50 Christmas games for all the family

The holiday season is the perfect time to gather 'round, share laughs, and indulge in some good old-fashioned fun. And what better way to spread the festive cheer than with a sleigh-full of Christmas games?

Whether you’re a group of merry little elves or a full-blown Santa-sized crowd, these 50 Christmas games are packed with jolly-good fun for everyone.

From classic traditions with a twist to brand new challenges, we've got your holiday entertainment all wrapped up. Let's jingle our way through 50 games, each one a sparkling gem of holiday spirit!

1. Christmas bingo

Picture this: a cozy evening, hot cocoa in hand, playing Christmas Bingo with your loved ones. It's the classic game we all know and love, but with a festive makeover. Candy canes, snowflakes, and jolly Santas – it’s all here, ready to bring on the holiday cheer.

How to play

Mark off Christmas-themed items on your card as they’re called out until you can shout “Bingo!”

Top tip: Why not try one of our pre-made Christmas bingo card templates below to get you started?

2. Santa's hat

This sneaky game is all about secret moves and cheeky grins. Pass Santa's hat under the table and see if you can guess who ends up being Santa in disguise!

How to play

Secretly pass a hat under the table; the person with the hat at the end of a song or timer is the new Santa!

3. Candy cane hook

Put your candy cane fishing skills to the test in this sweetly competitive game. Who knew hooking candy canes could be so much fun?

How to place

Using a candy cane as a hook, players try to pick up as many other candy canes as they can within a time limit.

4. Festive charades

Charades, but make it Christmas! Act out your favorite holiday movies, carols, or traditions and let the wild guesses fly.

How to play

Players act out festive prompts without speaking while their team tries to guess.

5. Christmas carol pictionary

Grab a pen and get ready to draw – it’s time to sketch out those beloved Christmas carols and see who’s a doodle master and who’s just drawing blanks!

How to play

Draw representations of Christmas carols for your team to guess, no words or sounds allowed.

6. Snowman building contest

Whether it’s real snow or marshmallows, building a snowman is a classic winter delight. Get creative and may the best Frosty win!

How to play

Compete to create the most creative snowman, either outdoors with real snow or indoors using craft materials.

7. Reindeer ring toss

Transform someone into a reindeer and try your luck at landing rings on their antlers. A hilarious game that’s sure to result in giggles and jingles!

How to play

Players toss rings trying to land them on another player’s antlered headband.

8. Christmas movie trivia

Test your knowledge of all things festive with a round of Christmas movie trivia. It’s time to find out who really knows their Scrooges from their Grinches!

How to play

Answer questions about famous Christmas movies; the player or team with the most correct answers wins.

9. Holiday scavenger hunt

Transform your home or yard into a winter wonderland of hidden treasures and clues. A scavenger hunt is a great way to get everyone up and moving.

How to play

Follow clues to find hidden Christmas items or solve festive riddles.

10. Ugly sweater contest

It’s the fashion event of the season! Don your gaudiest, tinsel-covered sweater and strut your stuff. May the ugliest sweater reign supreme!

How to play

Wear the most outlandishly festive sweater, with winners chosen based on creativity and laughs.

11. Pin the nose on Rudolph

Blindfolded, dizzy, and trying to pin a nose on Rudolph – what could go wrong? This game is a hilarious holiday spin on a classic party game.

How to play

Blindfolded players try to pin the red nose on a poster of Rudolph.

12. Elf on the shelf hide and seek

The Elf on the Shelf is hiding, and it’s your job to find them. This game of hide and seek brings extra magic to your holiday festivities.

How to play

Hide an Elf on the Shelf figure and have players search; the first to find it wins.

13. Santa limbo

How low can Santa go? Find out with a festive round of limbo, using a garland or string of Christmas lights as your limbo stick.

How to play

Players bend backward and pass under the limbo stick without touching it; the stick gets lower each round.

14. Snowball toss

No snow? No problem! Use fluffy white pom-poms or rolled-up socks for an indoor snowball fight that’s safe and fun for all ages.

How to play

Toss fake snowballs into a series of buckets or through hanging wreaths, scoring points for each successful toss.

15. Holiday memory game

A festive twist on the classic memory game, featuring cards with holiday symbols. It's a brain-teaser that's fun for all ages.

How to play

Flip over cards to find matching pairs of holiday-themed images.

16. Gingerbread house building

Unleash your inner architect and decorate a gingerbread house. Whether it's a candy-coated mansion or a modest gingerbread abode, let your creativity shine!

How to play

Use gingerbread house kits or homemade gingerbread to construct and decorate your festive house.

17. Jingle bell shake

Strap on a box of jingle bells and wiggle, jiggle, and shake until you're all jingled out. The fastest bell shaker wins!

How to play

Shake off all the jingle bells attached to your waist within a set time limit.

18. Christmas carol karaoke

Grab the mic and belt out your favorite holiday tunes. Whether you're a caroling crooner or just there for the laughs, it's showtime!

How to play

Sing your favorite Christmas carols, either solo or as a group, karaoke-style.

19. Guess the gift

Wrap up some mysterious objects and see if your family can guess what’s inside based solely on feeling the packages. No peeking allowed!

How to play

Feel wrapped gifts and try to guess their contents; the one with the most correct guesses wins.

20. Christmas tree decoration race

Ready, set, decorate! Race against the clock or each other to see who can trim their mini tree the fastest. May the speediest elf win!

How to play

Decorate a small Christmas tree as quickly as possible; the fastest or most creatively decorated tree wins.

21. Christmas word scramble

Words like 'mistletoe' and 'reindeer' get all jumbled up in this brain-bending word game. Perfect for the word wizards in the family.

How to play

Unscramble Christmas-themed words as quickly as possible.

22. Santa's beard relay

This fluffy and funny relay race involves teams rushing to create the best Santa beard using cotton balls and a dab of Vaseline.

How to play

Teams race to stick cotton balls to a teammate's face to form a beard.

23. Christmas emoji pictionary

Emojis tell a thousand words, or in this case, Christmas songs and movies. Decode the emoji sequences in this modern twist on Pictionary.

How to play

Guess Christmas songs or movies from emoji sequences.

24. Holiday matchmaker

A game of memory and quick reflexes, where players flip over cards to match holiday icons or characters.

How to play

Quickly match pairs of holiday-themed cards.

25. Christmas carol lip sync battle

Lip sync to your favorite Christmas carols in an epic battle of mock performances. Bring on the costumes and props for extra laughs!

How to play

Perform a lip-sync rendition of popular Christmas carols.

26. Who am I? – Christmas edition

Players wear the name of a Christmas character on their forehead and guess who they are through yes or no questions.

How to play

Guess the Christmas character you’re portraying with yes or no questions.

27. Pass the present

A musical chairs-like game where players pass a wrapped gift around until the music stops. The one holding it when the music stops gets to unwrap a layer.

How to play

Pass around a wrapped gift until the music stops; unwrap a layer each time.

28. Christmas stocking guessing game

Fill a stocking with mysterious Christmas items and have players guess what’s inside without looking.

How to play

Guess the items inside a Christmas stocking by feeling them.

29. Naughty or nice

Players draw slips of paper with either 'naughty' or 'nice' tasks or challenges. It’s a great game for some unexpected twists and turns!

How to play

Complete the task or challenge written on the paper you draw.

30. Festive family feud

Based on the popular game show, create a Christmas-themed Family Feud with survey questions about the holiday season.

How to play

Answer survey questions about Christmas; the most popular answers score the most points.

31. North pole obstacle course

Set up a holiday-themed obstacle course in your backyard or living room. Perfect for burning off some of that Christmas dinner!

How to play

Navigate through a Christmas-themed obstacle course.

32. Reindeer antler ring toss

Players wear antler headbands while others try to toss rings onto them. A lively game that’s sure to bring out some competitive holiday spirit!

How to play

Toss rings onto antler headbands worn by other players.

33. Christmas balloon pop

A high-energy game where balloons filled with challenges or dares are popped to reveal a surprise task.

How to play

Pop balloons to find and complete the Christmas-themed challenges or dares inside.

34. Secret Santa gift exchange

A classic holiday favorite, where everyone gets to play Santa. Shh, it's a secret who you'll be gifting to!

How to play

Gift a secret present to someone; everyone tries to guess their Secret Santa.

35. Christmas movie marathon bingo

Create bingo cards based on common scenes or themes in Christmas movies, then watch a marathon and play along!

How to play

Mark off bingo squares based on events or themes seen in Christmas movies.

Top tip: Why not trying one of our pre-made movie themed templates?

36. Festive balloon volleyball

A living room-friendly version of volleyball using a balloon. It's a soft, safe, and silly way to spike your way through the holidays.

How to play

Keep a balloon from touching the ground using only Christmas-themed moves.

37. Candy cane hunt

Like an Easter egg hunt, but with candy canes! Hide them around the house or yard for a sweet search mission.

How to play

Find as many hidden candy canes as possible.

38. Christmas cookie decorating contest

Unleash your inner baker and artist. Decorate cookies with icing, sprinkles, and more. The most creatively decorated cookie takes the (cookie) cake!

How to play

Decorate Christmas cookies; judge based on creativity and presentation.

39. Festive photo booth challenge

Create your own Christmas-themed photo booth complete with props and backdrops. Challenge each other to take the most hilarious, heartwarming, or creative holiday snapshots.

How to play

Dress up using holiday props and take turns snapping fun and festive photos in your homemade photo booth.

40. Snowball bowling

Set up a 'bowling alley' using snowballs (or white foam balls) and holiday-themed pins. A chilly twist on the classic alley experience!

How to play

Bowl over Christmas-themed pins using snowballs or white foam balls.

41. Christmas pictionary

Draw and guess Christmas-themed clues in this festive version of Pictionary. No need to be Picasso, it’s all about the laughs!

How to play

Draw Christmas-related items or concepts for others to guess.

42. Holiday story starters

A game of imagination where one person starts a festive story and others take turns adding to it. A delightful way to weave a holiday tale together!

How to play

Contribute to a growing holiday story, one sentence at a time.

43. Christmas wreath hoopla

Throw hoops onto a Christmas wreath for a game that's equal parts skill and luck. A festive spin on the classic hoopla game!

How to play

Toss hoops onto a hanging Christmas wreath.

44. Santa says

Just like Simon Says, but with a Santa twist. Santa says, “Decorate the tree!” But if Santa didn’t say, you better freeze!

How to play

Follow commands that start with “Santa says”; freeze if the command doesn’t start that way.

45. Christmas card tower

Challenge your family to build the tallest tower using only Christmas cards. It’s a delicate balance of strategy and steady hands!

How to play

Build the tallest tower using Christmas cards.

46. Snowflake catch

A simple yet engaging game where players catch falling paper snowflakes on plates or in their hands. A flurry of fun!

How to play

Catch as many paper snowflakes as possible within the time limit.

47. Jingle bell jam

A dance-off where players freeze when the music stops. If you’re caught moving, you’re out. The last one dancing wins!

How to play

Dance to Christmas music and freeze when it stops; keep going until one dancer remains.

48. Christmas trivia challenge

Flex your Christmas knowledge in this trivia challenge. From historical facts to popular traditions, it’s a holly jolly test of your festive smarts!

How to play

Answer Christmas-themed trivia questions; the person or team with the most correct answers wins.

49. White elephant gift exchange

A hilarious and often unpredictable gift exchange game. Bring a wrapped, quirky gift and get ready for some surprising swaps!

How to play

Exchange gifts in a round-robin fashion, with the option to swap for already opened gifts.

50. Holiday light tour

Wrap up the night with a peaceful drive or stroll to see the neighborhood Christmas lights. A perfect way to wind down after a day full of games.

How to play

Drive or walk around to view and appreciate local Christmas light displays.

That's a wrap!

As the snow settles and the fireplace crackles, these 50 Christmas games are here to fill your holidays with laughter, bonding, and festive fun. From the competitive thrill of Reindeer Ring Toss to the creative joy of Christmas Cookie Decorating, there's a game here to suit every age and mood. So gather your loved ones, pick your favorites, and let the merry making begin! Happy Holidays! ✨