A Christmas table is mixed: somebody is nine, somebody is eighty, and nobody wants a rulebook. So the list opens with games where the phone does the admin. Charades sends the word to the actor’s phone and runs the clock. Scribble Race is one person drawing while everyone else guesses.
For family in other houses, start a video call and send the room link. In Quiz Night, Survey Showdown and Herd Think everybody answers at once on their own screen, so nobody has to be heard over the call to take a turn.
These are the same games we run all year; they are not dressed up for Christmas. For festive words to act and draw, the word pages under the list have Christmas sets you can print.
Pick by the night you’re having
Charades
Nothing to type, and one word to read. The phone keeps the time and the score.
Family in different houses
Quiz Night
Everyone answers on their own screen at once, so a laggy call costs nobody a turn.
Only one phone to hand
Spectrum
Choose Play on one phone and pass it round. Only the clue giver needs to see the target.
After the children are in bed
Bad Cards
Three decks, chosen by the host. After Dark is 18+ and only goes in if somebody ticks it.Eight for a full house, easiest first
Charades4–12 players · 5–10 minThe word goes to the actor’s phone and nowhere else. The clock and the score run themselves. Four to twelve, in two teams.
Scribble Race2–12 players · up to 100 with Teams · 10–20 minOne draws, the rest type guesses, and letters of the word appear as hints. Two to twelve.
Quiz Night1–12 players · 3–19 minFour options, and everyone answers at once. Questions in the back half pay double, so nobody is out of it early.
Survey Showdown2–12 players · 5 minSix hidden survey answers and a board each. Three sixty-second boards: five minutes, for two to twelve.
Herd Think3–12 players · up to 100 with Teams · 10–15 minWrite what you think everyone else will write. There are no right answers, only popular ones, so knowing things is no advantage.
Spectrum1–12 players · up to 100 with Teams · 10–15 minOne clue and a dial. A whole room can play on one phone passed round, or with the dial up on the TV.
Sketch Telephone2–10 players · 10–15 minWrite a sentence, the next person draws it, the next describes the drawing. No points: the reveal is the prize.
Bad Cards3–12 players · 5–10 minFill-in-the-blank cards and a judge. The host picks the deck, and Family is the one written to be playable with children at the table.Christmas words to act out and draw
Charades ideas →
1,451 things to act out, for kids, for grown-ups and for Christmas, with cards to print.
Pictionary words →
691 words to draw from easy to hard, 100 for Christmas, a word generator with a timer, and cards to print.
Charades generator →
The word fills the actor’s screen, with a timer and a count of words guessed. Pass the phone to the next actor.
Playing in under a minute
- 1One person opens tableparty.io on a phone or a laptop and picks a game.
- 2Everyone else types the four-letter room code on their own phone.
- 3Play. Anything secret stays on your own screen, so it works across a table or a video call.
Questions about Christmas party games to play online
Which games suit children and grandparents together?
Charades, Scribble Race and Quiz Night. You act, draw or tap one of four answers, and the phone handles the clock and the score. Players do need to read: the quiz questions, or the word they act or draw.
How do relatives in other houses join?
Start a video call, open a game and send them the room link or code. They join in a browser on their own phone or laptop and sit in the same room as the people on your sofa.
Is the content suitable for a family?
It depends on the game. In Herd Think, Sketch Telephone and Spectrum the table writes the answers, so they are as polite as your family. Bad Cards has a Family deck, and its 18+ deck stays out unless the host adds it.
Can we put a game on the TV?
Yes, for six of the eight. Open tableparty.io/tv on a television, or a laptop plugged into one, and connect it to your room; answers stay on the phones. Charades and Survey Showdown play on the phones alone.