A good bachelor party night in needs three things: a tournament with something on the line, one game that is all about the groom, and a moment where his friends get to roast him. Here are 25 games for the house, the backyard and the bar, with what you need and how to run each one.
Bachelor parties are smaller than you might think. WeddingWire's 2019 study of over 1,000 partygoers found an average of 8 guests at a bachelor party. The most popular activities were the same for men and women: food and drinks, clubbing and bar hopping. Men were more likely than women to add casinos (22% versus 14%), sporting events (12% versus 3%) and golf (8% versus 1%). WeddingWire 2019 study
Not every group wants Las Vegas, and not every best man has the budget for it. A night at a rented house, a backyard or someone's basement can be just as good, if there's a plan. Our suggestion: a bracket tournament to start, a game about the groom in the middle, and a roast when everyone is warmed up.
Every game is tagged: At home (living room or basement), Backyard, Out (bring it to a bar or golf course) and Low key (good for the next morning).
Good for
Games about the groom
The best moments of a bachelor party are usually about him. Get some homework from his fiancée and his family a week ahead.
1. Roast the groom
At home
Time
20 to 30 minutes
Players
any size
You need: a chair for the groom, three to six friends who each prepare two minutes, a timer
How to play: Each speaker gets two minutes to tell one story and land one joke at the groom's expense, then end with one honest line about why he's a good friend. The groom gets the last word. The rule that keeps it fun: jokes about things he did, never about his body, his money, his family or his fiancée.
Nobody in your group a natural speaker? Last Call at Bella's is a roast-the-groom game show where Bella runs the bar and roasts him from your answers, and Bingley defends him and loses every case. More below.
Tip: Collect stories ahead in a group chat so two people don't tell the same one.
2. Who knows the groom best?
At home
Time
15 minutes
Players
any size
You need: 15 questions about the groom with his answers, pens
How to play: Everyone answers on paper. The groom reads the real answers. Highest score wins, and his brother losing to a college roommate is the expected outcome. The Knot sells a printable version. The Knot
3. The fiancée quiz, by video
At home
Time
15 minutes
Players
the groom, everyone watches
You need: a short phone video of his fiancée answering 10 questions about him, a TV or laptop
How to play: Ask the groom what he thinks she'll say, then play her answer. Every miss earns him a penalty the group chooses, like wearing a ridiculous hat for the next hour.
Tip: Ask her for a couple of questions he will definitely get wrong.
4. Would he rather?
At home
Low key
Time
10 minutes
Players
any size
You need: a list of 10 either-or questions, the groom's answers written down ahead
How to play: Read each question. Friends guess his answer; the groom reveals it. A point for every right guess. Keep it to choices that say something about him: steak or tacos for the last meal, a week of camping or a week in Vegas.
5. Who's most likely to
At home
Out
Time
10 minutes
Players
6 to 20
You need: a list of 15 prompts (most likely to cry at the wedding, lose his phone tonight, call his mom first)
How to play: Read a prompt and on three everyone points. The person with the most fingers has to defend himself.
6. Wedding day fantasy draft
At home
Low key
Time
20 minutes
Players
4 to 12
You need: a list of 20 things that might happen at the wedding (the groom cries during vows, the DJ plays a song everyone hates, someone falls on the dance floor)
How to play: Draft the list like a fantasy football draft, in snake order. Each event that happens on the wedding day scores points for whoever drafted it. Settle the winner at the reception.
Tip: Keep the list away from the bride's family. You'll thank us.
Tournaments and competitions
A bracket gives the night a backbone. Print a bracket on a poster, put a cheap trophy on the table and let it run all night.
7. Video game bracket
At home
Time
1 to 2 hours
Players
4 to 16
You need: a console, two controllers, a bracket on a poster
How to play: Pick one game everyone can play: a racing game, a fighting game or a sports title. Single elimination, best of three. Losers comment from the couch.
8. Poker night
At home
Time
1 to 3 hours
Players
4 to 9
You need: a deck of cards, chips, a round table
How to play: Texas Hold'em is the easiest for mixed experience. Everyone starts with the same chips and plays until one person has them all. Play for a trophy or bragging rights; some states restrict home games for money, and a trophy is simpler anyway.
Tip: Print a hand-ranking cheat sheet for the guys who haven't played since college.
9. Casino night at home
At home
Time
1 to 2 hours
Players
6 to 15
You need: cards, chips, a blackjack table cloth or a felt mat, a friend willing to deal
How to play: Set up two or three tables: blackjack, poker and a dice game. Everyone gets the same stack of chips. Biggest stack at the end of the night picks the next morning's breakfast spot.
10. Trivia night
At home
Time
45 to 60 minutes
Players
teams of 2 to 4
You need: five rounds of 10 questions (sports, music from your high school years, movies, the groom, general knowledge), answer sheets
How to play: One person hosts and reads the questions. Teams write answers and swap sheets for scoring after each round. The groom round is worth double.
11. Minute to win it
At home
Time
20 to 30 minutes
Players
teams of 2 to 4
You need: cups, ping-pong balls, cookies, pencils; anything for one-minute challenges
How to play: Run five one-minute challenges like stacking cups, bouncing a ball into a cup, or moving cookies from forehead to mouth with no hands. Add up the scores across teams.
12. Grill-off
Backyard
Time
1 hour
Players
teams of 2 or 3
You need: a grill, the same ingredients for each team, a judge (the groom)
How to play: Each team gets 30 minutes to make the best burger or wings. The groom tastes blind and picks a winner. Everyone eats the entries.
Backyard games
If you rented a house with a yard, use it. Most of these appear in The Knot's list of bachelor party games. The Knot
13. Cornhole tournament
Backyard
Time
1 to 2 hours as a bracket
Players
4 to 16 in pairs
You need: two cornhole boards, eight bean bags
How to play: Teams of two take turns throwing four bags at the board. A bag in the hole is three points, a bag on the board is one. Cancel scoring: only the difference counts each round. First to 21 wins.
14. Kan Jam
Backyard
Time
30 minutes
Players
two teams of 2
You need: the Kan Jam set (two cans and a flying disc)
How to play: One player throws the disc toward the can; his partner deflects it in. A disc that hits the can scores, one that goes in the top wins instantly. Easy to learn in a minute.
15. Ladder toss
Backyard
Time
30 minutes
Players
2 to 8
You need: a ladder toss set (two ladders, bolas)
How to play: Players throw bolas at the ladder. Top rung is three points, middle two, bottom one. Exactly 21 wins; going over sends you back.
16. Backyard chipping contest
Backyard
Out
Time
30 minutes
Players
any size
You need: a few wedges, plastic or foam practice balls, a bucket or a laundry basket as the target
How to play: Everyone gets five shots from the same spot. Most balls in the bucket wins. For the golfers in the group, it's a warm-up; for everyone else, it's comedy.
17. H-O-R-S-E
Backyard
Time
20 minutes
Players
2 to 8
You need: a basketball and a hoop
How to play: One player makes a shot; everyone else has to copy it. Miss and you get a letter. Spell HORSE and you're out. Use GROOM if you want a shorter game.
Card, table and party games
Good for the late hours or the morning after. Some groups play these with drinks; all of them work without. Keep water and food out, and plan the rides home before anyone opens a beer.
18. Two truths and a lie
At home
Low key
Time
10 to 15 minutes
Players
4 to 15
You need: nothing
How to play: Each guest tells two true stories and one made-up one, ideally involving the groom. Everyone votes on the lie. The groom isn't allowed to help.
19. Darts, cricket rules
At home
Out
Time
20 to 30 minutes per game
Players
2 to 4
You need: a dartboard and darts
How to play: Close out the numbers 15 to 20 and the bullseye by hitting each three times; once you close a number, extra hits score points until your opponent closes it too. First to close everything with the most points wins.
20. Flip cup
At home
Time
15 minutes
Players
two teams of 4 to 6
You need: plastic cups, a long table
How to play: Teams line up on either side of the table. In relay order, each player finishes his cup and flips it from upside down to right side up with one finger before the next can go. The Knot lists it among its bachelor drinking games. The Knot
Tip: Play it with water or soda. The flip is the hard part, not the drinking.
21. Mafia
At home
Low key
Time
30 to 45 minutes
Players
7 to 15
You need: a deck of cards to deal secret roles, one person to narrate
How to play: A few players are secretly the mafia. Each night round, they quietly pick someone to eliminate; each day round, everyone argues and votes on who to kick out. The town wins if they catch the mafia first. Great for a group of old friends who think they can read each other.
22. Bachelor bingo
Out
At home
Time
the whole night
Players
any size
You need: cards with things likely to happen tonight (the groom gets called by the wrong name, someone orders a round he regrets, a stranger congratulates him)
How to play: Hand out cards before you leave. Mark squares as they happen. First line wins. The Knot has a printable version. The Knot
Out on the town
If you're going out, a game gives the night a thread. Keep it friendly to strangers and staff.
23. Bachelor scavenger hunt
Out
Time
the whole night
Players
teams of 3 to 5
You need: a list of 15 tasks, a group chat for photo proof
How to play: Points for each photo: the groom shaking hands with someone who has his name, getting marriage advice from a bartender, a photo with a jersey from his team, the group in a matching pose. Highest score skips buying the next round.
24. Karaoke duel
Out
At home
Time
1 hour
Players
any size
You need: a karaoke bar, or a TV and a karaoke video
How to play: Each friend picks a song for another friend to sing. The groom picks the final duet and has to sing it with his best man.
25. Last round toasts
Out
At home
Time
10 minutes
Players
any size
You need: one last round of whatever everyone's drinking, soda counts
How to play: End the night with each friend giving a 30-second toast to the groom. No jokes allowed this time. It's the part he'll remember.
Want someone else to host?
Most best men would rather be in the room than run it. Last Call at Bella's is a bachelor party game show that plays on your TV from a laptop. Bella owns the bar and roasts the groom with jokes written from your answers to a short form. Bingley sits on stool 3, objects on the groom's behalf and loses every time. Bingo rounds and bar classics fill the rest of the night.
The roast questions never touch his body, his money, his background or his fiancée. You can let the groom win the last round, if you'd like. Bella and Bingley are AI voices; we write every joke with help from AI tools and check each one. See Last Call at Bella's or how it works.
Hear a moment from the show
Bingley objects. Bella overrules.
Bingley · Voice coming soonBingley: Objection! Jake is a great guy. He once drove me home.Bella: That was my car, Bingley.
Printable bachelor party checklist
Bachelor party game questions
What do you do at a bachelor party at home?
Run a tournament (video games, poker or cornhole), play one game about the groom, and finish with a roast or toasts. Plan a real meal in the middle.
How many people go to a bachelor party?
About 8 on average, according to WeddingWire's 2019 study of over 1,000 bachelor and bachelorette partygoers.
How do you roast the groom without it going too far?
Set rules beforehand: jokes about things he did, never about his body, money, family or fiancée. Give each speaker two minutes, and end every roast with one sincere line.
What are bachelor party games without drinking?
Who knows the groom best, the fiancée video quiz, a video game bracket, poker for a trophy, trivia, cornhole and Mafia. Every game on this page works without alcohol.
What are good bachelor party activities besides Las Vegas?
Golf, a game or a race, a rented house with a poker night, a cook-off, or a night out with a scavenger hunt. In WeddingWire's 2019 study, men were more likely than women to choose sporting events, casinos and golf.
