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Baby Shower Games: 20 Fun Ideas for Any Group

Twenty baby shower games with simple instructions, from no-prep favourites to team contests, plus tips on choosing activities that suit your guests.

Before you use this guide: This is general educational information, not an individual medical assessment. We do not identify a clinician reviewer on this page, so please confirm personal health decisions with your doctor, midwife or paediatrician.

Games give a baby shower a bit of structure and get guests who do not know each other talking. You do not need all of them. For a two to three hour party, two or three short games are plenty, and many people like to have a quiet activity running in the background, such as advice cards, rather than a lot of loud contests.

How to choose games

• Think about your guests. Colleagues, relatives and close friends enjoy different things, and a mixed-age group suits easy, low-pressure games.
• Keep each game short, around five to ten minutes.
• Mix one active game with a quiet one.
• Avoid anything that makes the mum-to-be uncomfortable, such as games about her body, her food or labour.
• Keep prizes small. A candle, a packet of tea, a small plant or a sweet treat is enough.

No-prep or low-prep games

• Don't Say Baby: give each guest a small sticker or peg. If someone says the word “baby”, another guest can take their sticker. Whoever holds the most at the end wins.
• Baby Charades: guests act out baby or parenting actions such as burping, rocking, changing a nappy (diaper) or a first bath, while their team guesses.
• Baby Shower Trivia: read out a few questions about newborns, pregnancy and the parents-to-be. Keep the questions fun and not too technical.
• Who Knows Mummy (Mommy) Best?: ask the mum-to-be a set of light questions in advance, such as her favourite food or her first thought about the baby, and let guests guess her answers.
• Wishes and Advice Cards: each guest writes a wish or a piece of advice for the baby or the parents. It is quiet, easy and becomes a keepsake.
• Name Acrostic: pick a word like “BABY” or the baby's name, if it is public, and have guests write a kind word or wish for each letter.

Games that need a few supplies

• Baby Shower Bingo: give each guest a bingo card of gift ideas, and they mark items off as the gifts are opened. The first to complete a line wins. It keeps guests engaged during gift opening.
• Guess the Baby Food: cover the labels on jars of baby purée and let guests guess the flavours. It is best treated as a fun guess, and there is no need for the mum-to-be to taste anything.
• Melted Chocolate Nappy (Diaper) Game: unwrap a few chocolate bars, melt them into clean, unused nappies and let guests guess the brand or flavour. Use brand-new nappies that have never been worn, and let guests sniff and taste only if they are happy to.
• Emoji Nursery Rhymes: show a card of emoji that represent a nursery rhyme, and guests guess the rhyme. It works well in person and online.
• Price Is Right, Baby Edition: guests guess the price of baby items such as a pack of nappies, a bottle or a pram. The closest guess wins.
• Baby Photo Match: ask guests to send a baby photo in advance, display them and let everyone guess who is who.
• Baby Mad Libs: guests fill in missing words in a short funny story about the new arrival, and read the results aloud.
• Lullaby Name That Tune: hum or play the start of a lullaby or a nursery song and let guests guess it.

Team or movement games

• Dress the Doll Relay: teams race to dress a baby doll in a vest, a hat and a nappy. It is quick and funny, and you only need a couple of dolls.
• Baby Scavenger Hunt: give guests a list of things to find in the room or on their phone, such as a photo of themselves as a baby or someone wearing blue.
• Pass the Parcel: wrap a small present in layers, with a wish or a prize on each layer. Guests pass it round to music and unwrap a layer when the music stops.
• Bump Size Guess: this one needs care. Guests guess how much ribbon is needed to go around the bump. Only use it if the mum-to-be is happy to take part and enjoys the attention, and consider skipping it if she might not.

Games that look forward to the birth

• Prediction Jar: guests write their guess for the birth date, time, weight and length. Keep the slips safe and reveal the winner after the baby arrives. This one also works as a gift for the parents.
• Nappy (Diaper) Raffle: ask each guest to bring a pack of nappies, and each pack earns an entry into a raffle for a small prize. It stocks up the parents' supplies for the first weeks.

Tips for a smooth game session

• Explain the rules in one or two sentences before you start.
• Hand out pens and cards beforehand so there are no long pauses.
• Have a back-up game ready in case something does not suit the group.
• Let guests opt out. Some people do not enjoy playing in front of others.
• If anyone has food allergies, avoid games that involve eating or tasting.

Planning an online party? Many of the games above, such as trivia, emoji rhymes, bingo and scavenger hunts, work well on a video call. See our guide to hosting a virtual baby shower.

This content is for general information only and is not medical advice. Every pregnancy and every baby is different. Always talk to your doctor, midwife or paediatrician about your own situation, and seek urgent care if you are worried.