Thanksgiving games: 25 ideas for family and kids, plus free bingo

The short answer: these 25 thanksgiving games keep kids busy while the turkey roasts and get the whole family laughing after dinner.

• Table games, active yard games and quiet after-dinner games
• Most need only paper and pens
• Free bingo printable with 20 unique cards and a caller sheet
• How to run Thanksgiving bingo
• Next step: Get the free Thanksgiving bingo (we email it to you); want more? The Meal Planner & Grocery List is $3.99.

Good thanksgiving games keep kids busy while the turkey roasts and get the whole family laughing after dinner. Below are 25 easy ideas: table games, active games for the yard, and quiet games for the post-pie slump. Most need nothing more than paper and pens. We've also included a free Thanksgiving bingo printable with 20 unique cards and a caller sheet. For crafts, outings and traditions beyond games, see our full list of Thanksgiving activities.

Want the bingo cards now? Go straight to the free download.

Thanksgiving games at a glance

Thanksgiving games for family at the table

These games for family work while you're seated, before or after the meal.

For a ready-made quiz, our free Thanksgiving trivia has five rounds of questions and answers, plus 20 questions for kids.

1. Thanksgiving bingo. Print our free cards, hand out candy corn as markers and call words like "gravy" and "wishbone".
2. The gratitude memory game. Each person says "I'm thankful for..." and repeats everything said before. Miss one and you're out.
3. Family trivia. Write ten questions about your own family: who was born where, who burned the rolls in 2019, whose first car was red.
4. Two truths and a lie. Each person shares three facts. Everyone else guesses the fib.
5. Would you rather, Thanksgiving edition. Would you rather eat only stuffing or only pie for a year? Our would you rather questions list has a full Thanksgiving round.
6. Gratitude jar. Guests write what they're thankful for on slips. Read them aloud during dessert and guess who wrote each one.
7. Table topics. Put a question card under each plate, like "What's your favorite family tradition?"

Thanksgiving games for kids

Kids need short, active games while they wait. An unstuffed 12 to 14 pound turkey takes about 3 to 3¾ hours at 325°F, according to the University of Illinois Extension's turkey roasting chart, so plan a few.

8. Turkey feather hunt. Hide paper feathers around the house. Kids find them and glue them on a paper turkey.
9. Pin the feather on the turkey. Like pin the tail on the donkey, with a blindfold and a paper turkey on the wall.
10. Leaf pile relay. Teams race to carry leaves from one pile to another with a spoon or by hand.
11. Pumpkin bowling. Roll a small pumpkin at plastic bottles or paper towel tubes.
12. Pilgrim says. Simon says, with a pilgrim hat.
13. Coloring station. Our free Thanksgiving coloring pages include a turkey and a thankful tree.
14. Turkey freeze dance. Play music. When it stops, everyone freezes in a turkey pose.
15. Corn kernel count. Fill a jar with corn kernels or candy corn. Closest guess wins the jar.

Active Thanksgiving games for the yard

16. Turkey bowl football. Flag or touch football is a classic for teens and adults.
17. Three-legged race. Pair a grandparent with a grandkid for the cutest race of the day.
18. Family turkey trot. Walk or jog a loop around the block before dinner.
19. Sack race. Use pillowcases if you don't own burlap sacks.
20. Cornhole tournament. Make a bracket on poster board and let the winner choose the pie.

Quiet games after dinner

For a quiet game at the table, print our free Thanksgiving word search, with five puzzles from easy to hard and an answer key.

Want a puzzle with clues? Our free Thanksgiving crossword has three grids, from an easy kids' puzzle to a harder history one, each with an answer key.

21. Card games. Spades, rummy and Uno all work for mixed ages.
22. Thanksgiving charades. Act out words like "gravy boat," "parade float" or "food coma."
23. Jigsaw puzzle. Put a fall puzzle on a side table for anyone who wants to drift in and out.
24. Pictionary with Thanksgiving words. Use a big sketch pad so everyone can see. Hosting again in December? Our Christmas Pictionary page has 150 holiday words by difficulty.
25. Pie judging. Everyone samples each pie and scores it. The baker with the highest score gets bragging rights.

How to run Thanksgiving bingo

1. Print the PDF and cut the card pages in half. Each player gets one card.
2. Cut the caller sheet into 48 slips and put them in a bowl.
3. Hand out markers: candy corn, dried beans or pennies.
4. Everyone covers the "Thanks" square in the center.
5. The caller reads one word at a time. Players cover it if they have it.
6. The first full row, column or diagonal wins. Then try four corners or blackout.

The 48 words include turkey, pumpkin pie, stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, gravy, Mayflower, football, parade, wishbone, gratitude, cornucopia, turkey trot, leftovers and more.

Keep the day safe and fun

Games and cooking happen in the same few rooms, so plan the layout. The AAP's kitchen safety tips recommend turning pot handles toward the back of the stove so children can't grab them, and knowing where your child is whenever you carry hot liquids. Run active games outside or in a room away from the kitchen. And when the games run long, don't let the food sit out: University of Illinois Extension advises refrigerating leftovers within two hours.

Plan games into your Thanksgiving schedule

A simple timeline helps:

• Morning: parade, turkey trot, coloring pages.
• While the turkey roasts: bingo, feather hunt, yard games.
• During dinner: gratitude jar, table topics.
• After dinner: card games, charades, pie judging.

Thanksgiving is a federal holiday on the fourth Thursday of November, which in 2026 is November 26. If you're hosting, our guide on how to plan Thanksgiving dinner covers the menu and timeline, and the Thanksgiving potluck sign-up sheet helps share the cooking. The Meal Planner & Grocery List keeps the holiday week's meals and shopping on one page, and the Holiday Season Bundle carries you from Thanksgiving to New Year's.

Need a quiet activity before dinner? Set up a table of Thanksgiving crafts for kids.

After the games, start something new with these Thanksgiving traditions for families and friends.

For a quiz-style game during halftime, print our sports trivia questions and answers and play in teams.