Party guide
Games like Jackbox you can play on your phone
Guide // Free and paid
Party games where every phone is a controller and nobody downloads a thing. Here's how ours and the others compare, so you can pick one for tonight.
If you've played a Jackbox Party Pack, you know the idea. One shared screen, everyone answers on their own phone, and the room falls apart laughing. Jackbox is the best-known name in this kind of game, and for good reason. It isn't the only way to play, though. Some of these games are free, some run in a web browser with nothing to buy or install, and one doesn't need a TV at all.
We make one of them, so ours is first, with a plain line on what it's good at and what it isn't. Every other game gets a fair go.
The short answer
- Free, no app, on any TV or on phones alone: Keyhole Games.
- The biggest range of polished party games, if you have a console or computer: Jackbox Party Packs.
- Drawing and guessing: Gartic Phone or Skribbl.io.
- A quiz for a classroom or a work meeting: Kahoot!
- Arcade games on the TV with phones as controllers: AirConsole.
Party games like Jackbox, compared
Keyhole Games
Australian party games that run in your phone's web browser. The host opens a party, everyone scans the QR code, and you're in. No app, no console, and no account for guests. Put it on a TV through keyholegames.com/tv, or skip the TV and play on phones alone. Up to 20 phones in a room.
Four games are free for good: Which Would Ya?, Spot the Blow-in, Murder in the Dark and Snooze Bandit. Party Pack 01 adds ten more, hosted by Gail the Galah, including Two Truths and a Lie and Read the Room.
Best for: a lounge room, a backyard or an office with no console and no plans. Worth knowing: we're new, the range is smaller than Jackbox's, and there are no drawing games.
Jackbox Party Packs
The famous one. You buy a pack of games and run it on a console, a computer or a supported TV device, and players join on their phones in a web browser.
Best for: groups who want the biggest choice of polished games and already have a console handy. Worth knowing: each pack is a separate purchase, and someone needs a device that runs it.
Gartic Phone
A free browser game that crosses broken telephone with drawing. Write a line, draw the next person's line, and watch it go wrong around the circle.
Best for: groups on a video call, and anyone who loves a bad drawing. Worth knowing: drawing is easier on a tablet or laptop than on a small phone.
Skribbl.io
A free drawing and guessing game in the browser. One player draws a word and everyone else types guesses against the clock, in a public room or a private one for your group.
Best for: quick rounds with friends, in the room or online. Worth knowing: guessing means typing, so a keyboard helps.
Kahoot!
The quiz platform many people know from school or work. The host shows questions on a shared screen and players answer on their phones with a game PIN. There's a free plan, and paid plans with more features.
Best for: classrooms, training days and work quizzes. Worth knowing: it's built for quizzes rather than party games, so the fun depends on the questions you bring.
AirConsole
Turns a browser or smart TV into a games console, with phones as the controllers, and has a big range of arcade-style games. Free to start, with a paid subscription for more.
Best for: families who want racing and arcade games on the telly. Worth knowing: it needs a big screen, and many of its games are about quick thumbs rather than talking and laughing.
Codenames online
The free online version of the word board game, played in a browser. Two teams, one-word clues, and a spymaster on each side trying not to give the game away.
Best for: word lovers and small groups, in a room or on a call. Worth knowing: it's one game, not a mix of party games.
What "play on your phone" means here
Every game on this list uses phones, but not in the same way. With Keyhole Games, your phone is the whole controller and nobody installs anything.
- No app. Guests scan the host's QR code with their camera, or go to keyholegames.com and type four letters. It all runs in the web browser the phone already has.
- Any TV. Open keyholegames.com/tv in a smart TV's browser, or on a laptop plugged into the telly, through AirPlay or a Chromecast. Here's how to set up party games on a TV.
- Phones only. No TV? The host's phone does the job of the big screen. Handy at a campsite, on a long drive or anywhere the telly isn't.
How to pick
- No console, and you want to play tonight? Pick a browser game. Keyhole, Gartic Phone and Skribbl.io all start with a link.
- Want it free? Our four free games are free for good, for the host and everyone they invite. Gartic Phone and Skribbl.io are free too.
- Love drawing? Gartic Phone or Skribbl.io. We don't make drawing games.
- Running a work quiz? Kahoot! is made for it. For an office party with laughs as well as questions, see Deck the Desks, our work Christmas games.
- Playing with people in other places? Most of these work on a video call. With ours, the host shares the game screen on the call and everyone joins on their own phone.
Play free tonight
Open a party, scan everyone in, and you're playing in about a minute.
Launch Party: every game is free to host until 30 November 2026, Party Pack 01 and Deck the Desks included. Sign in free to host. Guests never need an account.
Updated 28 October 2026. We've described other games as they stood in October 2026. Prices and features change, so check each one's own site.
Questions
Is there a free game like Jackbox?
Yes. On Keyhole Games, Which Would Ya?, Spot the Blow-in, Murder in the Dark and Snooze Bandit are free for good, for the host and everyone they invite. Gartic Phone and Skribbl.io are free browser games too.
Do you need a TV to play party games on your phones?
Not with Keyhole Games. Every game plays on phones alone, with the host's phone as the screen. A TV just makes it bigger: open keyholegames.com/tv on it.
Do players need an app?
No. Everyone scans the host's QR code, or types four letters at keyholegames.com, and plays in the phone's web browser. Only the host signs in, and that's free.
How many people can play?
Up to 20 phones in one room, depending on the game. Each game's page gives its numbers.
Can we play over a video call?
Yes. The host shares the game screen on the call, and everyone joins with the four letters on their own phone, wherever they are.