Baby shower games: fun ideas for a girl, a boy or a co-ed party

Games are what turn a baby shower into a party: they get strangers talking, bring out the laughs and leave you with photos people remember for years. Below you’ll find games grouped by type, each with how to play, what you need and how long it takes, plus picks for co-ed and virtual showers and some prize ideas. They work just as well whether you’re expecting a girl, a boy or keeping it a surprise.

How many games to plan, and in what order

For a three- to four-hour party, three to five games are plenty. Any more and people get tired, and it cuts into the chatting most guests came for. An order that works:

1. As guests arrive, an icebreaker that runs on its own, with no one leading it.
2. While people eat, a guessing game they can answer on paper.
3. Once everyone has loosened up, a team game or something more active.
4. Before opening gifts, something calm to wind down.

Pick someone to host the games (not the mom-to-be) and pack each game’s supplies in its own bag, with extra pens and a sheet to keep score.

Icebreaker games

Don’t say “baby”

Every guest gets a clothespin to clip on their shirt as they walk in. For the rest of the party, one word is off-limits, like “baby.” If someone catches you saying it, they take your clothespin. Whoever has the most at the end wins.

• You’ll need: one wooden clothespin per guest.
• Time: the whole party.

Guest bingo

Each card has squares like “someone who has twin siblings,” “someone who changed a diaper this week” or “someone who was born in another city.” Guests mingle to find a match for each square and write down that person’s name. First to complete a row wins.

• You’ll need: printed cards and pens.
• Time: 10 to 15 minutes.

Guessing games

The mystery jar

Fill a jar with candy, mini pacifiers or cotton balls and have each guest write down how many they think are inside. Count them at the end; the closest guess wins.

• You’ll need: a clear jar, the filler and slips of paper.
• Time: the whole party, plus 5 minutes to count.

Chocolate diapers

Melt a little of a different chocolate bar inside each diaper and number them. The diapers get passed around, and each guest writes down which chocolate they think is in each one. It gets big laughs with any crowd.

• You’ll need: five or six diapers and chocolate bars everyone knows.
• Time: about 15 minutes.

Mom or dad?

Before the party, ask both parents the same questions separately, like “who’ll get up for the middle-of-the-night feedings?” or “who’ll cry first on the first day of preschool?” During the game, guests guess who said what, or the parents hold up a sign with the other’s photo.

• You’ll need: 10 to 15 questions and two signs.
• Time: 10 to 15 minutes.

Team games

Swaddle the baby

Each team picks a teammate and wraps them in toilet paper like a newborn, hat and all. Teams get three minutes, and the mom-to-be picks the winner.

• You’ll need: two or three rolls per team.
• Time: about 10 minutes.

Dress the baby in oven mitts

Each team gets a doll, a onesie and a pair of socks. Taking turns, each player puts on oven mitts and has to dress the doll or fasten a snap before passing the mitts along.

• You’ll need: a doll, baby clothes and thick mitts for each team.
• Time: 5 to 10 minutes.

Hum that tune

One player hums a lullaby or a children’s song, no lyrics allowed, and their team has to name it. Each right answer scores a point.

• You’ll need: cards with song titles.
• Time: about 15 minutes.

Co-ed baby shower games

When the guest list includes men and women, quick games with a bit of competition work best. Mix up the teams instead of pitting the guys against the girls, so nobody ends up on the sidelines.

Baby bottle race

Each player gets a baby bottle filled with juice, and the first to finish wins. It tends to be a favorite with dads-to-be and their friends.

• You’ll need: one new bottle per player.
• Time: 5 minutes.

Balloon belly

Players tuck an inflated balloon under their T-shirt and, without popping it, have to tie their shoes, pick coins up off the floor or put on a pair of socks. First to finish with the balloon intact wins.

• You’ll need: balloons and oversized T-shirts.
• Time: about 10 minutes.

New parent charades

A player draws a card and acts it out without talking: “changing a diaper at 3 a.m.,” “setting up the stroller for the first time,” “burping the baby.” Their team has one minute to guess.

• You’ll need: cards and a timer.
• Time: 15 to 20 minutes.

For more games that work with a mixed crowd, like the blindfolded diaper change, see our baby boy shower ideas.

Virtual baby shower games

If some of the family lives far away, these work over a video call:

• Scavenger hunt. The host names an item (a sock, something yellow, a stuffed animal) and the first person to show it on camera scores a point. About 10 minutes.
• Emoji quiz. Post the titles of children’s songs or movies written only in emojis in the chat; whoever guesses the most wins. About 10 minutes.
• Blind drawing. Everyone draws the mom-to-be with their eyes closed and holds it up to the camera; she picks her favorite. All you need is paper and a marker.

The rest of the party—which platform to use, the one-hour run of show and the test call a few days before—is in how to plan a virtual baby shower.

Girl, boy or surprise: how to adapt them

The games stay the same; what changes is the look of the cards, the colors of the supplies and a few details:

• If you’ve picked a name and want to share it, reveal it with a round of hangman at the end.
• If you don’t know yet, or it’s a surprise, set up a “girl or boy?” vote with stickers by the door and announce the tally before the reveal. Our gender reveal ideas have more on that.
• Check with the mom-to-be before including any games about her belly or her body.

If it’s a baby girl shower, the palettes and themes those colors come from have their own guide.

Prize ideas

• Small and useful: handmade soaps, mugs, notebooks, jams or chocolates.
• One per game, plus a grand prize for whoever scores the most points overall.
• Buy one or two extra, in case of ties.
• A special prize for the mom-to-be, who doesn’t compete but judges the creative games.

If older siblings or little cousins are coming, the household scavenger hunt and the blind drawing slot straight into the schedule for a kids’ birthday party.

Before you pick the games

Can you have a baby shower with no games at all?

Yes, and sometimes it’s the better call. If the guests already know each other, if there are only a few of them, or if the mom-to-be would rather talk, the afternoon holds up on good food, music and something to do with your hands: decorating onesies, writing a piece of advice, making a card. What does help is one moment when everybody does the same thing at once; without it, the room splits into small groups that never mix.

How do I put the games together without spending?

Almost everything prints at home or gets borrowed: the bingo cards, the question cards, the scoresheet. The jar, the clothespins, the doll, the oven mitts and the balloons are usually already in the house or in an aunt’s. Buy only what gets used up — the diapers for the chocolate game, the bottles — plus the prizes. Print two or three extra cards: someone always turns up without RSVPing.

Which games work if there are kids or older relatives there?

The ones played sitting down and on paper: the mystery jar, bingo, predictions, trivia. Kids do well as helpers — handing out cards, counting the candy in the jar, awarding the prizes — and it keeps them occupied. Skip anything that asks people to crouch, run or cover their eyes if grandparents are in the room, and when you build teams, mix the ages instead of putting the kids against the grown-ups.

What do I do if a game falls flat?

Cut it. Don’t push, and don’t explain the rules a third time: the host thanks everyone, names a winner if there is one, and moves on. Two things prevent it: explaining the game in two sentences, and playing one practice round before it counts. Always keep a short backup ready — something answered on paper — and save the most active game for when people have loosened up.

Invitation, RSVPs and gifts with parati

Knowing how many people are coming tells you how many bingo cards, balloons and prizes to have ready. With parati for baby showers you create the invitation and the gift registry on the same link and share it on WhatsApp. Guests RSVP and give gifts from their phone, by card or Yape, without creating an account, and you see who confirmed and who gave what. Big gifts like the stroller can be split into parts so several guests can share them, and El Sueño (The Dream) pools contributions toward something bigger, like the nursery, with a minimum contribution you set. Not sure what to ask for yet? Start with our guide on what to ask for at a baby shower.