14 Baby Shower Games that Keep the Party Going
Keep your guests entertained with these creative and competitive games.
By Amylia Ryan
Baby showers are all about celebrating and having fun, and just like with any good party, playing a few games keeps the atmosphere lively and entertaining. Whether your baby shower is in person or virtual, there are dozens of baby-related games out there, and most are free or inexpensive and can be played by just about anyone.
From competitive to sentimental to creative, here are our favorite baby shower games and activities (and don’t forget prizes for the winners!):
Don’t Say “Baby”
This is probably one of the most popular baby shower games because it’s so easy (and yet so hard at the same time!). The rules are simple: Don’t. Say. Baby. If you’re caught saying the word “baby,” you lose. Here’s how to keep track and declare a winner:
- Give everyone a token of some kind (like a clothespin or a drink marker)
- Whenever someone is caught saying “baby,” they lose their token. Whoever caught them collects the lost token.
- The person with the most collected tokens at the end of the baby shower is the winner.
Fill-in-the-Blank Card Game
It’s like if Cards Against Humanity was all about pregnancy and babies! Ultimate Baby Shower Game has guests try to fill in the blank of the parenting- or pregnancy-related “prompt card” with whatever cards they have in their hands. It’s up to the expecting parent to decide the winning card, but no matter what, you’re sure to end up with some real gems!
Play-Doh Babies
Get two different colors of Play-Doh. Use one color to make a baby and the other color to make clothes to put on the baby. Have the expectant parent pick their favorite Play-Doh baby for the winner.
Cupcake Decorating Contest
Bake a batch of undecorated cupcakes and have guests decorate one each. Be sure to provide a variety of icing colors and applicator tips, plus other edible decorations like sprinkles and candy.
Once everyone is finished, have them show off their artistry to everyone. The best part: everyone gets to have dessert when they’re done!
Parenting Advice
Shower guests who are already parents particularly enjoy this one, but it’s open to all guests, whether they’re parents or not. Guests can write down their best (or worst) parenting advice and then either share with the whole party or put it in an envelope for the expectant parent to read privately.
Baby Face
This game requires a little bit of prep from both you and guests. In the shower invite, ask guests to email you one of their baby photos (the more embarrassing, the better) before the day of the shower. Then you can compile all the photos into a slideshow and have everyone guess which baby photo belongs to which guest.
Name That Tune
This is your opportunity to create your perfect baby playlist. It can feature nursery rhymes and lullabies, popular songs that have “baby” in the title or a mixture of the two. Just play a short clip (about 5-10 seconds) of each song, one after the other, and have guests write down their guesses on a piece of paper.
Once you’ve gone through the entire playlist—we recommend about 10–12 songs—give out the answers, and the guest with the most correct answers wins.
Printable Baby Shower Games
Word games and puzzles played on paper are a staple of any American baby shower. If you’ve been to one, you know the drill: the host passes around game sheets and tiny pencils, and each guest has a certain amount of time to fill out their sheet before the answers are given and someone wins a prize.
Here are four Babylist-exclusive downloadable and printable games:
Baby Word Unscramble
Babies need so many things! Here’s a list of products (most of which are probably on your baby registry for guests to unscramble and reveal something a baby might use.
Emoji Baby Pictionary
Welcome to a baby shower game for the 21st century. Guests are shown a series of emojis that translates to a baby-related word or phrase, and they’ll have to make their best guess. It works exactly like Pictionary, just using all the cute (and weird) little icons you can find in your phone.
Baby Animal Match Up
Did you know that all animals have special names for their offspring? In this game, guests are given two lists: names of adult animals and the names of their babies. They’ll have to match them up to create the correct associations.
Wishes for Baby
If guests have special wishes and hopes for your new baby, here’s where they can write them down so you (and eventually baby, too) can treasure them for life.
How to download and use these printable games
Click Download Game Sheet below the image of the game you want. Then, in the new browser tab that opens to show the game, click the download icon on the right side of the upper tool bar.
If you’re having an in-person baby shower, you can print the game sheets yourself. Make sure to print at least enough for the RSVP’d guests, but it’s always a good idea to print few extras just in case. And don’t forget to print the answer sheet for yourself! The guest with the most correct answers wins.
If you’re having a virtual baby shower, you can show the game sheet via screen share and have everyone shout out their guesses (or write in the chat) one game question at a time. The guest who says the most correct answers first wins.
Online Games for Virtual Baby Showers
Traditional baby shower games can be a lot of fun, even virtually, but there are some less traditional game options available, too. We like these options if you’re looking for an activity that’s totally online and can get everyone playing all at the same time. Keep in mind: If you have two or more guests who live in the same house and are using the same computer/screen, they’ll have to find extra screens (phone, tablet, etc.) in order for each of them to play.
Skribbl.io
Get your (virtual) crayons ready! This free online platform has guests guessing each others’ drawings under a time limit, and the prompts are totally randomized. Don’t have any artistic abilities? That’s what makes this game even more hysterical.
Keep in mind: Private rooms allow up to 12 players at a time, and you can customize your words and drawing time.
Jackbox
Meet the king of virtual party games. With six different party packs to choose from, there’s a wide variety available, from quizzes and catchphrase competitions to drawing and guess-who’s-lying games. Jackbox activities are always full of energy, and they’re sure to get your whole party pumped.
Keep in mind: The Party Packs cost about $12–$20, and you’ll need a current-gen gaming console, iPad or smart TV to host the games (but guests can play from their phones). Games can hold up to 10 players, and if you have more shower guests than that, non-players can join as audience members. Lastly, Jackbox games are meant for adults to play, so it may not be the best option if you want to keep things, ahem, polite.
Kahoot
Well-loved by school kids, teachers and families alike, Kahoot allows you to build your own quiz games from scratch to test your friends’ knowledge on literally any subject you want.
Keep in mind: Guests will need to create an account, but it’s free to use for up to 10 players at once; if you need to add more players, it costs $10+ per month (billed annually). Also, games aren’t pre-made, so if you want to use Kahoot, you have to create the entire game yourself. The site is pretty user-friendly though, so it doesn’t take a lot of skill to make a game—just some patience.
Best Baby Shower Prizes
Sure, baby shower games are tons of fun to play just for the sake of playing them, but who doesn’t love getting a prize for winning? Besides bragging rights, the best prizes are physical items that can be presented to the winners and that are as universal as possible (especially if your guest list is a mixed crowd).
Here are some easy prizes that will work for all types of guests:
Amylia Ryan
Associate Editor
Amylia Ryan is the Associate Editor at Babylist, specializing in the topics of health, wellness and lifestyle products. Combining a decade of experience in writing and editing with a deep passion for helping people, her number one goal in her work is to ensure new parents feel supported and understood. She herself is a parent to two young children, who are more than willing to help product test endless toys, books, clothes, toiletries and more.
