10 Best Board Games for Kids by Age: Enter to WIN THEM ALL!

Nothing brings the family together – and the kids out of their rooms – quite like a board game! In fact, board games are the only thing I’ve found that my five-year-old, tween and teen will all agree to do. Even my teen will venture out of his PlayStation coma if I suggest we play a board game.

If you’re after the best of the best in board games, you’ve come to the right place! We’ve counted down our top 10 best board games for kids of all ages, starting at the tender age of 3, all the way up to the tweens and teens. These games are easy to learn, engaging, hilarious and great for at home or weekends away. Play them one-on-one, with the whole family or at parties or gatherings. Bring on the board game fun!

Check out our winning best board games by age, enjoy a night away from the screens and focus on good ol’ fashioned family fun. And, enter to win an Ultimate Board Game Starter Set featuring ALL TEN of the Best Board Games below. We have 3 x Ultimate Board Game Starter Sets up for grabs. Enter below!

Best Board Games for Kids of All Ages & Stages!

Ages 3 – 5 years

Storytime Chess

WHERE TO BUY: Storytime Chess
RRP: $49.95

Step into a whimsical world where knights, queens, and pawns come alive through the magic of storytelling with Story Time Chess. This award-winning game not only teaches little ones how to play Chess, but it does so in a way that is entertaining, educational and easy to understand. Even if you don’t know how to play Chess, you can learn alongside your little one.

Perfect for budding strategists, Story Time Chess weaves captivating tales, vibrant characters, and interactive mini-games into the fabric of learning. With each turn of the page, they’ll uncover the secrets of the chessboard, learning the rules and strategies through exciting narratives that ignite their imagination.

Not only does Story Time Chess include a gorgeous game board and delightful characters, but it also comes with a beautifully designed storybook that explains the rules and the various characters. Story Time Chess isn’t just a game—it’s an adventure waiting to be discovered and our top pick for best board games for our youngest gamers.

Ages 6 years +

The Fuzzies

WHERE TO BUY: Target
RRP: $29.00

For kiddies 6 and up, The Fuzzies is a towering adventure that they will absolutely love! The game will have them balancing, strategising, and laughing their way to victory with fuzzy little balls!

This unique game combines the thrill of Jenga with the tactile delight of fuzzy balls, creating a sensory experience that is as delightful as it is entertaining. The game is easy to learn and involves taking turns drawing cards to see which colour of fuzzy ball they need to remove. Using tweezers or your fingers (but without leaving your seat!), carefully pluck the designated fuzzy and stack it higher on the tower, defying gravity with each precarious placement.

The Fuzzies is a multi-award winning game and a great game to play just one vs one or with a whole group. Expect your kiddies to ask to play it over and over again! For kids around the 5-6 year range, this is an excellent game to introduce them to!

Ages 6 years +

Happy Salmon

WHERE TO BUY: Amazon
RRP: $24.99

Another great game choice for kids 6+ is Happy Salmon. It’s fast and fun and sure to get them laughing. Happy Salmon takes just 90 seconds to play (per round), but it will get their whole body moving!

Each player starts with a stack of cards, each one featuring a different action—High 5, Fist Bump, Switcheroo, and, of course, the iconic Happy Salmon. Your mission? To match and discard your cards as quickly as possible, racing against the clock to be the first to empty your hand and claim victory!

Happy Salmon is our top pick for the best board game for active kiddies and is a staple for any game night. It’s a great one to start with as it can loosen everyone up and set the stage for laughter. You’ll be hooked from the very first flip.

Ages 6 – 9 years

CATAN Junior

WHERE TO BUY: CATAN
RRP: $49.95

Another award-winning board game for kids around the 6+ age is CATAN Junior, which is perfect for all little strategists and explorers. CATAN is one of the most popular board games of all time and CATAN Junior is just as epic, but designed for the younger audience.

Players take on the role of daring pirates, starting with two hideouts scattered across the archipelago. The game takes kids navigating the high seas, building hideouts, and encountering mysterious islands, all in pursuit of treasure and glory! With each turn, they gather resources from their hideouts, using them to expand their network, build ships, and establish new hideouts on unclaimed islands.

If you’re a fan of strategy games and would like to transfer this love onto your little ones, then CATAN Junior is an ideal choice! With simple rules and engaging gameplay, it’s perfect for all adventurers, whether they’re seasoned sailors or first-timers.

Ages 7 years +

Pass the Party Food

WHERE TO BUY: Joey Games
RRP: $39.95

If you’re after a game that screams Aussie nostalgia, Pass the Party Food is more iconic than shrimp on the barbie served with a side order of fairy bread!

Designed, illustrated, and published by an Australian family, Pass the Party Food is a delicious throwback to 1989, serving up all your favourite Aussie party treats on a platter of pure joy! From lamingtons to green snakes and more, it’s a mouth-watering menu that’ll have you drooling with anticipation. Players work together to collect their favourite treats and share them with their friends at just the right moment.

There’s so much to love about this game, but perhaps the best thing is that it brings out the whole 80s vibe of family board games. No screens, no batteries, no apps, no electronic timers… just a board, cute little markers, laughter, camaraderie, and a sprinkle of nostalgia. Childhood goals unlocked.

Ages 7 years +

Exploding Kittens

WHERE TO BUY: JB Hi-Fi
RRP: $36.98

Another classic game for kids 7+ is Exploding Kittens which has been a firm favourite in the family game world since its release in 2015. Trust us, the hype is worth it! This game will have the whole family laughing out loud while strategising and trying to avoid the exploding kittens.

Exploding Kittens is similar to UNO but with a dash of magical enchiladas, a sprinkle of mischievous goats, and of course, exploding kittens into the mix. Players take turns drawing cards from the deck, hoping to avoid the dreaded exploding kitten that spells instant doom.

The game is easy to learn and play, and, the more you play, the more you realise it’s also very strategic! It’s the purrfect game for older kids and tweens too, who love nothing more than taking their parents down!

Ages 7 years+

Throw Throw Burrito

WHERE TO BUY: Kmart
RRP: $34

Throw Throw Burrito is another hilarious game by the team behind Exploding Kittens, but this game features squishy burritos instead of exploding cats. The game combines the thrill of dodgeball with the strategic fun of a card game, creating a chaotic concoction that’ll have you laughing, dodging, and burrito-ing like never before.

There’s a lot to love about this cheeky game but perhaps the best thing is that it will have the kids (and you) cracking up. It’s also great for active play and is a quick game so you don’t have to lock in an hour or two to get through it.

As the name of the game suggests, Throw Throw Burrito has players chucking burritos at one another – the perfect way to bond with your kids and bring out the family fun. Just be sure to put away the breakables!

Ages 8+

Block Party

WHERE TO BUY: Kmart
RRP: $29

Imagine if Bob the Builder teamed up with Pictionary for the ultimate party game showdown—that’s Block Party in a nutshell! Perfect for builders aged 8 and up, this game is all about bringing your imagination to life using colourful, wooden blocks.

Each player receives a secret object card, their blueprint for construction greatness. With a quick glance at their card, they’re off to the races, grabbing blocks and stacking them with precision and panache to recreate the object hidden within. It’s such a clever and fun concept and great for kids who love building blocks, LEGO, that sort of thing. It’s also really fun for parents and large groups and can get quite competitive! You also work as a team much like Charades or Pictionary.

So, dust off your hard hat, roll up your sleeves, and get ready to build, guess, and giggle your way to victory in the ultimate block-building showdown.

Ages 8+

Dixit Disney Edition

WHERE TO BUY: JB Hi-Fi
RRP: $47.98

For Disney and Pixar fans, you cannot go past Dixit Disney Edition, by far the best board game to test your knowledge of all things Disney. This enchanting game will whisk you away on a journey through timeless tales and beloved characters.

The name of the game is to find the perfect connection between the statement and the images, crafting a tale that’s as captivating as it is clever to beat the other players. It’s not just a matter of putting two and two together, though, and there is a fair bit of strategy at play here!

The game features a stunning board plus 84 new cards inspired by iconic Disney and Pixar films, from the classic Steamboat Willie to the enchanting Turning Red. For any families that are keen Disney and Pixar watchers, this game needs to become a part of your world!

Ages 10+

Herd Mentality

WHERE TO BUY: Kmart
RRP: $25

Our final game featured on our best board games of 2024 is Herd Mentality, which is made for the older crowd – tweens and teens – but also great as an adult party game! It’s super simple to play and wrangles in the laughs! While little ones can play, we suggest 10+ because it does involve a fair bit of writing.

The goal is simple—think like the herd and scribble down the same answers as your fellow cowhands. The more minds in sync, the better the loot. If your answer strays from the herd and ends up as the lone wolf, you’ll be saddled with the infamous Angry Pink Cow.

With every round, the tension mounts and you’ll want to think more like everyone else and guess what they will be putting down. It’s a great game to see just how in sync you are with your kids and hopefully prove to them that you may be old and boring, but you can still think like a tween!

And there we have it, folks! 10 of the best board games for kids 3+. Check out some of our recent reviews of some of the games featured above to learn more about why these games made our best board games of 2024 list.

Be sure also to enter to win one of three Ultimate Board Game Starter Sets featuring ALL of the best board games above.