52 Most-Loved Educational Board Games

Play your way to the top of the class!

Examples of educational board games

The best learning takes place while kids are having fun. And what’s more fun than old-fashioned board games? Plus they get bonus points as a screen-free way to keep kids engaged! Whether your learners are in preschool or high school, there’s something for everyone. Some of the educational board games on our list can be played in a group (think Bingo) while others can be played solo. You’ll find classic games, including their junior versions for younger students, as well as plenty of unique games to add to your collection. Check out our recommendations below for the best educational board games for kids of all ages.

Games for Preschoolers

Pancake Pile-Up

A box says Pancake Pile Up. There are toy pancakes piled up on toy plates. Pancake playing cards are also shown.

Pancake Pile-Up teaches early math skills while also working on balance and coordination. Kids will definitely get a kick out of this relay-style game that involves racing to stack pancakes as displayed on the selected card.

Skills: Counting, Sequencing, Pattern Recognition, Gross Motor Skills

Buy it: Pancake Pile-Up at Amazon

Raccoon Rumpus

A box says raccoon Rumpus. There are several cards with rcacoons on them laid out and dice..

This hilarious game teaches kids matching and other valuable skills while they race to dress their raccoons.

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Skills: Matching, Colors, Turn Taking

Buy it: Raccoon Rumpus at Amazon

Matching Game: Disney Edition

A box has Mickey Mouse on it and says Disney Matching.

A classic game but with all of your kids’ favorite Disney characters. It would be hard to make a list of the best educational board games without including some version of the Memory game!

Skills: Attention, Concentration, Focus

Buy it: Matching: Disney at Amazon

Boggle Jr.

A yellow box says Boggle Jr. It has a cartoon bee. (educational board games)

Unlike traditional Boggle, this game can be played by kids as young as 3 years old. Cards can be played with the word showing or not showing so you can customize it to your students’ skill levels.

Skills: Spelling, Vocabulary

Buy it: Boggle Jr. at Amazon

Pete the Cat: I Love My Buttons Board Game

The book character Pete the Cat is on a box in the same shape as him. Several Pete the Cat game pieces are shown in addition to a spinner.

Preschoolers will love this game since it features everyone’s favorite book feline, Pete the Cat! They will also like trying their hand at the spinner as they gather buttons to dress Pete.

Skills: Shape and Color Recognition, Gross Motor Skills, Matching

Buy it: Pete the Cat Game at Amazon

Go Fish Alphabet

A green box says Go Fish Alphabet ages 4-up. (educational board games)

Players attempt to see how many upper- and lower-case letter pairs they can accumulate in this fun spin on Go Fish. We especially love the cute detail that the upper- and lower-case letters are represented by mother and baby animal pairs!

Skills: Upper- and Lower-Case Letter Recognition, Turn Taking, Critical Thinking, Animal Recognition

Buy it: Go Fish Alphabet at Amazon

Guess Who?

A box says Guess Who The Original Guessing Game. It shows cards flipped up with different characters on them.

Ask the right questions so you can guess your opponent’s character before they guess yours. We especially love that this version comes with the option to play with pets too!

Skills: Deductive Reasoning, Communication

Buy it: Guess Who? at Amazon

Little Astronauts

A box says Little Astronauts and has cartoon kids in spaceships.

Blast off into space and have fun while racing around the solar system with friends. We especially love the straightforward instructions and quick game play.

Skills: Turn Taking, Social Skills, Counting

Buy it: Little Astronauts at Amazon

Snug as a Bug in a Rug

A teal box says Snug as a Bug in a Rug and has cartoon bugs on it.

We love this game since it hits on a lot of the major concepts taught in preschool including shapes, colors, counting, and cooperation.

Skills: Counting, Color and Shape Recognition

Buy it: Snug as a Bug in a Rug at Amazon

Zingo

A box shows cartoon children smiling big while playing a game. It says Zingo on it (educational board games)

This fun spin on bingo is the perfect game for very early readers since it reinforces simple words through pictures and repetition. Kids will surely love manning the machine that makes the Zingo cards pop out.

Skills: Sight Word Recognition, Spelling

Buy it: Zingo at Amazon

Found It

A box says Found It! and has various items including a jack o' lantern on it (educational board games)

We love a good scavenger hunt, especially one that can be played indoors. Put your little learners’ critical thinking skills to the test while they have fun racing around the classroom to find objects that fit the cards.

Skills: Problem Solving, Creativity, Observation Skills

Buy it: Found It at Amazon

Magnetic Fishing Game

A wooden board has holes with fish with letters on them and magnets in the holes. There are wooden fishing poles that also have magnets on the end of them.

Kids will have fun “fishing” for letters with this adorable magnetic game board and fishing poles.

Skills: Hand-Eye Coordination, Letter Recognition

Buy it: Magnetic Fishing Game at Amazon

Candy Land

A game box shows a fantasy cartoon land filled with candy. It says Candy Land on it.

A staple of nearly everyone’s childhood, Candy Land is the perfect introduction to educational board games because the rules are straightforward. We love that it doesn’t take too long to play, since young kids often have short attention spans.

Skills: Turn Taking, Counting, Rule Following

Buy it: Candy Land at Amazon

Games for Elementary School Students

Outfoxed

A box says Outfoxed! on it and has a picture of a cartoon fox in a top hat on it. (educational board games)

Roll the dice, reveal suspects, find clues, rule out suspects, then find the guilty fox!

Skills: Deductive Reasoning and Logic

Buy it: Outfoxed at Amazon

Monopoly Junior

A game board has cartoon animals on it and the monopoly man. It says Monopoly Junior on it. (educational board games)

We are loving all the junior versions of popular board games so that littler kids can enjoy them too. Monopoly Junior uses the same basic concepts as the original while streamlining the instructions and shortening the playing time.

Skills: Counting, Basic Math, Strategy

Buy it: Monopoly Junior at Amazon

What Do You Stand For?

A multi-colored box says What Do You Stand For? Character Building Game. (educational board games)

Cards feature a “What If” scenario that gets kids thinking about how to handle difficult situations. Players must collect cards for each of the traits along the way.

Skills: Social and Emotional Intelligence, Character Building

Buy it: What Do You Stand For? at Amazon

Connect 4

A box says Connect4 and shows a blue upright board with slots for yellow and red tokens. (educational board games)

Get four of your tokens in a row before your opponent can! We love the strategic thinking that is necessary to succeed in this classic game.

Skills: Logic, Strategy

Buy it: Connect 4 at Amazon

Pictureka

A box has a bunch of small pictures on it and says Pictureka: The Wacky Picture Hunt Game.

Be the first to find your designated object to win the round. Kids will definitely get a kick out of the whimsical drawings in this game.

Skills: Visual Perception, Focus, Attention to Detail

Buy it: Pictureka at Amazon

Wildcraft

A box shows a path in a forest and the word Wildcraft! (educational board games)

Some educational board games, like this one, teach kids about something they may not otherwise learn. Kids learn about herbal and medicinal plants while competing against friends in this science-based game.

Skills: Strategy, Nature Facts

Buy it: Wildcraft at Amazon

Suspend

A red tube is shown that says Suspend on it. A thin wire sculpture is shown.

Like pickup sticks on steroids, kids will love the challenge of adding rods to this sculpture without touching any other ones.

Skills: Teamwork, Balance, Hand-Eye Coordination

Buy it: Suspend at Amazon

Math Island

A box has two cartoon children on it making shocked faces and the box says Math Island. A playing board is also shown. (educational board games)

Players will need to utilize their math skills so they can escape Math Island in this fun, fast-paced game.

Skills: Conceptual Understanding, Word Problem Solving, Calculations

Buy it: Math Island at Amazon

Balance Board Game

A frog is at the center of a scale. On one side are numbers and on the other are the corresponding number of little frogs.

Early elementary–aged students will certainly have fun balancing this scale based on the number card drawn. Additionally, the happy little frogs will make anyone smile!

Skills: Counting, Balance, Coordination

Buy it: Balance Board Game at Amazon

Scrabble Junior

Cartoon letter tiles are on a game box that says Scrabble Junior.

Pre-readers and early readers will definitely benefit from the junior version of Scrabble. We love that it can be customized to your students’ abilities since the two-sided game board has an easy side and a more advanced one.

Skills: Organization, Memory Function, Spelling, Decision Making

Buy it: Scrabble Junior at Amazon

Money Bags

A game box has a bag of money on it and says Money Bags: A Crazy Counting Game. A game board is also shown with a spinner and toy money. (educational board games)

This is the perfect game to teach young kids about coin identification while also reinforcing counting and basic math skills.

Skills: Counting, Money Management

Buy it: Money Bags at Amazon

My First Bananagrams

A green bag in the shape of a banana says My first bananagrams. Tiles with different letters in different colors are also shown.

Not all educational board games have to include actual boards. We love how easy it is to travel with Bananagrams since the tiles all fit nicely into the banana-shaped zippered bag. My First Bananagrams is similar to the original but with bright, sturdier tiles and dual-letter tiles. The tiles will come in handy whether you are actively playing the game or just practicing building sight words.

Skills: Word Building, Letter Recognition

Buy it: My First Bananagrams at Amazon

Continent Race

A yellow box says Continent Race. Several cards are laid out in front of the box. (educational board games)

 

This multi-award-winning game will definitely be a hit with your students. They will learn about various countries, continents, and flags while also having fun. Help your students develop a curiosity about the world around them while they are still young!

Skills: Flag Identification, Country/Continent Recognition

Buy it: Continent Race at Amazon

Gravity Maze

A box says Gravity Maze. It shows a gameboard with ice cube looking blocks in the shape of a 3D maze. (educational board games)

First, players have to use the provided blocks to build a maze based on the selected card. Then, they have to drop the ball into the maze and see if they were successful. There is something for everyone since the cards range from beginner to expert.

Skills: Reasoning, Visual Perception, Spatial Reasoning

Buy it: Gravity Maze at Amazon

Games for Middle School Students

Brain Games Kids

A box has the top of a little boy's face looking up at a bunch of different colored gears. It says Brain Games Kids.

Regardless of your age, everyone can benefit from brain teasers and puzzles. Put your students’ problem-solving skills to the test with this fun game based on the hit show Brain Games.

Skills: Logic, Reasoning

Buy it: Brain Games Kids at Amazon

Science Ninjas: Valence

A board game box says Valence on it. There are cards that say Hydrogen and Chlorine and another stack of cards.

Kids will learn how molecules form and chemicals interact while also having fun. Valence will certainly be a great addition to your science curriculum.

Skills: Molecule Formation, Chemical Reactions

Buy it: Science Ninjas: Valence at Amazon

Clue: Harry Potter Edition

A box features stills from the movie Harry Potter and says Clue Harry Potter.

Whether you’re a muggle or a wizard, you will love this fun, alternate version of the popular game Clue.

Skills: Deductive Reasoning, Communication

Buy it: Clue: Harry Potter Edition at Amazon

3 Up 3 Down

A small box says 3Up 3Down on it.

This fun, fast-paced card game will be sure to keep your students’ attention while improving their cognitive abilities. They will definitely ask to play again and again!

Skills: Quick Thinking, Following Directions

Buy it: 3 Up 3 Down at Amazon

Multiplication & Division Bingo

A few bingo cards with numbers on them and tokens on some of the spots are featured on a game box that says Bingo in large letters.

Kids will enjoy honing their math skills while competing against their friends!

Skills: Multiplication, Division

Buy it: Multiplication & Division Bingo at Amazon

Guess in 10

A red box says Guess in 10 States of America. It has landmarks from many states on it. (educational board games)

Players have up to 10 questions before they have to guess which state is on the card in question. This is a game of strategy since players can make use of clue cards and bonus questions on their way to winning seven cards.

Skills: Creative Thinking, Problem Solving, Communication

Buy it: Guess in 10 at Amazon

Spy Alley

A box says Spy Alley in big red letters and has a silhouette of a person on it. (educational board games)

What’s better than spending an hour engulfed in espionage and intrigue? This game has won a Mensa award for good reason since it teaches reasoning, deduction, logic, and other valuable skills!

Skills: Memory, Strategy, Deductive Reasoning

Buy it: Spy Alley at Amazon

Hedbanz

Several cartoon kids are shown with headbands on their heads with pictures on them. The box reads Hedbanz.

Put on a headband, flip the timer, then start asking yes-no questions to guess who or what is on your headband!

Skills: Descriptive Language, Deductive Reasoning

Buy it: Hedbanz at Amazon

Rapid Rumble

A blue box says Rapid Rumble and has die on it with different colored dots. Playing cards are also shown on the box. (educational board games)

Players must play as many letter cards as they can that fit the selected category before the timer runs out. This game can be played by a range of ages and ability levels since the prompts range from easy to quite difficult.

Skills: Category Recognition, Connecting Specifics to Categories, Creative Thinking

Buy it: Rapid Rumble at Amazon

Bananagrams

A yellow bag shaped like a banana is shown as are letter tiles that are formed into words (educational board games)

While the junior version of the game is perfect for elementary-aged children, we think the regular version is perfect for middle schoolers. Once everyone has been dealt a set number of tiles, students get to work building words.

Skills: Vocabulary Building, Spelling

Buy it: Bananagrams at Amazon

Mastermind

A black game board with round holes and different colored pegs in it is shown. The box says Mastermind (educational board games)

Kids have been playing this game since 1970. Mastermind is a game of strategy in which one player is the codemaker and the other is the codebreaker. A game that enforces math concepts while keeping kids actively engaged is a win in our book!

Skills: Logical Thinking, Math Concepts (Probability, Permutations)

Buy it: Mastermind at Amazon

Trekking the National Parks

A game box says Trekking the National Parks and features a bear crossing a river.

This game is so innovative it has won both the Mensa and Parents’ Choice Gold Awards. Spark a love of nature and the national parks while kids are still young! Players travel across the map collecting trail stones and earning park cards.

Skills: Map Reading, Historical and Geographical Knowledge

Buy it: Trekking the National Parks at Amazon

National Geographic Rock Bingo

A box says Rock and Mineral Game Set. It shows several bingo cards and cards with different rocks and minerals on it.

If you know a budding geologist, this is the game for them! Not only does it come with bingo cards and playing cards, it also comes with over 150 rocks and minerals!

Skills: Rock and Mineral Identification

Buy it: Rock Bingo at Amazon

Games for High School Students

Monopoly

A white game box says Monopoly in large letters. A game board is shown with fake money spread all around it (educational board games)

People have been playing some version of Monopoly since 1904 and the classic version since the 1930s! Teach the almost-adult in your life all about money management while having a lot of fun in the process.

Skills: Finance, Life Skills, Strategy, Negotiation

Buy it: Monopoly at Amazon

Periodic

A box shows tiles with the periodic element symbols on it. (educational board games)

Chemistry buffs will learn to identify and understand the periodic table while also having fun with their friends.

Skills: Strategic Planning, Executive Planning

Buy it: Periodic at Amazon

Trekking Through History

A box shows multiple historical figures and events and has a clock that says Trekking Through History on it. (educational board games)

Students will love time-traveling through thousands of years of history while earning experience tokens for their itinerary. No friends around to play with? No problem! Play in solo mode against the historian!

Skills: Critical Thinking, Reinforcement of Historical Facts

Buy it: Trekking Through History: A Board Game Adventure Through Time at Amazon

Scrabble

A red box says Scrabble in white letters and shows letter tiles forming words.

Scrabble is about so much more than just building the biggest word since different letters are worth different points and you can build multiple words in a single turn. Regardless of how attached to their devices the teens in your life are, we still think they will enjoy some hands-on learning with everyone’s favorite word game.

Skills: Vocabulary Enrichment, Tactics and Strategy

Buy it: Scrabble at Amazon

Conversation Cubes

A bag has dice in it that have different conversation starters on them. Each dice is a different bright color.

These fun dice can be used for any age, but we think they would make great icebreakers for teens. A focus on social and emotional learning has become vital since the beginning of the pandemic.

Skills: Communication, Social and Emotional Intelligence

Buy it: Conversation Cubes at Amazon

The World Game

A black box says The World Game and has a series of different colored dots under the words.

This game boasts cards representing 194 countries and also a full world map. Teach your high schooler all about geography while having fun at the same time.

Skills: Map Reading, Country and Capital Recognition

Buy it: The World Game at Amazon

Cytosis

A box has biology diagrams on it and says Cytosis.

This game is best suited to teenagers since the instructions may prove too challenging for younger students. Any science lover will certainly have a ball gathering health points by building enzymes, hormones, and receptors!

Skills: Reading, Strategy, Multiplication

Buy it: Cytosis: A Cell Biology Game at Amazon

Chameleon

A green box says Blend in: Don't get caught. Several award emblems are also shown.

This multi-award-winning game will be a big hit with teens as they play detective so they can track down the chameleon. The player with the chameleon card will need to be sneaky and use strategy to blend in and avoid being caught!

Skills: Logic, Deduction

Buy it: Chameleon at Amazon

BrainBolt

A black box says Brain Bolt in big white letters.

We know how difficult it can be to get teens to unplug, but we think Brain Bolt might just do the trick! Teens can play solo or challenge their friends to see who can get the highest score.

Skills: Hand-Eye Coordination, Memory, Sequential Thinking

Buy it: BrainBolt at Amazon

Cranium

A box is divided into 4 sections of primary colors. It says Cranium on it with a brain in the background.

Cranium is the gold standard in educational board games since it is based on psychological studies on the nine areas of intelligence. Be the first to complete all four activities in Cranium Central so your team will win!

Skills: Vocabulary, Creativity, Reading

Buy it: Cranium at Amazon

Azul

A game box is shown with mosaic tiles surrounding the word Azul. (educational board games)

Players must place tiles on their side while completing secret objectives. We think it is best suited for older students since the time needed to play is on the longer side.

Skills: Logic, Strategy, Pattern Recognition

Buy it: Azul at Amazon

The 50 States Game

A navy blue box says The 50 States Game

Being able to fill out a U.S. map is surprisingly difficult for many students and even adults. We love that this game teaches that skill while also being super fun!

Skills: Flag and Capital Recognition, Geographical Knowledge

Buy it: The 50 States Game at Amazon

If you like these educational board games and are looking for more play-based learning, try these 35 active math games and activities for your little learners.

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Students learn best when they are also having fun. Make learning fun with these top educational board games!