Card Games for Kids: 19 Easy and Fun Games

Card games for kids are one of the cheapest and best ways to build number sense, memory, matching and patience, and all you need is a standard deck of cards. This list starts with easy card games for kids as young as four, moves on to fast slapping and matching games, and finishes with a few that older kids love because they feel like the games grown-ups play.

Each game shows the number of players, what you need and how to play. Follow the links for full rules, scoring and variations. A tip for little hands: a simple card holder, or a book standing open on the table, makes holding a hand of cards much easier.

Easy card games for kids ages 4 to 6

War

Players: 2. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Split the deck between the two players. Both flip their top card, and the higher card takes both. If the cards tie, it is war: each player lays one card face down (many families use three) and one face up, and the higher face-up card wins the whole pile. The player who collects all the cards wins. See the full war card game rules.

Memory (Concentration)

Players: 1 to 6. You need: A standard deck, or just 10 to 20 pairs for younger children.

Lay the cards face down in a grid. On each turn, flip two cards. If they match in rank, keep them and go again, and if not, turn them back over. The player with the most pairs wins. It is the classic memory card game for kids.

Go Fish

Players: 2 to 6. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Deal seven cards each for two or three players and five each for more. On your turn, ask one player for a rank you hold, such as "Do you have any sevens?" If they do, they hand them all over. If not, they say "Go fish" and you draw. Collect sets of four of a kind, and the player with the most sets wins. See the full go fish rules.

Old Maid

Players: 2 to 8. You need: A standard deck with one queen removed.

Deal out all the cards and have everyone discard their pairs. Players take turns drawing one card from the hand of the player to their right and discarding any new pair. The player left holding the unmatched queen, the old maid, loses. See the full old maid rules.

Snap

Players: 2 to 6. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Deal out all the cards face down. Players take turns flipping their top card onto their own face-up pile. When two face-up cards match in rank, the first player to shout "snap" wins both piles. The player who collects every card wins.

Slapjack

Players: 2 to 8. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Deal all the cards face down. In turn, players flip their top card into a central pile. Whenever a jack appears, everyone races to slap it, and the first hand on the jack wins the whole pile. A player who runs out of cards has one chance to slap back in. See the full slapjack card game rules.

Card games for kids ages 6 to 9

Crazy Eights

Players: 2 to 7. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Deal seven cards each for two players and five each for more. Players match the top card of the discard pile by suit or rank, or play an eight, which is wild and lets the player name a new suit. If you cannot play, draw. The first player to empty their hand wins. See the full crazy eights rules.

Kings Corner

Players: 2 to 4. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Deal seven cards each and place four cards face up around the deck. Kings go in the corners. Players build down in alternating colors on any pile and can move whole piles. First to play all their cards wins. See the full kings corner rules.

Spoons

Players: 3 to 13. You need: A standard deck and one spoon fewer than players.

Players pass cards around the table one at a time, trying to collect four of a kind. Whoever does grabs a spoon, and then everyone grabs. The player without a spoon earns a letter, and spelling S-P-O-O-N puts them out. See the full spoons card game rules.

Trash

Players: 2 to 4. You need: A standard deck for each two players.

Each player lays out ten cards face down in two rows, representing ace to ten. Draw a card and place it in its matching spot, flipping the card that was there and using it in turn. Jacks are wild. The first to turn all ten cards face up wins the round. See the full trash card game rules.

Golf

Players: 2 to 6. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Each player has six cards face down in two rows and flips two. On your turn, draw and swap into your grid, aiming for the lowest total. Matching cards in a column cancel out. After nine holes, the lowest score wins. See the full golf card game rules.

Beggar My Neighbor

Players: 2 to 4. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Split the deck. Players flip cards onto a central pile in turn. When someone plays a face card or ace, the next player must pay one card for a jack, two for a queen, three for a king or four for an ace. If they turn up a face card or ace while paying, the payment passes on. Otherwise the player who played the court card takes the pile.

Sevens

Players: 3 to 8. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Deal out all the cards. The player with the seven of diamonds starts. Players build each suit upward from the seven to the king and downward to the ace, playing one card at a time. If you cannot play, you pass. First to empty their hand wins.

Pig

Players: 3 to 13. You need: Four of a kind for each player, from a standard deck.

Deal four cards each. Everyone passes one card to the left at the same time, trying to collect four of a kind. The first player to do so quietly touches their nose, and the last player to notice and copy them is the pig.

Speed

Players: 2. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Players race at the same time to play cards one higher or lower than either center pile, without taking turns. When both are stuck, flip new center cards. The first to get rid of all their cards wins. It is perfect for kids who love quick games. See the full speed card game rules.

Card games for older kids ages 9 and up

Cheat (Bluff)

Players: 3 to 10. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Players take turns placing cards face down in the center, announcing them as the next rank in order (in Bluff, the Indian version, everyone claims the same rank for a whole round). They may lie. Anyone can call "cheat," and the cards are checked. A liar picks up the pile, and if the claim was true, the challenger picks it up instead. First to empty their hand wins. See the full bluff rules.

Rummy

Players: 2 to 6. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Draw from the deck or discard pile and discard one card each turn, building sets of the same rank and runs in the same suit. Lay down melds as you make them. The first player to meld all their cards wins. See the full rummy rules.

President

Players: 4 to 8. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Players race to shed their cards by beating the last play with a higher single, pair or triple. The first player out becomes president for the next round and the last becomes the scum, who must swap their best cards. See the full president card game rules.

Solitaire

Players: 1. You need: A standard 52-card deck.

Lay out seven columns, then build down in alternating colors and move aces to the foundations. Build each foundation up by suit from ace to king. It is a great quiet game for kids to play alone. See the full solitaire rules.

How to choose a card game for kids

• Start with luck. Young children enjoy games like War where anyone can win, which keeps frustration low.
• Play with hands open at first. For a new game, play a practice round face up and talk through each choice.
• Use fewer cards. For four year olds, use only the ace to ten, or only a few pairs in Memory.
• Praise good sportsmanship. Shaking hands after each game teaches kids to win and lose kindly.