Party games for large groups: what to play with 10, 20 or 50 people

Updated 2026-09-28 · Mandli

Most party games are built for six friends on a sofa. Then you're at a family function with 35 relatives, a college reunion with 20 people, or an office party where half the team doesn't know the other half, and suddenly most games break. Turns take forever, half the room is waiting, and the loud ones end up playing while everyone else scrolls.

The trick with party games for large groups is to pick games where everyone plays at the same time, or games built around two teams. This guide sorts the games by group size, so you can pick the right one for 10, 20 or 50 people.

Where a game fits, we mention how it works in Mandli, our free party-games app. A Mandli room holds up to 50 people, and each game has its own player limit, which we've listed so you don't find out halfway through the party.

For 20 to 50 people: games where everyone plays at once

With a really big group, the only games that work are the ones where nobody waits for a turn.

1. Tambola (up to 50). The classic crowd game in India, and for good reason. Everyone has a ticket, everyone listens to the same numbers, and anyone can win. In Mandli, each person gets a ticket on their phone, the app calls the numbers and checks every claim, so nobody has to print tickets or check a disputed Full house.

2. Housie Theme Nights (up to 50). Same Tambola rules, with Bollywood, Cricket or Shaadi calls. The Shaadi theme is made for sangeet and mehendi nights.

3. Sawaal Jawaab quiz (up to 50). Ten questions, four options, 15 seconds each. Everyone answers on their own phone at the same time, so a quiz for 50 takes the same four minutes as a quiz for 2.

4. Andaaza Lagao (up to 30). Every answer is a number: a year, a score, a distance. The closest guess wins the most points, which makes it fun even for people who don't know the answer.

For 10 to 20 people: team games and quick votes

5. Dumb Charades (up to 20). The best team game for a big group. The room splits into two teams, and one actor at a time has 90 seconds to act out a movie. The other team sees the movie while the actor struggles, so nobody is bored even when it's not their turn.

6. Antakshari (up to 20). Split into two teams and sing. The app keeps the letter, the timer and the score, and every 5th turn is a special round.

7. Ye ya Woh (up to 20). Two options, pick a side in secret, and guess which side the group will pick. It takes a minute and needs zero explaining, which matters when half your group just arrived.

8. Emoji Picture, Gaana Pehchano and Pehchaan Kaun (up to 20 each). Quick quiz games that everyone plays at once.

9. Reaction Race (up to 20). Tap the moment your screen turns yellow. It's two minutes of shouting, and great for waking up a room after dinner.

For 10 to 15 people: the social deduction and voting games

10. Gaon mein Daaku (6 to 15). The desi version of Mafia and the best game for a big group that likes to argue. Everyone gets a secret role: Daaku, Vaidya, Havaldar or Gaonwala. At night the daaku pick a house to loot, and by day the whole village debates and votes someone out. The app is the Sutradhar, so nobody has to sit out as the moderator, which is usually the biggest problem with Mafia in a big group.

11. Kaun Zyada Likely (3 to 15). A question like 'Kaun sabse pehle shaadi karega?' comes up, everyone secretly votes for a person in the room, and the chart comes out. Pick Office questions for a team party, or Family for a family function.

12. Chor Sipahi, bada group (5 to 15). Raja Mantri Chor Sipahi for a crowd. From 10 players there are two Mantris, one hunting the Chor and one hunting the Daaku, plus a Jasoos who peeks at one chit.

13. Kabhi Nahi Kiya (3 to 15). The five-fingers game. Only the count is shown, not names, so people answer honestly.

More than 20 people for a team game? Split it

If you have 30 people and want Dumb Charades or Antakshari, don't squeeze everyone into one game. Two ways to handle it:

• Make two rooms, each with its own game, and add the scores at the end.
• Play the traditional way without an app: two big teams, chits written by the other team, and one person keeping score on paper. This still works beautifully for a group of 40, as long as someone keeps time.

For the really big numbers, Tambola and the quiz games are the ones that stay fun at 50.

What about board and card games?

Games like Ludo, Carrom, Satti or Dehla Pakad have fixed seats: 4 for Ludo and Dehla Pakad, up to 8 for Satti. In Mandli you can still start them in a big room. The seats fill up and everyone else watches the game live and chats on voice. After each game, winners keep their seats and the others go to the back of the line, so everyone in the room gets a turn.

That makes them good side games at a party, but not the main event for 30 people.

How to run games for a big group

• Share the room link in the event's WhatsApp group before the party. People who don't have the app can join from the browser, and there's no login.
• If everyone is in one hall, use Saath mode and just talk out loud. If some are joining from other cities, Door mode with the voice chat inside the game keeps them in.
• Put a QR code on the screen or a phone, so people sitting in the room can scan and join.
• Start with something everyone can do in 10 seconds, like Ye ya Woh, before a longer game like Gaon mein Daaku.
• Scores carry across games in a room, so announce an overall winner at the end.
• If someone's internet drops, their seat is held, so they can rejoin the same game.

A sample plan for a 25-person party

• 10 minutes: two rounds of Ye ya Woh while people are still arriving.
• 20 minutes: Tambola, everyone in.
• 15 minutes: Dumb Charades in two teams, with the 20 keenest players.
• 5 minutes: a Sawaal Jawaab quiz to calm the room down.
• 20 minutes: Gaon mein Daaku with the 15 people who want to argue, while the rest take a chai break.

Mix loud games with quick quiet ones, and give the people who didn't get a turn the first seats in the next game.

Sawaal jawaab