Card games

Last checked 7 November 2026

Quick answer: Flip 7 is the easiest here and plays with a crowd. Monopoly Deal is the one most families already know. Point Salad, Castle Combo and Faraway are clever little puzzles for older players. The Crew and Hanabi are co-op, where the table wins or loses together, and Jaipur and Lost Cities are made for two.

These are boxed card games, each with its own deck and rules, rather than games you play with a normal pack of 52. That's why they're good: a small box, a short teach and a game you can finish before the kettle's cold. They make easy presents too, and they get played a lot over Christmas because they come out at the table without any fuss. They're in order of our teaching rating, easiest first, with the two-player games at the end. Check the age on each card, as they run from 8+ up to 14+.

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Flip 7 box: a small card box with rainbow foil lettering reading Flip 7

1. Flip 7

Flip cards one at a time and bank your points before you turn up a number you already have. Get seven different numbers and you score a bonus.

Players: 3+ players
Age: 8+
Play time: about 20 minutes
Our teaching rating: Very easy to teach

Why it suits this: Eric Olsen's Flip 7 is push your luck at its simplest. Flip cards one at a time and stop whenever you like, but turn up a number you've already got and you bust for the round. Collect seven different numbers and you score a bonus. It's 94 cards, 3 or more players aged 8 and up, about 20 minutes, and it was nominated for the 2025 Spiel des Jahres (Germany's game of the year). Very easy to teach to anyone.

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Details last checked 19 October 2026.

2. Monopoly Deal

Monopoly as a 110-card game. Play up to three cards a turn to bank money, lay down property or charge rent, and the first to finish three full sets in different colours wins.

Players: 2 to 5 players
Age: 8+
Play time: about 15 minutes
Our teaching rating: Easy to teach

Why it suits this: Monopoly squeezed into 110 cards, and it moves a lot faster than the board game. Play up to three cards a turn to bank money, lay down property or charge rent, and the first to finish three full sets in different colours wins. Turns are quick and a game is over in about 15 minutes. It's 2 to 5 players, 8 and up. If someone in the family only plays Monopoly, this is a sneaky way in.

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Details last checked 20 October 2026.

Point Salad box: green box with a pepper, aubergine and other vegetables along the bottom

3. Point Salad

A quick card-drafting game. Each turn take two vegetables or one scoring card, with over 100 ways to score, so every game plays out differently.

Players: 2 to 6 players
Age: 14+
Play time: 15 to 30 minutes
Our teaching rating: Easy to teach

Why it suits this: Each turn you take two vegetable cards or one scoring card, and AEG says there are over 100 ways to score, so every game plays out differently. All 108 cards are double-sided: veg on one side, a scoring rule on the other. It's light and quick, 2 to 6 players, 15 to 30 minutes, but the box says 14 and up, so it's one for teenagers and adults. Designed by Molly Johnson, Robert Melvin and Shawn Stankewich.

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Details last checked 2 November 2026.

Castle Combo box: a cartoon jester and castle characters in front of a pale blue castle, with a red Spiel des Jahres recommendation sticker

4. Castle Combo

Pick nine characters from the castle and the village to fill a three-by-three grid. Most cards score from what sits around them, so the last few picks turn into a proper little puzzle.

Players: 2 to 5 players
Age: 10+
Play time: about 25 minutes
Our teaching rating: Easy to teach

Why it suits this: Grégory Grard and Mathieu Roussel's Castle Combo has you pick nine characters from the castle and the village to fill a three-by-three grid. Most cards score from what sits around them, so your last few picks turn into a proper little puzzle. It's 78 cards, 2 to 5 players aged 10 and up, about 25 minutes. It was on the 2025 Spiel des Jahres recommended list.

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Details last checked 19 October 2026.

5. Faraway

Build a row of cards on a journey across Alula, then score it backwards, from the last card you laid to the first. Johannes Goupy and Corentin Lebrat's twist makes every pick a puzzle.

Players: 2 to 6 players
Age: 10+
Play time: 15 to 30 minutes
Our teaching rating: Takes a little explaining

Why it suits this: Johannes Goupy and Corentin Lebrat's Faraway has one twist that makes it. You lay a row of cards on a journey across Alula, then score it backwards, from the last card you laid to the first. So every card you play has to set up the ones you laid before it. It's a bit of a brain-bender at first. It's 2 to 6 players, 10 and up, 15 to 30 minutes.

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Details last checked 21 October 2026.

The Crew: Quest for Planet Nine box: an astronaut floating in deep space against a starry blue sky

6. The Crew: Quest for Planet Nine

Co-op trick-taking (everyone plays a card and the highest takes the lot) across 50 missions. The team wins or loses together and can barely talk about their hands.

Players: 3 to 5 players
Age: 10+
Play time: about 20 minutes
Our teaching rating: Takes a little explaining

Why it suits this: Thomas Sing's co-op trick-taking game (everyone plays a card and the highest takes the lot, as in whist). The twist is that the team wins or loses together and can barely talk about their hands. There are 50 missions that get harder as you go, so it lasts. It won the 2020 Kennerspiel des Jahres (Germany's connoisseur game of the year). It's 3 to 5 players, 10 and up, about 20 minutes, with a two-player variant in the rules.

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Details last checked 2 November 2026.

Hanabi box: colourful fireworks bursting over a dark blue night sky

7. Hanabi

Hold your cards facing outwards so everyone can see them except you, then trade careful hints to build a firework display together.

Players: 2 to 5 players
Age: 8+
Play time: about 30 minutes
Our teaching rating: Takes a little explaining

Why it suits this: Antoine Bauza's Hanabi won the 2013 Spiel des Jahres. You hold your cards facing outwards, so everyone can see your hand except you, and trade careful hints so the team can play its fireworks in the right order. It's co-op and very quiet, a lovely change from shouty games. It's 60 cards and a few tokens, 2 to 5 players aged 8 and up, about 30 minutes.

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Details last checked 2 November 2026.

Jaipur box: a smiling merchant in a turban with goods from an Indian market

8. Jaipur

Two market traders swap and sell spices, silk and gems. Camels let you grab several cards at once, which is where the tricky choices come in.

Players: 2 players only
Age: 10+
Play time: about 30 minutes
Our teaching rating: Easy to teach

Why it suits this: Sébastien Pauchon's Jaipur is a two-player trading duel. You're market traders swapping and selling spices, silk and gems. Camels let you grab several cards from the market at once, and selling three or more of a kind earns a bonus token, so you're always weighing up selling now against waiting for a bigger set. It's 2 players, 10 and up, about 30 minutes.

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Details last checked 9 November 2026.

Lost Cities box: two explorers with a map looking out over desert ruins under the Lost Cities title

9. Lost Cities: The Card Game

Play numbered cards in rising order to fund expeditions. Every expedition you start costs points unless you push it far enough.

Players: 2 players only
Age: 10+
Play time: about 30 minutes
Our teaching rating: Easy to teach

Why it suits this: Reiner Knizia's two-player classic. You play numbered cards in rising order to fund expeditions to the Himalayas, the rainforest, the desert, a volcano and the bottom of the sea. Every expedition you start costs points unless you push it far enough, and you can bet on the ones you're sure of. Highest score after three rounds wins. It's 2 players, 10 and up, about 30 minutes.

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Details last checked 9 November 2026.

Want something to go in a stocking? Our stocking filler games are all small card and dice games, and our travel board games are the ones to pack for a trip. Playing mostly as a pair? See 2 player card games, board games for couples and two-player board games. Grown-up tables: card games for adults. Kids and adults together: family card games.

Already an UNO family? Our best UNO versions guide compares Flip, Show ‘em No Mercy, Party and more. For Dobble fans, see the best Dobble versions, with how to play.

How we choose and check

We pick games for the situation, and ignore hobby rankings and hype. Player counts, ages and play times come from the publisher's own page or the box. If we can't confirm a detail there, we leave it off the card. The teaching rating is our own view from reading the rules, not a publisher figure. Nobody pays us to include a game. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. See how we make money.