What are the best family board games for a screen-free evening?

A board game is the easiest screen-free evening there is. Everyone sits at the same table, looking at the same thing, for a fixed and agreed amount of time. It has a beginning, a middle and an end, which is more than you can say for an evening of scrolling.

Below are 15 games, grouped by the youngest age the publisher recommends. We have checked each one’s player count, age rating and stated play time on the publisher’s own site or a UK distributor’s listing, and each is on sale in the UK. No prices, no affiliate links, no rankings within groups. We earn nothing from any of them.

What are the best family board games?

The best ones are short, quick to teach and fun even when you lose. That rules out a lot of long strategy games that adults love and children tolerate. Most of the 15 below play in 30 minutes or under, which matters more than anything on a school night: a short game you can play twice beats a long game nobody finishes.

A note on ages. The number on the box is the publisher’s guide to the rules, reading level and small parts, not a test of your child. A seven-year-old who plays a lot of games may manage an 8+ game with a grown-up on their team; a reluctant ten-year-old may prefer something rated younger.

What are the best board games for 4 and 5-year-olds?

Four that do not rely on reading:

• Dobble Kids (Zygomatic). 2 to 5 players, 4+, about 10 minutes.^[2] The animal version of Dobble: spot the matching picture first. Fast, loud and fair, because small children are often quicker than adults.
• My First Carcassonne (Hans im Glück, published in English by Z-Man). 2 to 4 players, 4+, about 30 minutes.^[1] A gentle tile-laying game; children build roads and race to place their figures.
• Outfoxed! (Gamewright). 2 to 4 players, 5+, about 20 minutes.^[3] A co-operative whodunnit: everyone works together to find which fox stole the pie before it escapes.
• Dragomino (Blue Orange). 2 to 4 players, 5+, about 15 minutes.^[4] A junior take on Kingdomino: match landscapes and hunt for baby dragon eggs.

What are the best board games for 6 to 7-year-olds?

Four that introduce a bit more planning:

• Dobble (Zygomatic). 2 to 8 players, 6+, about 15 minutes.^[2] The original symbol-spotting card game, and a good one for a crowd because it takes up to eight.
• Ticket to Ride: First Journey (Days of Wonder). 2 to 4 players, 6+, 15 to 30 minutes.^[5] A simpler version of the train-route game. Collect coloured cards, claim routes between cities. Asmodee UK lists the Europe map edition.
• Labyrinth (Ravensburger). 2 to 4 players, 7+.^[6] The shifting maze: push a tile in to move the walls, then race for your treasure.
• Carcassonne (Hans im Glück / Z-Man). 2 to 5 players, 7+, 30 to 45 minutes.^[1] Lay tiles to build a medieval landscape of roads, cities and fields. A natural step up from My First Carcassonne.

What are the best board games for 8-year-olds and up?

Five that work just as well with adults:

• Kingdomino (Blue Orange). 2 to 4 players, 8+, about 15 minutes.^[4] Build a five-by-five kingdom from domino tiles. Quick to learn, with a satisfying small puzzle in every turn.
• Sushi Go! (Gamewright). 2 to 5 players, 8+, about 15 minutes.^[3] Pick a card, pass the rest. Easy to teach in a minute and very portable.
• Azul (Plan B Games). 2 to 4 players, 8+, 30 to 45 minutes.^[8] Draft coloured tiles to decorate a palace wall. Calm, pretty and surprisingly cut-throat.
• Dixit (Libellud). 3 to 8 players, 8+, about 30 minutes.^[9] A storytelling game with dreamlike picture cards. Give a clue that some, but not all, players will guess. Brilliant for mixed ages.
• Just One (Repos Production). 3 to 7 players, 8+, about 20 minutes.^[8] A co-operative word game: everyone writes a one-word clue, but identical clues are cancelled. The current UK version is the “Refresh” edition.

What are the best family board games for teens and adults?

Two rated 10+ that teenagers tend not to dismiss as babyish:

• Codenames (Czech Games Edition). 4 to 8 or more players, 10+, about 15 minutes.^[7] Two teams, one-word clues, a grid of secret agents. The current edition is the 2025 one. Good for big groups and older grandparents.
• Forbidden Island (Gamewright). 2 to 4 players, 10+, about 30 minutes.^[3] A co-operative adventure: grab four treasures before the island sinks. A good first “proper” strategy game for a family.

Several of the 8+ games above, especially Dixit, Just One and Azul, are just as popular with adults. For teenagers, letting them teach the game is often the easiest way in.

What is the best co-operative board game for families?

Outfoxed! for younger children and Forbidden Island for older ones, with Just One somewhere in between.^[3] In co-operative games everybody plays against the game rather than each other. That takes the sting out of losing and is often the fix for siblings who cannot finish a competitive game without a row.

What does family game night teach kids?

Mostly the things that are hard to teach any other way. Taking turns. Waiting. Following rules you did not write. Losing to your little sister and still shaking hands. Reading a table of faces to guess what someone is planning. None of that needs a study to be worth having, and we will not pretend a game of Dobble is a brain-training programme.

What it does reliably offer is time: a fixed half hour where everyone is in the same room paying attention to the same thing, with no feed competing for anyone’s eyes.

How do you make a family game night actually happen?

Make it small, regular and boring to organise:

1. Pick a fixed slot. Same evening, same time. Our guide to a phone-free family hour explains how to protect one.
2. Phones in another room, including the adults’. A game where one player keeps checking a screen is a game nobody enjoys.
3. Let children choose and teach. A child who explains the rules owns the evening.
4. Keep it short. Stop while everyone still wants one more go.
5. Rotate the winner’s privilege: the winner picks the next game, or the snack.
6. Accept house rules. If a five-year-old needs an easier version, change the rules. Nobody is checking.

Do you need to buy new games?

No. Charity shops often have classics, friends may lend one to try, and a pack of cards covers dozens of family games for nothing. Start with what is in the cupboard. The best family board game is the one that gets played.

If you would like a ready-made structure for the evening itself, the Family Phone-Free Hour Kit has everything you need to make it a habit that lasts.