Reverse is played. Finish your drink for a +4!

DIY Card Game Ideas

Don't have a game on hand? Create your own with blank cards or standard decks:

  • Custom Cards Against Humanity: Write inside jokes, friend names, and personal references on blank index cards.
  • The Hat Game / Monikers: Everyone writes down 5 nouns (people, places, things) on slips of paper. Put them in a hat and play charades/taboo in teams.
  • Spoons: All you need is a standard deck of cards and some spoons from the kitchen for this fast-paced matching game.
  • Kings Cup: A classic party drinking game using just a standard deck of cards and assigning rules to each card value.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best party card game for large groups?
Games like Cards Against Humanity, Wavelength, and Codenames are perfect for large groups as they can accommodate 8 or more players easily and keep everyone engaged.
Are there any good party card games for just two players?
Yes! Love Letter and The Mind are fantastic options that play exceptionally well with just two players or as a couple.
What makes a good party card game?
The best party card games are easy to learn, quick to play, have high player interaction, and create memorable, hilarious moments among friends and family.
Can these games be played with kids?
Many of them can! Games like Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza, Sushi Go, and Exploding Kittens are family-friendly. Always check the NSFW rating before playing with younger audiences.
How long do party card games usually take?
Most party card games are designed to be fast-paced, typically taking anywhere from 15 to 45 minutes per round.