The 12 Best Board Games for Kids, Sorted by Age
The right board game for a kid depends on two numbers: their age, and how much reading the cards ask of them. A game rated 8+ can work for a sharp six-year-old if it uses pictures, and fall flat with a ten-year-old if every card is a paragraph.
So this list is sorted by age band, and every pick says how much reading it needs. Ten of the twelve we have reviewed and scored on our Bamboo (quick to learn) and Pandas (fun) scales. Our Pandas score doubles as the adult test: a game that scored 4 or 5 is one the grown-ups at the table will enjoy too. The two picks for the youngest kids, Outfoxed! and Rhino Hero, we have not scored, and their entries say so. The age bands follow the box ratings, and the reading column is our judgment from the cards themselves.
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The Short Answer
- Age 5: Outfoxed!, a cooperative mystery where nobody loses alone (not yet scored by us).
- Age 6: Happy Salmon, two minutes of shouting with no reading at all.
- Age 7: Cover Your Assets, the best game on this list for kids and adults together.
- Age 8: Sushi Go Party, five minutes to teach and seats up to eight.
- Age 10 and up: The Crew: Mission Deep Sea, a cooperative card game with 32 missions.
Buying for the holidays? Our Black Friday board game deals page covers what usually gets discounted and when, and our board game gift guide sorts picks by who you are buying for. Last verified: October 2026.
All 12 at a Glance
| Game | Age on box | Players | Time | Reading needed | Our score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outfoxed! | 5+ | 2–4 | 20 min | None | Not scored |
| Rhino Hero | 5+ | 2–5 | 5–15 min | None | Not scored |
| Happy Salmon | 6+ | 3–8 | 2–5 min a round | None | 5 Bamboo, 4 Pandas |
| Hot Streak | 6+ | 3–8 | 20 min | None | 4 Bamboo, 4 Pandas |
| Cover Your Assets | 7+ | 2–6 | 20–40 min | Very little | 5 Bamboo, 5 Pandas |
| Sequence | 7+ | 2–12 | 20–30 min | None | 5 Bamboo, 4 Pandas |
| Carcassonne | 7+ | 2–5 | 30–45 min | None | 5 Bamboo, 4 Pandas |
| Sushi Go Party | 8+ | 2–8 | 20–30 min | Very little | 5 Bamboo, 5 Pandas |
| King of Tokyo | 8+ | 2–6 | 30 min | Some (power cards) | 5 Bamboo, 4 Pandas |
| Ticket to Ride | 8+ | 2–5 | 30–60 min | Some (city names) | 4 Bamboo, 4 Pandas |
| The Crew: Mission Deep Sea | 10+ | 3–5 (2 with a variant) | ~20 min a mission | Some | 4 Bamboo, 5 Pandas |
| Love Letter | 10+ | 2–6 | 5–15 min | Yes (card text) | 5 Bamboo, 4 Pandas |
Ages, player counts and times are the publishers’ figures. The reading column is our judgment from the components.
Ages 5 and 6
Board games for 5-year-olds have to work without reading and end before attention does. These four need no reading, and none takes longer than 20 minutes. For nine picks at this age, with the cooperative games flagged, see our best board games for 5- and 6-year-olds.
1. Outfoxed! — A Mystery Nobody Loses Alone
Outfoxed! is a cooperative whodunit. A fox has stolen a pot pie, and the players work together to move around the board, collect clues and run them through a decoder to rule out suspects before the thief reaches the exit.
Because everyone is on the same team, nobody sits at the table having lost on their own, which is the usual way a five-year-old’s game ends in tears. Gamewright lists it at 2–4 players, ages 5+, 20 minutes, and it carries an Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award and a NAPPA Silver Award.
We have not scored Outfoxed!. It is here because it is built for exactly this age and the cooperative format solves this age’s biggest problem.
Who should skip it: kids who already want to beat their siblings. It has no winner but the group.
Check Outfoxed! price on Amazon →
2. Rhino Hero — A Card Tower for Small Hands
Rhino Hero is a stacking game. Players build a tower out of folded wall cards and flat roof cards, and the first to play all their roof cards wins, unless they knock the tower over first. A wooden rhino climbs the building as it grows.
HABA lists it at 2–5 players, ages 5+, and 5 to 15 minutes. There is nothing to read, and the rules fit in a sentence, so a parent can teach it in the time it takes to deal.
We have not scored Rhino Hero. It earns its place on the no-reading rule and the short game, both of which matter more at five than depth does.
Who should skip it: kids who get upset when things fall down. Things fall down.
Check Rhino Hero price on Amazon →
3. Happy Salmon — Two Minutes of Pure Noise
Happy Salmon is the loudest game on this list, and its rounds are the shortest. Everyone flips cards at the same time and shouts the action, trying to find someone with a match: a high five, a fish bump, a switch, or the happy salmon itself. Match and both of you discard. First to empty their deck wins.
We scored it 5/5 Bamboo and 4/5 Pandas in our Happy Salmon review. It is 3–8 players, ages 6+, and a round lasts two to five minutes. The cards are pictures, so a pre-reader plays on equal terms.
Who should skip it: quiet households. It is a shouting game.
Check Happy Salmon price on Amazon →
4. Hot Streak — Betting on Mascots That Fall Over
Hot Streak is a racing game where you do not control the racers. You bet on which plastic mascot will win, sneak one card into the race deck, and then the game flips cards while the mascots fall over, turn around and wander off the track.
We scored it 4/5 Bamboo and 4/5 Pandas in our Hot Streak review. Because the cards decide the race, a six-year-old and an adult play it on equal terms. It is 3–8 players, ages 6+, and about 20 minutes.
Who should skip it: kids who want to control the outcome. You make two decisions a race, and that is all.
Check Hot Streak price on Amazon →
Ages 7 to 9
Board games for 8-year-olds can start asking for real decisions. Everything in this band scored 4/5 Pandas or higher with us, which is the point: these are the games the parents will ask to play again. For twelve picks at exactly this age, see our best board games for 8-year-olds.
5. Cover Your Assets — The Best Game for Kids and Adults Together
Cover Your Assets is a card game about collecting pairs of assets, stacking them, and stealing the top of someone else’s stack. It is one of only two games on this list we scored 5/5 on both scales, in our Cover Your Assets review.
It works with kids because the cards flatten skill. A seven-year-old holding the right pair can take an adult’s whole stack, and the rules fit in one breath. It is 2–6 players, ages 7+, and 20 to 40 minutes.
Who should skip it: a child who melts down when something is taken from them. Stealing is the game.
Check Cover Your Assets price on Amazon →
6. Sequence — The One Grandparents Can Play Too
Sequence is a card-and-chip game: play a card, put a chip on the matching space, and make five in a row. We scored it 5/5 Bamboo and 4/5 Pandas in our Sequence review, and it seats 2–12 at ages 7+.
Its strength with kids is teams. A seven-year-old partnered with an adult learns the blocking and the jacks without ever being the weak link alone. Our how to play Sequence guide has the full rules and the deal table.
Who should skip it: kids who want a game that changes from play to play. Sequence is the same game every time.
Check Sequence price on Amazon →
7. Carcassonne — The First Strategy Game
Carcassonne is a tile-laying game. Each turn you draw a square tile, add it to a shared map of roads, cities and fields, and decide whether to place one of your little wooden followers to claim it. We scored it 5/5 Bamboo and 4/5 Pandas in our Carcassonne review.
It is 2–5 players, ages 7+, and 30 to 45 minutes. There is nothing to read, and the only hard part for a seven-year-old is the scoring, which an adult can keep for them. A separate My First Carcassonne exists for younger kids; we have not reviewed it.
Who should skip it: younger kids who want action. It is a calm game of placing tiles.
Check Carcassonne price on Amazon →
8. Sushi Go Party — Five Minutes to Teach, Seats Eight
Sushi Go Party is a drafting game: take one card from your hand, pass the rest, and score the sushi you kept. We scored it 5/5 Bamboo and 5/5 Pandas in our Sushi Go Party review, the other double five on this list.
It is 2–8 players, ages 8+, and 20 to 30 minutes, and the menu board means every game uses a different set of dishes. The cards are illustrated, so reading is light. Gamewright’s page shows the full menu.
Who should skip it: two-player families. Our review calls it fine at two, not great.
Check Sushi Go Party price on Amazon →
9. King of Tokyo — Giant Monsters, One Big Decision
King of Tokyo is Yahtzee with monsters. Roll dice to smash, heal or power up, and decide whether to stay in Tokyo and take the hits or run. We scored it 5/5 Bamboo and 4/5 Pandas in our King of Tokyo review.
The box says 8+, and our King of Tokyo for kids guide says that rating is conservative. The one thing to manage is player elimination: a knocked-out monster sits and watches, which stings more at seven.
Who should skip it: families with a child who takes getting knocked out personally.
Check King of Tokyo price on Amazon →
10. Ticket to Ride — The Big Box Worth Its Shelf Space
Ticket to Ride is a train game. Collect colored cards, claim routes between cities, and finish your secret destination tickets before anyone blocks you. We scored it 4/5 Bamboo and 4/5 Pandas in our Ticket to Ride review.
It is 2–5 players, ages 8+, and 30 to 60 minutes, the longest game in this band. Kids need to read city names on their tickets. Days of Wonder also sells a simpler First Journey edition for younger kids, which we have not reviewed, and our Ticket to Ride for kids guide covers what age it really suits.
Who should skip it: families who want a game under half an hour.
Check Ticket to Ride price on Amazon →
Ages 10 to 12
Board games for 10-year-olds can be the same games adults buy for themselves. These two are rated 10+ because the cards carry rules text, not because the ideas are hard. For eleven picks at exactly this age, see our best board games for 10-year-olds.
11. The Crew (Mission Deep Sea) — Teamwork Without Talking
The Crew: Mission Deep Sea is a cooperative trick-taking card game. The team has to win specific tricks in a specific way, and nobody may say what is in their hand. We scored it 4/5 Bamboo and 5/5 Pandas in our Crew review.
It is 3–5 players, with a two-player variant, ages 10+, and a mission takes about 20 minutes. The 32-mission logbook gives a family a campaign to work through together. Thames & Kosmos publishes it in the US.
Who should skip it: kids who have never played a trick-taking game. Teach them a hand of hearts first.
Check The Crew price on Amazon →
12. Love Letter — Bluffing With Twenty-One Cards
Love Letter is a deduction game with 21 cards in the current Z-Man edition. Hold one card, draw a second, play one, and try to be the last player standing or hold the highest card when the deck runs out. We scored it 5/5 Bamboo and 4/5 Pandas in our Love Letter review.
It is 2–6 players, ages 10+, and 5 to 15 minutes. Every card has a line of rules text, which is why it sits in this band and not lower. At ten, the bluffing is the fun part.
Who should skip it: younger kids who cannot read the cards yet.
Check Love Letter price on Amazon →
What We Left Off
Uno and Exploding Kittens. Kids love both, and we scored both 5/5 Bamboo and 2/5 Pandas. The adults stop enjoying them first. See our Uno review and our Exploding Kittens review.
Catan. We scored it 4/5 on both scales in our Catan review, and it is rated 10+. It is a fine next step after Carcassonne, but trading and the robber make it a harder first game than the two 10+ picks above.
Go Fish, War, Old Maid and Slapjack are all on our list of 25 card games you can play with a standard deck, with quick rules and the common other names each game goes by.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a good first board game for a 5-year-old?
Outfoxed! and Rhino Hero are the two picks on this list rated for age 5. Outfoxed! is a 20-minute cooperative mystery where the players win or lose together, which helps with a child who hates losing. Rhino Hero is a 5-to-15-minute card-stacking game with no reading at all.
What board games are good for 8-year-olds?
Sushi Go Party, King of Tokyo and Ticket to Ride are the strongest picks at 8. All three are rated 8+, play in 20 to 60 minutes, and scored 4/5 Pandas or higher with us, so the adults at the table enjoy them too. Cover Your Assets and Sequence work from 7.
What board games can kids and adults play together?
Cover Your Assets and Sushi Go Party are the best games on this list for a mixed table, because both scored 5/5 Pandas with us and both teach in a few minutes. Cover Your Assets flattens skill so a seven-year-old can beat an adult, and Sushi Go Party seats up to eight.
Is Uno a good game for kids?
Kids enjoy it, but we scored Uno 5/5 Bamboo and 2/5 Pandas because most turns play themselves and games can run long. If your family already loves Uno, Skip-Bo and Phase 10 are the closest step up, and both scored higher with us.
How do I tell if a board game is too hard for my child?
Check three things on the box and in the rules: the minimum age, how much reading the cards need, and whether a player can be knocked out early. Age ratings are a starting point; our King of Tokyo for kids guide, for example, found its 8+ rating conservative. Reading is usually what stops a younger child.
For older kids, our best board games for teens picks up where this list ends, and our best board games for families covers the whole-family table.