Best Board Games for Teenagers (And Tweens)

Playing board games is one of the best ways to spend time together as a family, so we put together a list of the best board games for teenagers and tweens. Family game night also teaches reading comprehension, cooperation, strategy, patience and sportsmanship. Our list of the best board games for teenagers and tweens include skill and strategy board games, cooperative board games, funny board games and big-group social games.

Updated 11/18/20

I attended a PTA meeting last year and listened to two sixth grade teachers give a proposal for a $500 grant to buy board games for their classrooms. I come from a family that loves and plays lots of games, and I was still amazed at what they shared and how much sense it made. They explained that reading and comprehension are closely tied to how much you WANT and NEED to understand what you're reading - and if you want to play a game, you want and need to understand the directions. They also talked about other skills board games can teach kids: cooperation, strategy, patience, sportsmanship. They got the grant.

We vetted this list of the best board games for teenagers and tweens with our own kids, so we know these are winners. We're also constantly updating as we find new games for family game night or get-togethers with friends or extended family.

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• Strategy Games
• Party Games
• Cooperative Games
• Word Games
• Dice Games
• Building Games
• Classic Games
• Card Games
• Brain Games

Strategy Games

Settlers of Catan, Pandemic, and Ticket to Ride are three of the most popular board games for teenagers and tweens. If you have the original Ticket to Ride, check out the expansion pack or other versions: Europe, Rails and Sails, Nordic Countries, Africa, France, United Kingdom, Germany, New York City 1960, India and Asia. We'll admit, we're a little bummed they don't have Central and South America. Maybe that's coming up next.

Survive
This is a fun board game that combines strategy and luck as you try to get as many of your people to safety as possible. This game has been around a long time, so the newest version is a reboot that includes a few other options.

Century

This game is an absolute favorite in our house. After other kids play it at our house, I always have parents texting me to find out what game their kids loved so much. It's not that complicated and doesn't take that long, but there's still some strategy involved.

Hero Realms/Star Realms
My tween son loves this strategy board game and I avoided playing it at first because it looked confusing. The basics of the game actually aren't that hard, but there are some cool ways to apply different strategies once you have the basics down. Buy one deck to start, and if you like the game, you can add on other Hero Realms and Star Realms decks to expand the game even more for family game night.

Azul
This game was "assigned" to my son in sixth grade for a reading comprehension assignment, and it's on my to-buy list because he really liked it. He also has friends who play it as a family game, so it makes the list.

Tsuro
My cousin recommended this game to our family. It only takes 15-20 minutes to play, so it's often our go-to for something quick on a weeknight. You lay tiles to create your own path and try not to fall off the game board or collide with other players. 

Mastermind and Qwirkle could almost be filed under educational games because winning requires serious problem-solving skills. In Sequence, you're playing both offense and defense in a combination of strategy and luck.

             

 

Party Games 

Loaded Questions, Pictionary Air and Telestrations are great board games for teenagers and tweens when it's family game night or when friends are over. Pictionary is  the classic board game we grew up with reimagined - players "draw" in the air and see it on a screen. Telestrations is a hilarious combination of two classics: Pictionary and Telephone. We recommend the 12-player version because it will be a favorite when friends or family visit!

Not Parent Approved
We invited neighbors over for a family game night and they brought this card game along. The adults played something I don't remember in the kitchen, and the kids howled with laughter in the living room playing this one. I'm not sure what happened, but we found the cards under couches and in crevices for weeks afterward.

Stuff Happens
We played this board game at a neighborhood gathering, and it was pretty hilarious. It's a good social game for tweens and teens to play on their own or with adults. You try to guess how the game rates bad scenarios from "hangnail" to "seated behind someone puking on a roller coaster." The only downside is if you play enough, you'll start to learn the scores of your favorite horrible situations.

Listography and Apples to Apples start great conversations and promise lots of laughs.

Cooperative Games

In "cooperative" games, all players work together to beat the game itself. You might each have different powers and you can decide as a group when and how to leverage those strengths to beat the game as a team.

Forbidden Desert
The game also changes every time you play because players draw a card that give them a special skill. Different numbers of players and combinations of skill cards create new game dynamics. I included Forbidden Desert, because that's the one we own and my son has played, but the original version of the game is Forbidden Island.

5-Minute Dungeon
My son asked for this game for his 13th birthday and it's become a favorite. Like the name implies, each round is five minutes. They even have an app you can download and use as the timer where you choose which voice counts you down. It's a fast-moving and super fun game.

Harry Potter Hogwarts Battle
Caveat: This one is for Harry Potter fans and families a bit more seriously into games. It's a collaborative game that moves through different levels. It's amazingly fun, but we usually have it on a table over several days to finish because we're not up for several hours of play in one sitting. 

Word Games

Codenames
This board game was a big hit with our word nerd family. When we played, everyone playing knew each other fairly well, so the inside jokes used to win the game added an extra layer of fun. But you don't need to know anything about your teammates or competitors to enjoy it.

The Game of Things
Here's another fun family board game that will keep everyone laughing! You have to guess who answered what--no wrong answers but plenty of ridiculous and surprising ones. This one works better with teens (and you may have to remind everyone to keep it clean).

Dice Games

Board games for teenagers and tweens travel easier when they're portable, like these dice games. They have some strategy, but you can also play them while you're chatting and eating snacks at a group gathering. Farkle , Left Center Right and Yahtzee (order extra score cards as needed) often come on family vacations or travel with us to visit friends or neighbors. 

Tenzi
This game is SO easy, and SO fun as a family game or a group game when you have friends over. Each person has a set of dice and you race to get different combinations. I strongly recommend getting the set with the "77 Ways to Play" card deck so you're not on the hook for coming up with your own each round. Also make sure you have enough sets of dice for each person to have his or her own. I bought four sets of dice and we have a five-person family. Not my strongest showing. I now own eight sets of dice for family game night.

Building Games

These board games for teenagers and tweens bring all the fun of Jenga with some added twists. Tummple!, Suspend and Yard Jenga top our list.

                

Classic Games

Monopoly Ultimate Banking
We have a few versions of Monopoly, but the kids' favorites are Monopoly Empire (which is discontinued and crazy expensive now) and Monopoly Ultimate Banking. You use a credit card to purchase properties and pay fees and earn back rewards and the game computes the finances automatically.

Fireball Island
Anyone else remember this from their '80s childhood? I totally had this board game - along with Hotels. My parents got rid of it years ago, which is a bummer because the originals are going for $375 on eBay. But a Kickstarter fund to the tune of $2.8 million revived it over the last year or so (they asked what classic game people wanted to see again and it topped the list). The new version keeps the basics of the old game and adds some new quirks. They also sell expansion packs if you want to get really fancy.

Card Games

Goat Lords
I know a game's a winner when my boys insist that I order it. My brother's family introduced us to Goat Lords, one of their favorites. I know--it's a weird name and it's goofy, but it's easy to learn and so much fun to play that even tweens and teens can't help laughing.

Play Nine and Blink have some strategy, but you can also play and chat. They're a great option for family game night if you have teenagers but also older or younger players.

         

Euchre
Can we get a holla from the Midwesterners who grew up playing Euchre? I thought this card game was a staple for all Americans until I went to college and realized every friend who hailed from beyond Ohio and Michigan had never heard of it. This four-person game pits one two-person team against another. It involves enough strategy to be competitive, but it's easy enough to play while chatting or eating snacks. My kids love it when we do tournaments at family gatherings because you keep changing partners and tables. We each throw in $5 at the start, and the person with the most points at the end wins the kitty. Euchrefun.com explains how to run a tournament and provides printable score cards. 

Brain Games

Q-bitz

1,000-piece puzzle
I suppose puzzles aren't technically games, but they're still a great way to spend time with your tween or teen and relax. We had a Hardy Brothers puzzle going over the holidays and sucked my father-in-law and brother-in-law right in. Doing puzzles spans all ages. Tip: pick a puzzle without large areas with plain colors unless you want a serious challenge. We've had a Harry Potter puzzle going for months because all the solid black areas make it really tricky to sit down and quickly find a few pieces.

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