Online Christmas games: 18 free games to play with a group

How to play the Christmas word scramble

1. 1Pick a level. Easy words have 4 or 5 letters, medium 6 or 7, hard 8 or more. Start on Easy so everyone gets a win.
2. 2Shout it out. The first team to say the word gets the point. Tap +1 for that team, which also reveals the word.
3. 3Add the timer. With the 30-second timer on, the word reveals itself when time runs out. Ten words make a good five-minute round.

No word comes up twice in a game, and two of the seven categories (winter outdoors and cozy at home) work for any winter celebration.

11 free games about Christmas you can play online now

Each one opens free on our site, on a laptop, tablet or phone. One person shares the screen; everyone else plays.

1. 1. Christmas word scramble

   The game at the top of this page. Share the screen, split into two teams and tap +1 for whoever shouts the word first.

   2 teams · 5 to 10 min · on a call or in a room

2. 2. Christmas Jeopardy-style board

   Teams take turns picking a category and a value, the host reads the clue and the board keeps score through to the final.

   2 to 4 teams · 30 min · on a call or in a room

3. 3. Christmas Feud-style board

   Two teams guess the most likely answers to holiday prompts. Three strikes and the other team gets one guess to steal.

   2 teams · 20 to 30 min · on a call or in a room

4. 4. North Pole Lockdown escape room

   Five puzzles in the browser to find Santa's sleigh keys. Put teams in breakout rooms and see who escapes first.

   1 to 6 per team · 10 to 15 min · solo, on a call or in a room

5. 5. Christmas Taboo-style cards

   Tap the Christmas chip. One player describes the word without the five banned words while their team guesses for 60 seconds.

   4 or more · 10 min · on a call or in a room

6. 6. Winter Pictionary-style words

   Tap the Winter chip for a drawable word. One person sketches on paper held to the camera, or a whiteboard, while their team guesses.

   4 or more · 10 to 15 min · on a call or in a room

7. 7. Holiday icebreaker bingo

   Pick the Holiday theme and print or save a card for each player. People ask around to find who fits each square; five in a row wins.

   8 or more · 15 min · on a call or in a room

8. 8. Christmas scavenger hunt

   Generate a list for the office or for home. On a call, players race to hold each item up to the camera.

   4 or more · 15 to 20 min · on a call or in a room

9. 9. Christmas would you rather

   Tap Would you rather or This or that and draw a card. Everyone answers in one line, then the room argues it out.

   Any group · 5 to 15 min · on a call or in a room

10. 10. Most likely to: holiday party edition

    Tap Holiday party and read the card. On three, everyone names the coworker most likely to do it, in the room or in chat.

    5 or more · 10 min · on a call or in a room

11. 11. Secret Santa name draw

    Type everyone's name and draw. Nobody gets themselves, and each person gets a private line telling them who to buy for.

    3 or more · 2 min to draw · on a call or in a room

Want a game a day through December? Our 12 days of Christmas at work plans line them up for the office, remote and hybrid teams.

Run it on a video call in 3 steps

Every game above works on Zoom, Microsoft Teams or Google Meet the same way.

1. 1Share one screen. The host opens the game and shares that browser tab with the Share button in Zoom, Teams or Google Meet.
2. 2Make two teams. Use breakout rooms for team talk, or simply split the gallery in half by name. Four to eight per team keeps everyone talking.
3. 3Answer in chat, score on screen. Players type or unmute to answer. The host taps the point button, so the score stays on the shared screen.

In the office, put the same tab on the meeting room TV and let people shout. For a party with people in both places, our hybrid holiday party ideas show how to keep remote players in the game.

7 Christmas games for a call, no tool needed

Virtual Christmas games with only the rules, a chat box and a few things from home. Each takes a minute to explain.

1. 12. Christmas song titles, reworded

   The host reads a famous holiday song title in other words. First to name the real title wins the point.

   1. Before the call, reword 10 song titles with synonyms. Titles only: no lyrics, no audio.
   2. Read one out. Players type the real title in chat, and the first correct answer scores.
   3. After five, let players reword a title of their own for the group.

   3 or more · 10 min · on a call or in a room

   6 examples to start with

   • Decorate the Corridors Deck the Halls
   • Ringing Chime Boulder Jingle Bell Rock
   • The Previous December 25th Last Christmas
   • Permit the Flurries, Permit the Flurries, Permit the Flurries Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
   • Saint Nick Is Heading Downtown Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town
   • Swaying Near the Decorated Pine Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree

2. 13. Worst plot summary

   Describe a holiday movie as badly as you can while staying technically true. Everyone else guesses the film.

   1. Each player writes one bad but accurate sentence about a holiday movie.
   2. Read them out one at a time, and players type their guess in chat.
   3. A point for each right guess, and a bonus point to the summary that got the biggest laugh.

   4 or more · 10 to 15 min · on a call or in a room

   4 examples to start with

   • A very tall man moves to New York to meet his dad and puts syrup on his spaghetti. Elf
   • A family flies to Paris, and their trip goes well apart from one small detail. Home Alone
   • A businessman gets four ghostly visitors in one night and gives his clerk a raise. A Christmas Carol
   • A department store hires a seasonal worker, and it ends up in court. Miracle on 34th Street

3. 14. Whose sweater is this?

   An ugly sweater contest with a guessing round first: the group sees one close-up before the full reveal.

   1. Before the call, everyone sends the host a close-up photo of one detail of their holiday sweater.
   2. The host shares each close-up, and players type whose sweater they think it is.
   3. Then everyone steps back from the camera for the full reveal, and the group votes for the best sweater in chat.

   5 or more · 15 min · on a call

4. 15. Show-and-steal white elephant

   A white elephant with nothing to buy or ship: the gifts are odd things people already own.

   1. Everyone fetches the strangest giftable thing in their home and gives it a one-line sales pitch on camera.
   2. Draw a turn order. On your turn, claim an item nobody holds yet or steal one; an item locks after two steals.
   3. Nothing changes hands. The item stolen most often wins its owner the round.

   6 to 20 · 20 min · on a call

5. 16. Wrong-hand wrapping race

   Wrap a book using only your non-writing hand, on camera, against the clock.

   1. Everyone gets a book, a sheet of wrapping paper or newspaper, and tape.
   2. Start a two-minute timer. Only the hand you don't write with may touch the paper.
   3. Hold the parcels up to the camera and vote for the neatest and the funniest.

   Any group · 5 min · on a call or in a room

6. 17. Don't say Christmas

   A game that runs quietly through the whole call or dinner: one word is banned.

   1. Everyone starts with three tokens: paper clips, candies or points on a list.
   2. Say the banned word and whoever catches you takes one of your tokens.
   3. Most tokens at the end wins. With a mixed work crowd, ban "holiday" instead; it slips out just as often.

   3 or more · Whole call · on a call or in a room

7. 18. Christmas A to Z in chat

   Teams race to type a holiday or winter word for every letter of the alphabet.

   1. Split into two teams and give each one a shared doc or its own chat thread.
   2. Set three minutes. Teams type one word per letter: A for antlers, B for bauble.
   3. Score a point for each letter filled, and two for a word the other team doesn't have.

   2 teams · 5 min · on a call or in a room

Not everyone celebrates Christmas, so keep a winter round in the mix and make every game opt-in (more in our inclusive holiday party ideas). For a full contest or real gifts, see our ugly sweater party guide and gift exchange games; our holiday party games for work cover the office party itself.

Funny Christmas Day games for the family table

The same games work at home on December 25th, with relatives joining by video. Five that suit mixed ages:

• Christmas word scramble: put it on the TV and play kids against grown-ups.
• Don't say Christmas: runs through dinner with no setup at all.
• Worst plot summary: the one that gets the biggest laughs from every age.
• Wrong-hand wrapping race: uses the paper and tape already on the table.
• North Pole Lockdown: pass a tablet around the couch and solve it together.

Want a host to run your Christmas games?

For a team of 20 or more, or a party rather than a meeting, a live host takes the prep off your plate. Our Christmas Trivia Party has rounds on holiday movies, music, traditions and picture clues. Festive Family Feud has teams guess the most popular answers on a live board, with no Christmas expertise needed. Elf Escape Challenge mixes puzzles, riddles and creative tasks with Shinny the Elf, and Christmas Music Bingo Party has players marking songs on digital cards.

Each runs 60 minutes on Zoom by default, or Teams, Google Meet or Webex on request. Book about 2 weeks ahead, and earlier for December, because December dates fill first. Teams split across time zones can book two sessions, and a hybrid party can be one virtual event for everyone.

Want something hands-on? Cookie Decorating and Gingerbread House Decorating ship a kit to every home; book 3 weeks ahead, or about 5 for international addresses. See every format on our virtual holiday party page.