Baby shower games: 20 fun ideas for any crowd

How to choose your games

Three to five games fills an afternoon without wearing guests out. Pick one icebreaker for the start, one or two games with a winner in the middle, and a keepsake activity people can do while they eat.

Match the games to the guests. With grandparents, colleagues or people who have just met, skip the gross-out and drinking games and choose quiet ones. With close friends and a co-ed crowd, team games and a bit of mess go down well. Ask the parent-to-be if there is anything they would hate, such as anything involving the size of the bump.

For the rest of the planning, see how to plan a baby shower, and for themes and food ideas, the baby shower ideas hub.

Icebreakers and quiet games

Use our baby shower trivia with answers ready to go.

1. Guess the baby photo. How to play: ask guests to send a baby photo of themselves before the shower, number the photos on a board or slideshow, and have everyone match photos to guests on an answer sheet. Most correct wins. Players: 6 or more. You need: photos, a board or screen, answer sheets and pens. Tags: co-ed, virtual, quiet.
2. Who knows the parents best?. How to play: read out questions about the parents-to-be (where they met, first food craving, who will change more nappies) and guests write answers. Or play parents versus guests, with the parents answering about each other. Players: any number. You need: a question sheet and answers checked with the parents beforehand. Tags: co-ed, couples, virtual, quiet.
3. Baby trivia. How to play: read 15 to 20 questions about babies and the animal world, in teams or alone, and swap sheets to mark them. Players: any number, in teams of three or four. You need: question sheets, pens and the answer key. Tags: co-ed, virtual, quiet.
4. Guess the bump. How to play: guests cut a length of ribbon or string they think will fit around the bump, then the parent-to-be tries each one. Closest wins. Only play it if the parent-to-be is happy to. Players: any number. You need: ribbon or string and scissors. Tags: co-ed, quiet.
5. The price is right, baby edition. How to play: list ten everyday baby items, such as a pack of nappies or a tin of formula, and guests guess each price. Look up current Australian prices the week of the shower; the closest total wins. Players: any number. You need: a printed list and an answer key. Tags: co-ed, couples, virtual, quiet.
6. Count the lollies. How to play: fill a baby bottle or jar with lollies, count them as you fill it, and have guests write a guess as they arrive. Closest guess wins the jar. Players: any number. You need: a bottle or jar, lollies and a guess card. Tags: co-ed, quiet.
7. Gift bingo. How to play: guests fill a blank bingo card with gifts they think the parents will open, then mark them off during the gift opening. First full line wins. Players: any number. You need: blank bingo cards and pens. Tags: co-ed, quiet.
8. Due date predictions. How to play: guests predict the birth date, time, weight, length and hair colour on a card. Keep the cards and announce the closest after the birth. Players: any number. You need: prediction cards. Tags: co-ed, couples, virtual, quiet.

Interactive and team games

1. Don't say "baby". How to play: every guest gets a peg or a dummy on a ribbon when they arrive. If you catch someone saying "baby", you take their peg. Whoever has the most at the end wins. Players: 8 or more. You need: pegs or dummies on ribbons. Tags: co-ed, interactive.
2. Baby food taste test. How to play: cover the labels on six to eight jars of baby food and number them. Guests taste or sniff and write down the flavour. Players: any number. You need: baby food jars, spoons, labels and answer sheets. Tags: co-ed, interactive.
3. Blindfolded nappy-change relay. How to play: teams line up, and one player at a time is blindfolded and puts a nappy on a doll before tagging the next. The fastest team wins. A fun one for the parents-to-be to race each other. Players: two or more teams. You need: dolls, nappies and blindfolds. Tags: co-ed, couples, interactive.
4. Nappy pong. How to play: set out cups in a triangle at each end of a table, and teams take turns tossing rolled-up baby socks or dummies into the other team's cups. Players: two teams. You need: plastic cups and baby socks or dummies. Tags: co-ed, couples, interactive (adults can play a drinking version).
5. Baby Pictionary or charades. How to play: teams take turns to draw or act out baby words and phrases, such as "nappy blowout", "3am feed" or "burping". One minute per turn. Players: two or more teams. You need: word cards, paper or a whiteboard and a timer. Tags: co-ed, couples, virtual, interactive.
6. Name that baby song. How to play: play short clips of songs with "baby" in the title, and teams write the title and artist. Players: any number, in teams. You need: a playlist and a speaker. Tags: co-ed, virtual, interactive.

Funny games for adults

These suit close friends and a co-ed crowd. They are messy or a bit rude, so check with the parent-to-be first.

1. Baby bottle race. How to play: fill baby bottles with a drink (soft drink, or a mixed drink for adults) and race to finish first. Players: three to six at a time. You need: baby bottles and drinks. Tags: adults, co-ed, couples, interactive.
2. Melted chocolate in a nappy. How to play: melt a different chocolate bar into each of several clean nappies, number them, and guests guess the bar by look and smell. It looks gross, which is the point. Players: any number. You need: nappies and a range of chocolate bars. Tags: adults, co-ed, interactive.
3. My water broke. How to play: freeze a tiny plastic baby in each ice cube and put them in guests' drinks. The first person whose baby comes free calls out "my water broke" and wins. Players: any number. You need: an ice cube tray and mini plastic babies. Tags: adults if served in cocktails, co-ed, interactive.

Keepsake activities

These have no winner, which makes them good for older guests or anyone who does not know the crowd. The parents keep the results.

1. Late-night nappy notes. How to play: guests write funny or encouraging notes on the front of nappies with a marker. The parents find them during 3am changes. Players: any number. You need: a pack of nappies and markers. Tags: co-ed, quiet.
2. Wishes and advice cards. How to play: guests write a wish for the baby or a piece of advice for the parents, and drop it in a jar or a box to open on the first birthday. Players: any number. You need: cards and a jar or box. Tags: co-ed, couples, virtual, quiet.
3. Decorate a bodysuit. How to play: set out plain bodysuits in a few sizes with fabric markers, and guests decorate one each. Players: any number. You need: plain bodysuits, fabric markers and a sheet of cardboard to slide inside each one. Tags: co-ed, quiet.

Games by type

Use this table to find games for your crowd. Couples means both parents-to-be can play together, for showers where they are both there. Virtual means the game works on a video call; see virtual baby shower ideas for how to run them online.

A simple running order

1. As guests arrive. Count the lollies and the wishes cards sit on a table by the door, so early arrivals have something to do.
2. After everyone is in. An icebreaker such as guess the baby photo, while people eat.
3. The middle of the shower. One or two games with a winner, such as trivia or the nappy-change relay.
4. Gift opening. Gift bingo runs alongside, with someone writing down who gave what for the thank-you cards.
5. Before people leave. Announce winners, hand out prizes and collect the due date predictions.

Prizes for baby shower games

Small, useful prizes work better than novelty ones. Buy one prize per game plus two spares for ties, and wrap them the same way so they look like a set. Prices change, so these are bands.

Gifts for guests and favours

Favours are optional. If you want to send people home with something, keep it small and homemade. The Sleep Store notes favours are not usually given in New Zealand.

• Wrapped home baking, such as biscuits iced in the theme colours.
• Sugared almonds in a small bag or box.
• A mini candle or tealight with a thank-you tag.
• Seed packets or a potted herb for a garden theme.
• A small jar of jam or honey from a local market.

The gift itself

Games are the fun part, but guests also want to know what to bring. Share the parents' registry for the baby shower on the invitation, and point anyone unsure about spending to how much to give for a baby shower. For ideas, see baby shower gift ideas.