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The best card games for families
A good family card game is one everyone at the table can learn in a few minutes, whatever their ages. Which one fits depends on who is playing, so the nine picks below are grouped by who is at the table: children and grown-ups together, teens and adults, and little children. Every line is written for the adult who is buying. You may not need to buy anything at all: an ordinary deck of cards plays many family games, so see what to play tonight with a deck you already own.
The short answer. For children of about 7 and up playing with grown-ups, start with UNO Classic. For teens and adults, try Phase 10, or UNO Flip! if you already play UNO. For little children you may need nothing: an ordinary deck of cards plays Go Fish and Old Maid, and the Hoyle 6-in-1 pack holds six classic games if you would rather have them in one pack.
How we pick and rank
These picks come from the makers' own information and product descriptions, and from independent reviews on review sites and parenting sites. They do not come from our own testing. Where we found little independent coverage of a pick, its "Gives up" line says so. We show no prices, because they change; the button opens the current listing on Amazon.
The numbers are our ranking, and it is a judgment, not a score. A game that suits the widest range of tables comes first, which is why UNO is first. Games for one kind of table follow. The picks for little children come last for a plain reason: Go Fish and Old Maid play with an ordinary deck of cards, so a special deck is a nice extra, not a need.
The game names on this page belong to their owners. UNO, Skip-Bo and Phase 10 are Mattel names, and Skyjo is magilano's. SelectACard is not affiliated with Mattel, magilano, eeBoo, Hoyle or any other maker. We name the products only so you can find them, and we use no maker's logos or artwork.
Children and grown-ups together (about 7 and up)
These three are quick to learn when children of about 7 and up play with grown-ups.
UNO Classic (Mattel)
Best for a table of mixed ages, and the first game to buy
UNO is first because it suits the widest range of tables: it takes 2 to 10 players, and Mattel says ages 7 and up. You play a card that matches the top card of the discard pile by color or number, and the first player out of cards wins. It dates from 1971, so many grown-ups already know it.
Gives up: luck plays a big part, and the classic game can feel repetitive after a while. The two UNO versions in the next section add new cards and tougher rules. UNO also needs its own deck; an ordinary deck of cards will not do.
Skip-Bo in a storage tin (Mattel)
Best next game for mixed ages: build number stacks and empty your own pile
Skip-Bo comes from the makers of UNO, but instead of matching colors you build stacks of cards in number order, up to 12. It takes 2 to 6 players, and Mattel says ages 7 and up. The first player to use up their own pile of cards wins. Geeky Hobbies, a hobby review site, calls it average but easy: anyone who can count to twelve can play.
Gives up: luck plays a big part, and the same review says a game can take 45 to 60 minutes. You also choose which pile to build on, so the youngest players may need a helper.
Skyjo (magilano)
Best for a mixed-age table that wants a change from UNO: flip and swap cards to keep your total low
Each player has a grid of face-down cards. On your turn you take a card and either swap it into your grid or discard it and flip one of your face-down cards, aiming for the lowest total. It takes 2 to 8 players, and the maker says ages 8 and up. Geeky Hobbies calls it a simple family game that you can play just for fun.
Gives up: luck can decide a game, and you keep a running score, with play continuing until someone reaches 100 points. The same review warns that it may frustrate anyone who does not like luck playing a big role.
Teens and adults
These suit older children, teens and adults. The two UNO versions are harsher than the classic, and Phase 10 has more rules to learn. With younger children at the table, look at the first and last sections instead.
Phase 10 (Mattel, 108 cards)
Best for tables that like Rummy: older children and adults
Phase 10 is a rummy-type game for 2 to 6 players, and Mattel says ages 7 and up. You work through ten goals, called phases, such as two sets of three cards with the same number or a run of seven cards in number order. It dates from 1982, and Wikipedia reports more than 62 million copies sold by 2016, second only to UNO among commercial card games.
Gives up: it needs its own 108-card deck, and the family-games site The Board Game Family puts a game at about 45 minutes, longer with six players.
UNO Flip! (Mattel)
Best second UNO, for a table that already knows the first
Every card has a different face on each side: the light side plays like classic UNO, and the dark side has much tougher penalties, such as Draw Five. Playing the Flip card turns every card over, including the draw pile and the cards each player is holding. It takes 2 to 10 players, Mattel says ages 7 and up, and Geeky Hobbies calls it a better game than the original.
Gives up: games run longer than classic UNO, and the same review says it will not win over anyone who has always disliked UNO.
UNO Show 'Em No Mercy (Mattel)
Best for teens and adults who find classic UNO too gentle
The same match-the-card idea in a bigger deck with extra penalty cards. Penalties stack, because you can pass a Draw card on to the next player, and anyone who reaches 25 cards is out of the game. It takes 2 to 6 players, Mattel says ages 7 and up, and the review sites TTPM and The Toy Insider both recommend it to people who already enjoy UNO.
Gives up: it is harsh by design. TTPM warns that the added brutality may turn some players off, and The Toy Insider suggests that children with short tempers play something calmer.
Little children (about 3 to 6)
Go Fish and Old Maid need nothing but an ordinary deck of cards; the first question below gives the sources, and our Go Fish rules and Old Maid rules explain each game from the start for a grown-up who will teach it. The Hoyle pack puts six games in one purchase, and the two eeBoo decks are for a child who likes pictures, or for a gift.
Hoyle 6-in-1 Kids Card Game Pack
Best first purchase for a young child: six classic games in one pack
One pack holds six classic games: Go Fish, Old Maid, Crazy Eights, Slap Jack, Memory and Matching. The listing says ages 3 and up and 15 minutes or less, and the description says the cards are made for smaller hands. Go Fish and Old Maid are both in it, so you may not need the single-game decks below.
Gives up: the cards are made small, for small hands, and we found no independent review of how long they last.
eeBoo Go Fish
Best for a Go Fish deck with underwater pictures, or a gift
The cards show underwater creatures drawn by Dan Yaccarino, and the maker says ages 3 and up. Retailers describe the cards as cut in fish shapes. The maker also says they are made of recycled board with vegetable-based inks.
Gives up: it costs more than an ordinary deck of cards, which plays many games where this one is made for Go Fish. We found no independent review of it, and the maker's cards are bigger than a standard deck's (3.25 by 4.5 inches against 2.5 by 3.5).
eeBoo Old Maid
Best for an Old Maid deck of characters with different jobs, for ages 5 and up
You match pairs of characters, each drawn with a different job, and try not to be left with the Old Maid. The art is by Holly Berry. The maker says ages 5 and up and 3 or more players, and that the deck can also be used as a matching game.
Gives up: it costs more than an ordinary deck of cards, which plays many games where this one is made for Old Maid and matching games. We found no independent review of it, and the maker's cards are bigger than a standard deck's (3.25 by 4.5 inches against 2.5 by 3.5).
Side by side
| Game | Players | Maker's age | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| UNO Classic | 2 to 10 | 7 and up | Mixed ages, the first game to buy |
| Skip-Bo (tin) | 2 to 6 | 7 and up | Mixed ages, building number stacks |
| Skyjo | 2 to 8 | 8 and up | Mixed ages, a change from UNO |
| Phase 10 | 2 to 6 | 7 and up | Rummy fans, older children and adults |
| UNO Flip! | 2 to 10 | 7 and up | A second UNO for a table that knows the first |
| UNO Show 'Em No Mercy | 2 to 6 | 7 and up | Teens and adults who want a harsher UNO |
| Hoyle 6-in-1 | Varies by game | 3 and up | A young child's first six games |
| eeBoo Go Fish | 2 or more | 3 and up | A picture deck, or a gift |
| eeBoo Old Maid | 3 or more | 5 and up | A picture deck of Old Maid characters |
Players and ages are the makers' figures or, where a maker gives none, the least the game needs.
Common questions
Do we need a special deck for Go Fish or Old Maid?
No. The playing-card maker Bicycle publishes rules for Go Fish that use a standard 52-card deck, and its rules for Old Maid use the same deck with one queen taken out. The parenting site Mommy Poppins says the same: you can buy decks made for the game, or a classic deck works just fine. A picture deck can be nicer for a small child, but an ordinary deck plays the same games.
Can a five-year-old play UNO?
The maker says ages 7 and up, and the parenting site Parenting Patch suggests starting at about 6. For younger children, Go Fish and Old Maid are easier first games.
Which UNO should we buy first?
The classic one. UNO Flip! and UNO Show 'Em No Mercy are for tables that already know it. Mattel says the Flip deck's light side plays like classic UNO and its dark side has much tougher penalties. No Mercy adds stacking penalties and puts a player out at 25 cards.
What can we play tonight with a deck we already own?
Go Fish and Old Maid for young children, and Crazy Eights, the game UNO is based on, for a mixed table. Older players can try Rummy (2 to 6 players), Rummy 500 (2 to 8 players) or Hearts (4 players), which we have written up in full. You can also try Go Fish, Crazy Eights and Rummy against the computer first, free in your browser.
What if only two of us are playing?
UNO, Skip-Bo, Skyjo and Phase 10 all start at two players. For games built for exactly two, see the best card games for two people.
Will the button take me to the right box?
Several of these games are sold in more than one edition, such as a plain box, a tin or a themed deck, and each edition has its own Amazon listing. Each button goes to one listing, named in the pick, for example the Skip-Bo tin. We checked each listing's title in October 2026, but listings change, so check that it is the one you want before you buy. A listing can also be out of stock for a while, and Amazon shows that on the listing itself.