Family Christmas Games for All Ages: 15 Games Kids and Grandparents Can Play

The best family Christmas games let a six-year-old and a grandparent play on the same team: Christmas charades, Christmas Would You Rather, a holiday categories game, and Christmas Jeopardy all work for every age and need no prep. Open them on a phone or the TV, pick a festive deck, and the game handles the words, questions, timer and score.

Below are 15 Christmas games for the whole family, sorted by who they suit, plus gift games with prizes and tips for mixed-age tables.

Key takeaways

• Christmas charades and Christmas Would You Rather suit every age from about four up, and kids can act or vote alongside adults.

• For big family gatherings, split into teams and play Christmas Jeopardy or the Christmas categories game on the TV.

• Pair a young child with a teen or grandparent so nobody plays alone.

• Every CardYard game here runs free in a browser with no download, and the festive lists can be printed.

Family Christmas games at a glance

Christmas games for little kids and grandparents

These games need no reading speed or quick reflexes, so the youngest and oldest players can shine.

1. Christmas charades

Christmas charades gives you festive things to act out: building a snowman, wrapping a present, Rudolph's nose. Read the prompt to younger kids, or let them act in pairs. For ages 4 to 12, the kids charades generator keeps every word easy to mime, and the classic decks are free with no daily limit.

2. Christmas Would You Rather

Read a question from the 80 Christmas Would You Rather questions, and everyone picks a side before anyone explains. The list avoids adult material, starts with easy questions for children, and moves to harder debates for older players. For fresh questions, open Would You Rather with the Christmas category.

3. Hue Hunt

Hue Hunt is a color-guessing game for 2 to 10 players on one phone or tablet. One player picks a secret color and gives a short clue like "candy cane," and everyone else guesses on the color board. Grandparents and young kids are on equal footing because nobody needs to read fast.

4. What's missing from the tree?

Put about ten small decorations on a tray, let everyone look, then cover the tray and remove one. The first to name the missing ornament wins the round. The NSPCC rates this memory game for ages 4 and up and notes it uses things you already have at home (NSPCC Christmas games, retrieved 2026-10-17).

5. Name that carol

One person hums a Christmas song, and the first to name it gets a point. It needs no equipment and works around the dinner table.

Team games for big family gatherings

When cousins, aunts and grandparents fill the living room, team games keep everyone involved.

6. Christmas Jeopardy

Christmas Jeopardy builds a board of 25 clues in five festive categories, such as traditions, movies and songs. Play with two to four teams on the TV, call out answers, and the board keeps score. A shared screen is free within the daily generation allowance, and each new board uses one. See the Christmas Jeopardy questions to preview the format.

7. Christmas categories game

The Christmas categories game has eight original holiday lists, such as "something beside a fireplace" or "a gift for a coworker." Roll a letter, start the timer, and teams write one answer per category. Answers nobody else wrote score a point. Print the lists if you want a phone-free table.

8. Pictionary

Pictionary needs one phone and a pad of paper. Choose easy objects for kids and harder words for adults, and let each team's drawer sketch against the timer.

9. 15 Words or Less

In 15 Words or Less, a clue-giver gets eight words to describe and only fifteen spoken clue words to use. It suits teens and adults, and younger players can switch to 25 words for an easier round.

10. Christmas photo quiz

Collect old Christmas photos of family members, show them one at a time, and let teams guess who is in each picture. It gets the grandparents telling stories, which is half the fun.

Games for teens and adults

11. Two Truths and a Lie: Christmas edition

Each player shares three Christmas memories, one made up. Two Truths and a Lie lets 2 to 12 players write their statements on one phone behind a privacy screen, then vote and score.

12. Imposter

In Imposter, everyone but one player sees the same secret word. Pick the food theme for a Christmas dinner feel, give clues, and vote out the Imposter before they guess the word. It suits 3 to 12 players aged 10 and up.

Christmas games with gifts and prizes

13. Stop the Timer gift pass

Open Stop the Timer in Random Bomb mode and pass a wrapped prize around with the phone. When the hidden countdown ends, whoever holds the gift keeps it or unwraps one layer.

14. White Elephant gift swap

Everyone brings one wrapped gift. Players draw numbers, then take turns opening a new gift or stealing one already opened. Set a price limit so the swap feels fair.

15. Pass the parcel

Wrap a small prize in many layers with a sweet between each one. Play music, pass the parcel, and the person holding it when the music stops removes one layer. It works best for children under ten.

How do you play Christmas games with kids and adults together?

• Mix the teams. Put one young child, one teen and one adult on each team.

• Let kids act or vote. Children shine in charades and Would You Rather, where nobody needs to spell.

• Use the easy decks. CardYard's kids and family settings keep prompts simple and clean.

• Keep rounds short. Use 30 to 60 second turns so younger players stay focused.

• Give small prizes to everyone. A chocolate for each round winner keeps the mood friendly.

For more holiday ideas, see our Christmas party games and, for work events, the office Christmas party games.