Alcohol-Free Party Games: 20 Drinking Game Alternatives

Drinking games are really just games with stakes and a reason to laugh at each other. Take the drink out and put something else in and almost all of them still work.

Useful for a sober guest, Dry January, a pregnancy, a designated driver or a group that just fancies remembering the evening.

Swap the drink for a forfeit

• Never have I ever, with a finger down instead of a sip. Last one with fingers up wins.
• Ring of fire with the card rules intact but a silly forfeit per card - an accent for the rest of the round, a dance, a compliment to the person on your left.
• Paranoia: whisper a question, the answer says it out loud, and only a coin flip reveals the question.
• Most likely to - point on three, the person with the most points does the forfeit.
• Categories and the name game, but losing gets you a sticker on the forehead rather than a drink.
• Keep forfeits harmless and funny. Anything embarrassing is what people remember badly.

Games with real stakes and no drink

• Flip cup with water or squash - still the fastest, loudest team game there is.
• Beer pong with soft drinks, played for points.
• Speed cup stacking, knockout brackets.
• The chocolate game - dice, hat, scarf, knife and fork.
• Wink murder, which is pure tension and needs nothing.
• Werewolf or Mafia, which will hold twelve people for an hour.

Talking games that carry an evening

• Would you rather, with genuinely hard dilemmas rather than silly ones.
• Two truths and a lie.
• The hot seat: five minutes of questions for one person, they may pass twice.
• Question decks and conversation starters, which do more for a room than any drinking game.
• Fishbowl - names in a bowl, three rounds: describe, one word, mime. The best party game there is and it needs paper and a bowl.

Hosting a mixed group well

• Make the alcohol-free drinks as good as the alcoholic ones. A proper non-alcoholic option in a nice glass changes the whole dynamic.
• Don't announce that a game is 'the sober version'. Just run it that way.
• Never ask anyone why they aren't drinking. Never let anyone else ask either.
• Pick games where the stakes are in the game itself - speed, tension, teams - rather than in the penalty.
• Have something to do with your hands available: cards, a puzzle, snacks.

Shop cards

How to write it so it lands

• Fishbowl needs paper and a bowl and beats everything else.
• Good alcohol-free drinks in proper glasses.
• Never call it the sober version.

Where to shop next

• TikTok and viral party games
• Phone-based party games
• Party games that use one phone only
• Escape room at home and puzzle nights
• Murder mystery party for beginners
• How to run a quiz night
• Games night for people who hate games
• Board games hub
• Adult birthday party games
• Traditional British party games
• Pen and paper games
• Free feel good tools
• Shop cards
• Planning the party? Birthday party ideas
• How to make a balloon arch
• Photo booth prop ideas
• Pin badges
• All guides

Frequently asked questions

What can you play instead of drinking games?

Never have I ever with fingers down, ring of fire with silly forfeits, flip cup with squash, fishbowl, werewolf and wink murder. They all keep the tension and the laughing without the drink.

How do you make a drinking game alcohol-free?

Replace the sip with a forfeit or a point - a finger down, a silly accent for a round, a sticker on the forehead, or simply losing a life. The structure of the game is what makes it fun, not the drink.

What party games work for a sober guest?

Anything with stakes built into the game itself: fishbowl, werewolf, speed cup stacking, the chocolate game, flip cup with squash. And don't label anything as the sober version - just play it.

How do you host a party with drinkers and non-drinkers?

Serve proper non-alcoholic drinks in the same glasses, pick games where the penalty isn't a drink, and never ask anyone why they aren't drinking. It sorts itself out from there.

Do you sell games, kits or party supplies?

No - we make greeting cards, art prints and pin badges in the UK. Everything recommended here is either free, an app, or something you already have, and the only products on this page are our own cards.