Games to play when bored, sorted by how long you have
Boredom comes in different sizes. Two minutes in a queue needs a different game from a long evening with nothing on. Here is a quick guide, with the lengths shown on each game page.
| Game | Players | Minutes | What you do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Settle It | 2 to 4 | 1 | One throw of rock paper scissors decides it |
| How old is your brain, really? | 1 to 12 | 3 | A personality quiz with a surprising result |
| What’s your villain era? | 1 to 12 | 4 | Eight questions, one villain era |
| Higher or lower | 1 to 12 | 4 | Pick which of two things is bigger, older or hotter |
| Emoji Decoder | 1 to 12 | 4 | Name the film told in emoji |
| 90% of people get these wrong | 1 to 12 | 5 | Questions built to trick your brain |
| Would you survive? | 1 to 12 | 5 | Pick the move that keeps you alive |
| Word Hive | 1 to 12 | 6 | Make words from seven letters |
| Four Links | 1 to 12 | 8 | Find four hidden groups of four |
| Word Race | 1 to 12 | 8 | Guess the hidden word in six tries |
Fun quizzes to take when bored
Personality quizzes are the classic boredom cure, because the reward is a result about you. What’s your villain era? takes eight questions to find out what kind of villain era you would have. Which decade do you actually belong in? tells you which decade is really yours, and What’s your red flag? gives eight honest answers and tells you yours. How old is your brain, really? is the quickest at about three minutes.
Each result is something you can send to friends, which is half the fun: they take the same quiz and you compare. There are more on the personality quizzes page.
- What’s your villain era?1–12 players · 4 minEveryone has a villain era. Eight questions to find out exactly what kind yours is.
- Which decade do you actually belong in?1–12 players · 4 minYou were born in the wrong decade. Eight questions to find out which one is really yours.
- What’s your red flag?1–12 players · 4 minEveryone has one. Eight honest answers and we’ll tell you yours. Your friends already know.
- How old is your brain, really?1–12 players · 3 minYour birthday says one thing. Your brain says another. Eight questions to find your real age.
Brain teasers that look easy
If you want to feel clever, or find out you are not, try a quiz built around a trap. 90% of people get these wrong is full of questions that look easy while your brain jumps to the wrong answer. Gotcha! The trick question quiz makes every question a trap, so read carefully. Higher or lower: the facts that break your brain shows two things and asks which is bigger, older or hotter, and you will be sure and wrong.
Spot the fake fact gives three facts that all sound made up, two of them true. Would you survive? puts you in front of a bear, quicksand and a sinking car, and asks what you would do. And You’re 90% sure. Are you right? makes you bet on how sure you are, so confident and wrong costs you.
- 90% of people get these wrong1–12 players · 5 minThey look easy. Your brain will jump to the wrong answer. Can you stop it?
- Gotcha! The trick question quiz1–12 players · 4 minHow many months have 28 days? Every question is a trap. Read carefully.
- Higher or lower: the facts that break your brain1–12 players · 4 minTwo things. Which is bigger, older, hotter? You’ll be sure. You’ll be wrong.
- Would you survive?1–12 players · 5 minA bear, quicksand, a sinking car. Most people pick the move that gets them killed. Do you?
Games to play alone online
Most quizzes, personality quizzes and word puzzles on Letternerd work with one player. The games to play alone page lists them all. Some favourites when you are on your own:
- Emoji Decoder: a film told in a handful of emoji, and every wrong answer shares a picture with the right one.
- Riddle Me: a riddle with its answer as a hidden word. Crack it outright, or let the letters give it away.
- Deep Dive: dive for pearls or surface and bank them. One shark and the whole unbanked bag is gone.
- Flash Recall: a row of pictures flashes up, then hides, and you put it back in order. Every level adds one more.
- Rank it: you’ll get #1 wrong: put the deadliest animal, the hottest planet and more in order.
If you have a favourite show, the movie and TV quizzes cover Friends, Stranger Things, Squid Game, Harry Potter and more.
Word puzzles for when you are bored
Four Links gives sixteen words with four hidden groups of four, and you have four mistakes to find them all. Word Hive gives seven letters, one in the middle, and two minutes to make words, including the one that uses them all. Word Race is a hidden five-letter word with six tries and letter-by-letter hints, and Quad Race is four hidden words at once with nine tries.
All four work solo, and all four get better when you share them: host a room and friends race you on the same puzzle. Our post on free word games like Wordle goes into each one.
Quick arcade games with a daily score
The Arcade is a set of solo score games with a daily board, so you can see how your score compares with friends. They are made for short bursts: a bus ride, a tea break, a few minutes before bed.
- Tessel: drag three shapes onto the grid and clear full rows and columns.
- Double Up: swipe the board so matching tiles merge into bigger ones.
- Sweep: clear a field of mines you can always solve without guessing.
- Unjam: slide the blocks out of the way to free the red one in as few moves as you can.
- Letter Web: drag through touching letters to spell words before the clock runs out.
- Gap: tap to flap and thread the bird through every gap.
- TesselArcade · 1 player · daily boardDrag three shapes onto the grid and clear full rows and columns.
- Double UpArcade · 1 player · daily boardSwipe the board so matching tiles merge into bigger ones.
- SweepArcade · 1 player · daily boardClear a minefield you can always solve without guessing.
- UnjamArcade · 1 player · daily boardSlide the blocks out of the way to free the red one, in as few moves as you can.
- Letter WebArcade · 1 player · daily boardDrag through touching letters to spell words before the clock runs out.
- GapArcade · 1 player · daily boardTap to flap and thread the bird through every gap.
Bored with friends? Games for two or more
If someone else is bored too, turn it into a game together. Rock Paper Scissors is best of three, thrown in secret, against a friend or the AI. This or That is quick either-or questions where you score when your answers match. Would you rather gives two impossible choices to argue about.
Friends far away? Run the room over several days and everyone plays when they are free. Our post on games to play over text has more ideas for a slow chat.
Or make a game of your own
Sometimes the cure for boredom is making something. Describe a game in a sentence, such as a quiz about my favourite show, and Letternerd builds it for you to edit. Your first game from a description needs no account, and editing by hand is free. Then send it to a friend and see how they do. Our guide on how to make a quiz for friends walks through it.
And if you only have one minute, the Daily is one question that changes every day. Everyone answers the same one, and you can see how others answered.
Play the games from this post
Free in your browser. Share the room code and everyone joins from their own phone, no signup.
- What’s your villain era?1–12 players · 4 minEveryone has a villain era. Eight questions to find out exactly what kind yours is.
- 90% of people get these wrong1–12 players · 5 minThey look easy. Your brain will jump to the wrong answer. Can you stop it?
- Four Links1–12 players · 8 minSixteen words, four hidden groups of four. Find them all before your four mistakes run out.
- Word Hive1–12 players · 6 minSeven letters, one in the middle, two minutes. Make more words than anyone else, and find the one that uses them all.
- Would you survive?1–12 players · 5 minA bear, quicksand, a sinking car. Most people pick the move that gets them killed. Do you?
- Emoji Decoder1–12 players · 4 minA film told in a handful of emoji. Which one is it? Every wrong answer shares a picture with the right one.
- How old is your brain, really?1–12 players · 3 minYour birthday says one thing. Your brain says another. Eight questions to find your real age.
- Spot the fake fact1–12 players · 5 minThree facts that all sound made up. Two are true. Find the one that’s fake.
Frequently asked questions
What games can I play when bored on my phone?
Personality quizzes like What’s your villain era?, brain teasers like 90% of people get these wrong, word puzzles like Four Links and Arcade games like Tessel. They all run in your phone’s browser with nothing to install.
What are good games to play alone online for free?
Most quizzes, personality quizzes and word puzzles on Letternerd work with one player, and the Arcade has solo score games with a daily board. All are free.
What are fun quizzes to take when bored?
Try What’s your red flag?, Which decade do you actually belong in?, Would you survive? and Spot the fake fact. Most take four or five minutes.
Do I need an account to play?
No. You play as a guest. An account is optional and only needed to keep your history across devices.