Roundup
The Best Board Game Gifts for Coworkers
Giving a colleague a gift is a narrow problem: it has to be cheap, impersonal, obviously thoughtful, and impossible to misread.
By Scooter M. · Published · Last updated
How this page is funded: the buy links below are affiliate links. If you buy through one, we earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It does not change the order of the picks or what we say about them. Full disclosure.
Games we claim to have play-tested: 0. Every gift guide in this category implies a shelf of played games behind it. We do not have one, and we would rather say so. What we do instead is on this page: the publisher’s own player count, playing time and age band for every pick, cited to the publisher; a live price rather than a remembered one; and a plain answer on who should skip each game.
The short answer
For a colleague, buy Sushi Go!. Gamewright states 2-5 players and 15 minutes, it ships in a small tin, and it is a genuinely good game rather than a desk novelty - which is exactly the line a colleague gift needs to walk. If the budget is lower, Happy Salmon at Exploding Kittens’ own list price of $12.99.
A gift for a colleague is a narrower problem than any other on this site. It has a low cap, usually $15 to $25. It cannot be personal, because you do not know them that well and the gift will be opened in front of other people. And it should not look like it was bought in a hurry, because everyone can tell.
Small board games sit unusually well in that space. They are cheap, obviously chosen rather than grabbed, and they say something friendly without saying anything personal at all.
Publisher list prices, where they publish one
Most publishers do not print a price. Four of the picks here do, in their own store’s product data. These are list prices, not what you will pay at a retailer - the live retail number is on each buy button.
| Game | Publisher list price | Players | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Happy Salmon | $12.99 | 3-8 | Exploding Kittens store |
| The Mind | $17.95 | 2-4 | Pandasaurus Games store |
| Poetry for Neanderthals | $19.99 | 2+ | Exploding Kittens store |
| A Little Wordy | $14.99 | 2 only | Exploding Kittens store |
How to choose between them
If you know nothing about them at all, Sushi Go!. It is small, it is charming, it works with children if they have any, and nobody has ever been offended by it.
If the office actually plays games together at lunch, buy for the office rather than the person: Codenames (4-8+ by Czech Games Edition) or Anomia (3-6 by Anomia Press) will get used repeatedly rather than taken home.
If it is a leaving gift and you want it to land, The Mind. Pandasaurus states 2-4 players and 15 minutes at a $17.95 list price, and it is strange enough that people describe it to other people afterwards - which is a good property for something you want remembered.
Quick picks
Ranked on how well each one fits the job in this page’s title, using the publisher’s own player count, playing time and age band. Tap any row for the full write-up, including who should skip it.
| # | Product | Best for | Gift fit | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Sushi Go!2-5 players · 15 min · 8+ | Best overall gift for a colleague | 8.9 | Check price on Amazon |
| 2 | Qwixx2-5 players · 15 min · 8+ | Best for a lunch break | 8.0 | Check price on Amazon |
| 3 | Love Letter2-6 players · 20 min · 10+ | Smallest good game | 8.2 | Check price on Amazon |
| 4 |  The Mind2-4 players · 15 min · 8+ | Most memorable | 7.6 | Check price on Amazon |
| 5 |  Happy Salmon3-8 players · 2 min · 6+ | Cheapest | 8.0 | Check price on Amazon |
| 6 | Anomia3-6 players · 20-30 min · 10+ | Best for an office of six | 8.2 | Check price on Amazon |
| 7 | Codenames4-8 players · 15 min · 10+ | Best if the team will play together | 9.6 | Check price on Amazon |
| 8 | Poetry for Neanderthals2-12 players · 15 min · 7+ | Funniest to unwrap | 8.1 | Check price on Amazon |
#1 - Best overall gift for a colleague
Sushi Go!
Gamewright · A small, cheap gift that is actually good
A tin of cards, fifteen minutes, and one of the best value-for-money gifts in the whole category. You pass hands of cards around and try to collect the sets that score well together.
#ad We do not hold a current price for this product, so we do not show one. How we make money.
What it actually is
A card game where you pick one card from your hand, pass the rest to your neighbor, and repeat - so every hand you see has already been picked over.
Does it fit this page?
Gamewright states 2-5 players, 15 minutes, in a tin. Small, charming, and a genuinely good game rather than a novelty.
What the publisher states
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Players | 2-5 | Gamewright, published product page |
| Age | 8+ | Gamewright, published product page |
| Length | 15 min | Gamewright, published product page |
Read from the publisher’s own page. Where a publisher does not state a figure, there is no row for it here.
What is good about it
- Fits in a coat pocket, so it travels and it fits a stocking
- Fifteen minutes means a household plays it three times in a sitting
- Cheap enough to give alongside something else
What is not
- Caps at five - Sushi Go Party! is the version that seats eight
- Scoring is fiddly the first time through
- Almost too small to feel like a main present on its own
Who should skip it
Skip it as a sole main gift for an adult - it reads as a stocking filler no matter how good it is. Give it alongside something larger.
How it scored as a gift
- Easy to explain9.2
- Works for non-gamers9.2
- Group size range7.8
- Repeat plays8.6
- Feels like a gift7.4
Gift fit 8.9 / 10. That is our editorial judgment of how safe and well-aimed this is as a present, read off the published specifications - not a verdict on how good the game is, and not a test result. It is deliberately not marked up as a rating in this page’s structured data. How we pick.
#2 - Best for a lunch break
Qwixx
Gamewright · A table where somebody always complains about waiting
Six dice, a pad of scoresheets, and fifteen minutes. Everybody uses every roll, so nobody is ever waiting for their turn - which is exactly why it works with grandparents and children at the same table.
#ad We do not hold a current price for this product, so we do not show one. How we make money.
What it actually is
A dice game. One person rolls, but every player marks something off their own sheet from that roll, so there is no downtime.
Does it fit this page?
Gamewright states 2-5 players, 8+, 15 minutes - dice and a scorepad, played and finished inside an hour.
What the publisher states
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Players | 2-5 | Gamewright, published product page |
| Age | 8+ | Gamewright, published product page |
| Length | 15 min | Gamewright, published product page |
Read from the publisher’s own page. Where a publisher does not state a figure, there is no row for it here.
What is good about it
- Nobody waits - every roll is used by every player
- The scoresheets make the rules self-explanatory
- Very cheap, and about as portable as a game gets
What is not
- It is a dice game; luck decides more than skill
- Score pads run out and need replacing
- Does not look like much when unwrapped
Who should skip it
Skip it for someone who wants meaningful decisions - Qwixx is mostly about making the best of what the dice gave you.
How it scored as a gift
- Easy to explain9.6
- Works for non-gamers9.4
- Group size range7.8
- Repeat plays8.0
- Feels like a gift6.6
Gift fit 8.0 / 10. That is our editorial judgment of how safe and well-aimed this is as a present, read off the published specifications - not a verdict on how good the game is, and not a test result. It is deliberately not marked up as a rating in this page’s structured data. How we pick.
#3 - Smallest good game
Love Letter
Z-Man Games · Filling twenty minutes with something clever
You hold one card. You draw a second, play one of the two, and try to deduce what everyone else is holding. Z-Man's current edition takes 2 to 6 players, which is a wide range for a game this small.
#ad We do not hold a current price for this product, so we do not show one. How we make money.
What it actually is
A tiny deduction game with a deck of about twenty cards. Each card does one thing, and the whole deck fits in a hand.
Does it fit this page?
Z-Man states 2-6 players, 20 minutes, from about twenty cards.
What the publisher states
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Players | 2-6 | Z-Man Games, published product page |
| Age | 10+ | Z-Man Games, published product page |
| Length | 20 min | Z-Man Games, published product page |
Read from the publisher’s own page. Where a publisher does not state a figure, there is no row for it here.
What is good about it
- The entire rulebook is a card reference you can read in a minute
- Two to six players, which is unusually flexible for a micro game
- Rounds last three minutes, so being knocked out costs nothing
What is not
- You will be eliminated from rounds, which younger children mind
- Almost pure deduction - there is nothing to build or collect
- The box is small enough that it needs to be part of a bigger gift
Who should skip it
Skip it for a player who hates being eliminated, and skip it as a standalone main present - it is a companion gift.
How it scored as a gift
- Easy to explain9.0
- Works for non-gamers8.6
- Group size range8.8
- Repeat plays8.2
- Feels like a gift6.8
Gift fit 8.2 / 10. That is our editorial judgment of how safe and well-aimed this is as a present, read off the published specifications - not a verdict on how good the game is, and not a test result. It is deliberately not marked up as a rating in this page’s structured data. How we pick.
#4 - Most memorable
The Mind
Pandasaurus Games · A gift that will be talked about afterwards
You play numbered cards in ascending order without speaking, and somehow it works. Fifteen minutes, 2 to 4 players, ages 8+. It is the strangest thing on this site and the one people remember.
#ad We do not hold a current price for this product, so we do not show one. How we make money.
What it actually is
A cooperative card game with essentially one rule: play your cards low to high, as a group, with no communication of any kind.
Does it fit this page?
Pandasaurus states 2-4 players, 8+, 15 minutes, at a list price of $17.95.
What the publisher states
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Play time | 15 Minutes | Pandasaurus Games, published product page |
| Players | 2-4 | Pandasaurus Games, published product page |
| Age | 8+ | Pandasaurus Games, published product page |
Read from the publisher’s own page. Where a publisher does not state a figure, there is no row for it here.
What is good about it
- The shortest explanation of any game here, by a distance
- Fifteen minutes and a very small box
- Produces a genuinely odd shared experience that people describe to other people
What is not
- Some players simply do not click with it and find it pointless
- Caps at four
- Slight - it is a deck of numbered cards and nothing else
Who should skip it
Skip it for someone who wants to see what they are buying. Unwrapped, The Mind looks like a deck of numbers, because it is.
How it scored as a gift
- Easy to explain9.8
- Works for non-gamers8.4
- Group size range6.8
- Repeat plays7.4
- Feels like a gift6.4
Gift fit 7.6 / 10. That is our editorial judgment of how safe and well-aimed this is as a present, read off the published specifications - not a verdict on how good the game is, and not a test result. It is deliberately not marked up as a rating in this page’s structured data. How we pick.
#5 - Cheapest
Happy Salmon
Exploding Kittens · Ninety seconds of chaos, over and over
The publisher lists the play time as 90 seconds and that is not a typo. Everyone shouts an action at once until somebody empties their hand. As a stocking filler for a house with children it is close to unbeatable.
#ad We do not hold a current price for this product, so we do not show one. How we make money.
What it actually is
A card game with no turns. You call out the action on your top card until you find the person calling the same thing, do the high-five or the fist-bump, and move on.
Does it fit this page?
Exploding Kittens lists it at $12.99 for 3-8 players in 90 seconds.
What the publisher states
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Players | 3-8 | Exploding Kittens, published product page |
| Age | 6+ | Exploding Kittens, published product page |
| Play time | 90 sec | Exploding Kittens, published product page |
Read from the publisher’s own page. Where a publisher does not state a figure, there is no row for it here.
What is good about it
- An age floor of 6, so young children genuinely play on equal terms
- Ninety seconds means it fits anywhere - before dinner, at a table, in a queue
- Ships in a cloth pouch rather than a box, so it travels
What is not
- Extremely loud and physical
- No strategy at all, which is not what every recipient wants
- Needs three people minimum, so it is not a two-person gift
Who should skip it
Skip it for anyone with limited hand or arm mobility - the game is built entirely on physical gestures - and skip it for a quiet household.
How it scored as a gift
- Easy to explain9.8
- Works for non-gamers9.6
- Group size range8.0
- Repeat plays7.0
- Feels like a gift7.0
Gift fit 8.0 / 10. That is our editorial judgment of how safe and well-aimed this is as a present, read off the published specifications - not a verdict on how good the game is, and not a test result. It is deliberately not marked up as a rating in this page’s structured data. How we pick.
#6 - Best for an office of six
Anomia
Anomia Press · A cheap gift that gets played the same night
You flip cards until two symbols match, and then the two people involved race to name something in the other's category. Pure reflex, very cheap, and over in twenty minutes.
#ad We do not hold a current price for this product, so we do not show one. How we make money.
What it actually is
A fast card game. When your symbol matches someone else's, you both scramble to shout an example of the category on their card first.
Does it fit this page?
Anomia Press states 3-6 players, ages 10 and up, 20-30 minutes.
What the publisher states
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Players | 3-6 | Anomia Press, published product page |
| Age | 10 & up | Anomia Press, published product page |
| Play time | 20-30 min | Anomia Press, published product page |
Read from the publisher’s own page. Where a publisher does not state a figure, there is no row for it here.
What is good about it
- Rules explained in under a minute, genuinely
- Small box and low price make it an easy add-on gift
- Being slow at it is funny rather than embarrassing
What is not
- Rewards fast recall, so it frustrates anyone who is not quick under pressure
- Caps at six players
- It is loud, which matters in an apartment or a restaurant
Who should skip it
Skip it for someone who freezes under time pressure, and skip it if the room needs to stay quiet. This game is shouting.
How it scored as a gift
- Easy to explain9.6
- Works for non-gamers9.2
- Group size range7.6
- Repeat plays7.8
- Feels like a gift7.2
Gift fit 8.2 / 10. That is our editorial judgment of how safe and well-aimed this is as a present, read off the published specifications - not a verdict on how good the game is, and not a test result. It is deliberately not marked up as a rating in this page’s structured data. How we pick.
#7 - Best if the team will play together
Codenames
Czech Games Edition · The gift you give when you know almost nothing about the person
The single safest board game gift there is. Two teams, a grid of words, and one person giving one-word clues. It explains in about a minute, it works at four people or ten, and nobody has to read a rulebook to enjoy it.
#ad We do not hold a current price for this product, so we do not show one. How we make money.
What it actually is
A word game. The room splits into two teams; one person on each team can see which words belong to their side and gives a single-word clue to point their teammates at them.
Does it fit this page?
Czech Games Edition states 4-8+ players, 15 minutes. Two teams, ordinary words, nothing personal.
What the publisher states
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Players | 4-8+ | Czech Games Edition, published game page |
| Age | 10+ | Czech Games Edition, published game page |
| Length | 15 min | Czech Games Edition, published game page |
Read from the publisher’s own page. Where a publisher does not state a figure, there is no row for it here.
What is good about it
- Teaches faster than almost anything else on this site - the core rule is one sentence
- Scales past its printed maximum, because extra people simply join a team
- Everyone talks, including the people who are losing
What is not
- The two clue-givers do most of the thinking; quiet guessers can drift
- Wants an even-ish split into two teams, so it is awkward at exactly three
- Word games do not suit everybody, and you cannot always tell in advance
Who should skip it
Skip it for a group of two or three - it wants teams. Skip it for someone who dislikes word games, or who is playing in a second language.
How it scored as a gift
- Easy to explain9.8
- Works for non-gamers9.7
- Group size range9.4
- Repeat plays9.2
- Feels like a gift8.8
Gift fit 9.6 / 10. That is our editorial judgment of how safe and well-aimed this is as a present, read off the published specifications - not a verdict on how good the game is, and not a test result. It is deliberately not marked up as a rating in this page’s structured data. How we pick.
#8 - Funniest to unwrap
Poetry for Neanderthals
Exploding Kittens · A silly gift that works at almost any headcount
Get your team to say a word using only single-syllable words. Break the rule and somebody hits you with an inflatable club. The publisher's player line is simply 2+, so it stretches from a couple to a party.
#ad We do not hold a current price for this product, so we do not show one. How we make money.
What it actually is
A team word game with one constraint: every clue you give has to be one syllable at a time. Dog is fine. Puppy costs you.
Does it fit this page?
Exploding Kittens lists 2+ players, 15 minutes, at $19.99 - the inflatable club does the work.
What the publisher states
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Players | 2+ | Exploding Kittens, published product page |
| Age | 7+ | Exploding Kittens, published product page |
| Play time | 15 min | Exploding Kittens, published product page |
Read from the publisher’s own page. Where a publisher does not state a figure, there is no row for it here.
What is good about it
- Genuinely works at two, which is rare for a team word game
- An age floor of 7 makes it a real family option
- The constraint does all the work - there is nothing else to learn
What is not
- The inflatable club is the joke, and the joke is finite
- Harder than it sounds, which frustrates some players quickly
- Two difficulty decks means the easier one gets used up first
Who should skip it
Skip it for someone who finds word constraints stressful rather than funny - this is a game about being interrupted mid-sentence.
How it scored as a gift
- Easy to explain9.4
- Works for non-gamers9.2
- Group size range8.6
- Repeat plays7.2
- Feels like a gift8.4
Gift fit 8.1 / 10. That is our editorial judgment of how safe and well-aimed this is as a present, read off the published specifications - not a verdict on how good the game is, and not a test result. It is deliberately not marked up as a rating in this page’s structured data. How we pick.
How these were picked
We have not played these games and we do not pretend to have. What we did was read each publisher’s own page, take their stated player count, playing time and age band, check that every pick genuinely fits the constraint in this page’s title, confirm it is still being sold, and pull a live price rather than a remembered one. Every figure here names the publisher it came from, so you can check it yourself in about a minute.
How we pick sets out the full method, including what would change a ranking.
Questions people ask
+−What is a good board game gift for a coworker under $20?
Sushi Go! from Gamewright, or Happy Salmon, which Exploding Kittens lists at $12.99. Both are small, both are real games, and neither says anything personal about the recipient.
+−What board game should I buy for the office to share?
Codenames, which Czech Games Edition states as 4-8+ players in 15 minutes. It fits a lunch break, takes whoever is around, and the content is a grid of ordinary words - so there is no way for it to embarrass anybody.
+−Is a board game a good Secret Santa gift?
Yes, provided it is small and cheap enough for the cap. A card game in a tin is obviously chosen rather than grabbed, and it can be played in the room, which is what makes it land. Our white elephant page covers the same problem from the exchange side.
+−What board games should I avoid giving a colleague?
Anything rated 17+, anything requiring personal disclosure, and anything long enough that it clearly will not be played at work. Monikers is 17+ by CMYK’s own rating and is the clearest thing to avoid.