19 Free Online Family Games to Play Virtually & on Zoom

You found our list of fun online family games.

Virtual family games are competitions to enjoy with relatives via virtual meeting software like FaceTime, Zoom, and Skype. For example, online trivia, Pictionary, and digital scavenger hunts. The purpose of these games is to facilitate family bonding and fun between distanced relatives. These activities are also known as “family games online.”

These games are ideal for virtual game nights and virtual family reunions. These activities can also double as virtual team building games, online group games and online games for teams.

This list includes:

• virtual family games
• online games to play with cousins
• free online games to play with family
• family games to play online
• Zoom games for families

Here we go!

List of online family games

From Family Feud to card games to Most Likely To, here are the most entertaining games you can play with family online.

1. Digital Scavenger Hunts

Digital scavenger hunts make fun virtual party games for families because they get players up and moving. These games encourage participants to race off-screen to grab objects or perform tasks.

There are a few different ways to play these games remotely.

Method 1:

Screenshare a list of prompts and give players five to ten minutes to grab as many objects as possible. Award points for each unique item on the list the individual or team retrieves.

Method 2:

Host a lightning scavenger hunt. Read prompts one at a time, and award points to the first player who shows the object onscreen or virtually raises their hand and performs the requested action.

Method 3:

Use virtual scavenger hunt apps to play treasure hunts together.

However you choose to play, here is a starter template perfect for online family game night:

For more tips, check out our guide to virtual scavenger hunts and this list of online museum scavenger hunts.

2. Online Trivia

Trivia is one of the easiest games to play with your family on Zoom. There are a few different ways to host online trivia.

Method 1:

Split the group into teams by using breakout rooms. Deliver questions and collect answers by using a Google Form or TypeForm. Give teams 10 to 15 minutes to answer each round of questions, then announce the correct responses back in the main room. Award one point for every correct answer.

Method 2:

Ask questions aloud, and award points to the team or individual who types the correct answer most quickly in the chat.

Method 3:

Prior to game night, create a custom trivia quiz on Kahoot. To start the game, participants will enter the room pin on their mobile devices. Players will answer questions on their phones or tablets. Kahoot automatically tabulates scores based on speed and accuracy of responses, and names a winner at the end of the game.

The best part of trivia is that you can tailor questions to fit your family’s areas of interest and expertise. You could even create a special family-related trivia that challenges players to answer questions about relatives.

For playing tips and sample questions, check out our guide to virtual trivia.

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3. Family Bingo

Bingo is a fun video call game to play at online social events. Many relatives already play imaginary games of Bingo during family gatherings, mentally marking off a square each time Uncle Frank relives high school football days or grandma calls one of the cousins the wrong name. Remote Family Bingo lets the whole crew join the fun. Simply send participants randomized Bingo boards and instruct each player to mark squares when they observe the occurrences therein.

We made a template you can use for your game:

The first player to mark five boxes in a row, column, or diagonal wins.

For more information, check out our guide to online team building Bingo.

4. Jeopardy

Jeopardy is a game that appeals to multiple generations and is easy to play online. First, download a free Jeopardy slideshow template from the web, then input your own questions and answers. It is a good idea to base questions on your relatives’ interests and areas of expertise. When the call starts, pull up the game board and share your screen.

The game works best with two to three teams, however you can play as individuals if you have a small group. Each team will “buzz in” to answer by using the raise hand feature. The first team to answer correctly gains points and gets to choose the next category. Remember that all answers must be in the form of a question.

The last round is final Jeopardy, where teams must wager a percentage of points before hearing the question. Each team privately messages guesses to the host, and when all answers are in the host awards points accordingly.

Read full instructions on how to play group Jeopardy and here are apps to play Jeopardy online.

5. Family Feud

Family Feud is a game where two families or sides of a family compete to guess survey responses correctly. When playing with your own family, you can divide teams in a variety of ways, such as kids vs adults, men vs women, or household vs household.

You can use a Family Feud app or website to play the game together online. Or, you can play a DIY version by filling in a template or gathering survey responses prior to the call.

Here are some example Family Feud categories:

• Name something you might find at a wedding
• Phrases you never want to hear your father say
• Why is mom mad?
• Reasons you write a bad review.
• Worst times to fall asleep
• Topics you shouldn’t bring up on a first date
• Foods that go with pasta
• Pets you wouldn’t want to see your child bring home
• Phrase that start with the word “blue”

Here is a list of questions and answers for Family Feud games and questions for coworker feud.

And here are more virtual game shows you can play.

6. Minute to Win It

Minute to win it games are physical and mental challenges to complete in one minute or less. These games require quick thinking and fast reflexes, and are fun to watch and participate in.

Many of these games are playable online. To host virtual minute to win it tournaments, first gather supplies. The easiest approach is to send participants lists of materials to bring to the call. Or, you can choose challenges that do not require props.

Each round, teams elect one representative to complete the challenge. Using an online timer or smartphone stopwatch, time out sixty seconds. When the round ends, award points based on how quickly or effectively players completed the challenge.

Here are a few examples of virtual minute to win it games:

• Cookie Face: Players place a cookie on their foreheads, and must move the treat into their mouths without using hands.
• Human Dictionary: The host shows participants two words that start with the same letter, and players have sixty seconds to list as many words that fall alphabetically between the two terms as possible in the chat.
• Noodle Doodlin’: Participants put a sticky note on their foreheads, and must draw an object without looking at the paper.

Check out our full list of virtual minute to win it games.

7. Pictionary

Pictionary is one of the easiest free virtual family games. You and your teammates can use a digital whiteboard to draw on, and can pick prompts by using a Pictionary generator. The artist can either pick their own word, or you can privately message the prompt by using the chat.

As soon as the artist starts drawing, team members have one or two minutes to guess the object. Teams that guess correctly earn one point.

Pro-tip: Take screenshots of the most abstract and amusing artwork, and send attendees recap emails post-event.

Check out more fun FaceTime games and virtual Pictionary games.

8. Scattergories

Scattergories is a timed word game. Each round starts with a player rolling a letter die. Participants then have two or three minutes to answer a list of categories, using words that start with the chosen letter. When time is up, players read out the answers. No players can have the same answers, otherwise they must cross out the word and neither receives a point. The player with the most points at the end of the round wins.

List of categories:

• A girls name
• A boys name
• Five letter words
• Tropical location
• Capital cities
• Villians
• Ice cream flavors
• Sandwiches
• Vacation spots
• Excuses for being late
• Reasons for getting grounded
• Things that happen at a family reunion

You can also use this Scattergories generator for categories:

You could also create categories that are specific to your own family, such as “relatives with summer birthdays,” or “holiday traditions.”

Players can challenge dubious answers and put the response to a vote. Alliteration is worth double or triple scores.

Learn more about Scattergories games and check out more vocabulary games.

9. Online Escape Rooms

Online escape rooms are challenges that require players to solve riddles, logic puzzles, and mysteries in a set amount of time. In real life, these activities typically take place in a themed-room with a locked door, and players must complete the challenge to open the door and escape. Virtual escape rooms often take a choose-your-own-adventure format, and players must select the correct option on a form or quiz to progress to the next puzzle. Digital escape rooms are easier to set up than their real-life counterparts, since you can set the atmosphere by using a festive Zoom background instead of decorating a room. While online versions involve less movement than traditional escape rooms, the puzzles are just as intricate and the time limit causes an air of excitement.

Check out our full list of online escape rooms.

10. Most Likely To

Most Likely To is a game of superlatives that is especially fun to play in big groups. One player reads out a prompt that begins with “Most likely to….” and the other players vote for the family member who best fits the description. Participants can answer via chat, poll, or audio.

Here are some Most Likely To prompts:

• Play a prank
• Have a messy room
• Bring home a stray pet
• Trip up the stairs
• Fall asleep at the dinner table
• Forget the punchline to a joke
• Forget a relative’s birthday
• Forget your own birthday
• Pick out the perfect present
• Take the last slice of pizza
• Cheat at a board game
• Lie to get you out of trouble
• Tell an embarrassing childhood story
• Call you the wrong name
• Take photos at a family reunion
• Let you cry on their shoulder
• Answer your phone call in the middle of the night
• Instantly brighten your day

You can award one point to the relative who wins the most votes each round, but we recommend playing just for fun.

Check out more entertaining question games.

11. Party Quirks

Party quirks is a fun improvisation game that tests players’ impromptu acting skills. First, split the group into party hosts and partygoers. Then, privately message each of the partygoers a distinct characteristic. Next, start the scene and give players between five to ten minutes to interact. At the end of each round, the party hosts must guest the identities of the guests.

Here are some example party quirk prompts:

• Identity thief
• Colorblind clown
• Runaway bride
• A member of the witness protection program
• A cat who is mad he cannot sit on the keyboard
• Time traveler from one day in the future
• Desperately trying not to break out into song
• Allergic to the internet
• Movie director pitching reboot ideas

The best party quirks are guessable though not immediately obvious. Participants can take turns playing guessers and guests.

Check out more amusing improv games.

12. Jackbox Games

Jackbox Games are digital party games that come in bundles. Each party pack contains five games that family members can play together. Up to eight players can join a game. The account holder loads the main game on the screen, and the other participants use mobile devices to respond to questions and challenges. Jackbox Games include drawing games, trivia, and games of deception.

Learn more about Jackbox Games.

13. Heads Up!

Heads Up! is an app game meant for two or more players. The first participant selects a category, then holds their mobile device up to their forehead, screen out. The app displays a word, often a celebrity, movie, or TV show. The other players give clues that help the first participant guess the reference. After guessing correctly, the first player quickly tilts the phone to generate a new clue. The round continues until the timer runs out, and then another player takes a turn.

To play the game via video call, the turn taker should first hide their own video so that they cannot see the answer.

Learn more about Heads Up!

14. Virtual Jigsaw Puzzles

Family games can be collaborative instead of competitive. Solving jigsaw puzzles together requires concentration and teamwork, and can be quite relaxing though mentally stimulating. Puzzles are probably the last activity that come to mind when considering games to play on Zoom. However, working on puzzles together remotely is actually quite easy.

Simply go to Jigsawexplorer, pick a puzzle, then create a game link. Once you share the link with other attendees, you will be able to work on the same puzzle from different computers.

Check out more group puzzles.

15. Online Murder Mysteries

Murder mysteries are roleplaying games that challenge players to become pretend detectives. Each game begins with a fictional killing. Typically, every participant receives a role to play and lines to read. While performing parts, players must hunt for clues and determine the identity of the murderer. The object of the game is to guess the killer by the time the script ends. To play on Zoom, email each attendee their part of the script, then gather on video call to act out the scenes. Using costumes, virtual backgrounds, and props makes the game more fun. You could also book a hosted murder mystery game where a guide gives out hints and puzzles before revealing the culprit at the end.

Check out our full list of online murder mystery games.

16. Virtual Charades

Charades is one of the most basic virtual family games. To play the game via video call, use a charade generator to pick a prompt, or privately message the phrase to the chosen participant. Be sure to spotlight the player taking a turn so that all attendees can see properly. The turntaker must act out the phrase or concept without speaking, mouthing the words, or using the chat. The first player to correctly guess the prompt wins points.

17. Reverse Charades

Reverse Charades puts a twist on the classic party game. Instead of a group of players guessing the gestures of one participant, one player interprets the actions of a group. To start, first form teams. Then, send a prompt to all members of a team except one. Players will have one minute to simultaneously act out the prompt. By the end of the minute, the non-miming player must guess the prompt correctly to win points for the team.

18. Online Card Games

Many families enjoy playing card games together. Thanks to online game platforms like PlayingCards.io, it is easy to play your favorite card or board games with faraway relatives. PlayingCards.io hosts games like hearts, go fish, crazy eights, and checkers. The site also has a custom card builder, which you can use to recreate games like Apples to Apples or Cards Against Humanity, or invent a completely new game. The platform generates a room code you can give to family members, enabling you to play with the same deck or board across multiple devices.

Learn more about PlayingCards.io.

19. Family Fact or Fiction?

Family Fact or Fiction? is a true or false quiz that tests relatives’ family knowledge. To play, family members take turns sharing statements about the family. For example, “great-great-grandpa was a bootlegger,” or, “we missed last Thanksgiving because our dog had diarrhea.” Other players must guess whether the declaration is a fact or a fabrication.

Here are some more prompts:

• We’re descended from royalty
• One of our relatives dated a celebrity
• We have a reality show star in our midst
• This cousin accidentally gave their household food poisoning
• This uncle made up their own nickname
• This aunt once dated a con man

You can make up more specific examples. The more outrageous the statement, the more fun it is to figure out the truth. To cast votes, players can either use the poll feature, or react with a thumbs up or thumbs down.

Final Thoughts

Online games give family members a chance to spend quality time together while far apart. These activities recreate the experience of hunkering down in the living room or gathering around the dining room table, even if players are in different cities or countries.

Next, check out our list of online activities for Mother’s Day, this one for online games to play on Father’s Day and these Family Day activities for work.

We also have a list of the best online board games to play with friends, list of ideas for corporate family fun day and list of virtual amazing race activities.