Card games for adults

What are the best card games for adults?

These eight are in order of how quickly a mixed group gets going, each with one house rule from the library to try on it.

Uno

The one everybody knows: match the colour or the number and be first to empty your hand. Two to ten players.

Sheepish

On your next turn, say 'baa' as you play your card.

Play it without a baa, and draw two straight away.

Said by The Enthusiast

From Party Line

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All 342 Uno house rules

Cheat

Play cards face down, say what they are, and hope nobody calls you a liar. Any standard deck, three or more players.

Outside Voice

For the rest of the game, make every claim at the top of your voice.

Said by The Hype Man

From Barefaced Liars

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All 20 Cheat house rules

President

Win a round and you are President; come last and you hand your best cards up next round. A standard deck, best with four to seven.

Bow Down

For the rest of the game, anyone who passes on your play must say Your Excellency as they pass.

Said by The Vamp

From Pecking Order

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All 20 President house rules

Exploding Kittens

Draw until somebody draws an Exploding Kitten, and they are out unless they hold a Defuse. Two to five players, about fifteen minutes.

Meows Only

____ may only speak in meows until your next turn.

(the name is filled at the table)

From Indoor Cats

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All 40 Exploding Kittens house rules

Monopoly Deal

Collect three full property sets before anybody else, charging rent and stealing as you go. Two to five players, about fifteen minutes.

Fake Birthday

It is your birthday again. Every other player sings you one line of happy birthday, and anyone who refuses pays you 2M.

Said by The Vamp

From Rent Is Due

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All 40 Monopoly Deal house rules

Phase 10

Ten phases of sets and runs, one a hand, and the first through all ten wins. Two to six players, and it takes the evening.

Dance First

For the rest of the game, you must do a ten second victory dance before you lay down your phase.

No dance, no laying down.

Said by The Hype Man

From Show Your Work

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All 40 Phase 10 house rules

Love Letter

One card in your hand, one more on your turn, and the last one standing, or the highest card when the deck runs out, wins the round. Two to six players in the current edition.

Serenade

Sing one line of a love song to ____, looking them in the eye.

(the name is filled at the table)

From Sealed With a Kiss

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All 20 Love Letter house rules

Skip-Bo

A race to play out your stockpile in order from one to twelve, with Skip-Bo cards as wilds. Two to six players.

Meet the Wild

For the rest of the game, introduce every wild you play with a name and a one-line life story.

Said by The Storyteller

From Waiting for a Three

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All 20 Skip-Bo house rules

What card games can you play with a normal deck?

Cheat and President need nothing but a standard 52-card deck, and so do classics like Rummy, Hearts and Go Fish. A deck in a drawer is a whole night.

Cheat house rulesPresident house rules

What makes a card game good for a group of adults?

Talk. The best ones leave room to bluff, bargain, accuse and gloat, and they play in rounds short enough that losing one does not matter. A game where everybody stares at their own hand in silence is a puzzle, not a party.

How do you make a card game funnier?

Add a house rule that changes how people behave, not only what they hold: a word nobody may say, a title everybody must use, a thank-you every time somebody takes your money. Rules like that work in any game, and the ones people groan at are the ones they retell.

Forbidden Word

Ban any word for the rest of the game. Whoever says it draws one.

Said by The Vamp

From Mind Your Manners

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Royal Treatment

Pick a player. For the rest of the game, they call you Your Highness every time they speak to you.

Forget, and they hand you a card of their choice.

Said by The Clerk

From Blame the Cat

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Rent Collector

For the rest of the game, anyone paying you must say thank you, landlord, out loud.

Forget, and pay 1M more.

Said by The Headmistress

From Rent Is Due

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Good Manners

For the rest of the game, say thank you every time you draw a card.

Forget, and draw another card.

Said by The Comforter

From Show Your Work

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What are good card games for two players?

Love Letter, Skip-Bo and Phase 10 all play well with two, and Monopoly Deal and Exploding Kittens both start at two. With a standard deck, Rummy and Cribbage are the classic games for a pair.

How does Zaragata make card games funnier?

Zaragata puts the house rules on the cards. Stickers go on a deck you already own, one phone with the app runs the whole table, and a character reads each rule out loud as its card is played, so nobody has to remember them. It is for players 18 and over.

Zaragata stickers are on pre-order and ship in December 2026, and the app is coming to Google Play and the App Store. Until then, every house rule on this page works just as well agreed before the deal.

What is ZaragataHow it worksGet the stickers

Rule sets to try

• Barefaced Liars

  Every card goes down face down and every claim is a lie until proven otherwise. Calls, tells, pile pickups and the poker face that finally cracks.

• Indoor Cats

  The gentlest set: cat manners for a table of grown adults. Meowing, napping, slow blinks and the quiet theft of a well-fed cat.

• Small Print

  Fees, forms, receipts and terms and conditions. The money moves politely, and every polite word costs somebody.