When it comes to board games, five is both a great and difficult age. If it’s a basic game, five-year-olds are just about old enough to play it alone, and they frequently find the notion of regulated play that a board game implies to be fascinating. They can still struggle to accept defeat, though, and their attention spans are relatively short.
The best board games for five-year-olds are engaging and support the academic subjects they are learning in schools, such as reading, basic math, and word, number, and shape identification.
At age five, kids are only learning to read, so games must be quick-paced and have clear instructions to keep kids engaged. You won’t have to spend many hours looking for brief, enjoyable, and easy-to-play games because we have already done all the research and discovered the best board games available for this age range.
Our Top Picks
- Best Family: ThinkFun Zingo Bingo
- Best Stacking: HABA Rhino Hero Stacking
- Best Treasure Hunt: The Family Treasure Hunt Game
- Best Math: Learning Resources Sum Swamp Game
- Best Strategy: Blokus XL Family Board Game
- Best Spelling: Scrabble Junior Game
- Best Deduction: Hasbro Gaming Clue
- Best Learning: Monopoly Junior Dinosaur Edition
- Best Memory: Enchanted Forest – Children’s Game
- Best Cooperative: Peaceable Kingdom Hoot Owl Hoot
- Best Problem-Solving: Ticket to Ride First Journey
- Best Physical Activity: The Floor is Lava
In This Article
HappyBabyHub’s Best Board Games for 5-Year-Olds Picks
ThinkFun Zingo Bingo – Best Family Board Game For 5-Year-Olds
- Can match the words from the word chips to the pictures
- A game that can go at any pace for any 5-year-old and older
- Great learning tool for someone learning to read
- Pretty sturdy and well made
- Will be better with more play cards
This popular game has won multiple awards, including the Parent’s Choice Gold Award and the Oppenheim Gold Award. It’s ideal for children aged four and above who are looking for a fun pre-reading activity. With high-quality components and a straightforward instruction booklet, you can play Zingo right out of the box.
Zingo is a challenging and entertaining game that is specifically designed to promote critical thinking skills. It is also a great way to improve linguistic abilities through engaging and fast-paced activities. 5-year-olds are sure to have a blast playing this game!
- Age Range: 4-10 years old
- Number Of Players: 2-7
HABA Rhino Hero Stacking – Best Stacking Board Game For 5-Year-Olds
- The component quality is excellent
- The cards are extremely thick and durable
- Small box size so it is easy to pack and take on trips
- Inexpensive
- May not be a style of game that appeals to everyone
Oh my, what’s that? Is that a rhino climbing up the wall? It’s Rhino Hero, the animal superhero, and he’s on another mission to climb the tallest buildings and fight off villains! This brave and mighty hero is as smart as a fox, as strong as a lion, and as heavy as a rhinoceros. He’s so powerful that even the most stable structures start to wobble when he’s around!
Can you help Rhino Hero build the tallest and most stable skyscraper possible? This 3D card stacking game is full of excitement and heroics. Get ready to use your skills and help Rhino Hero save the day!
- Age Range: 5-10 years old
- Number Of Players: 2-5
The Family Treasure Hunt Game – Best Treasure Hunt Board Game For 5-Year-Olds
- The basic cards have a picture on one side (for non-readers) and a label on the other
- The riddles are relatively easy to figure out
- The game board is a story in itself with all sorts of imaginative places and characters
- Great way to help kids learn to follow directions and take turns
- Instructions are a bit challenging
Whether you want to be an adventurer, pirate, or detective, this game blends the excitement of a board game with the thrill of a running adventure. You’ll have to follow the clues and hunt for hidden treasure both indoors and outdoors in this high-energy game.
Your goal is to follow the trail and find the gold waiting for you at the end. But that’s not all – you’ll also need to collect jewels and track your adventure on a huge, one-meter game board. With no two paths alike, you can play with your 5-year-old for 15 minutes or an entire afternoon!
- Age Range: 3-10 years old
- Number Of Players: 2-6
Learning Resources Sum Swamp Game – Best Math Board Game For 5-Year-Olds
- Teaches addition and subtraction and odds and evens
- Fun, colorful, and much more fun than a worksheet
- Durable
- Pretty good price
- The subtraction can get a little confusing if the lesser number is placed before the greater number
With the roll of the dice and some quick mental math, players must add and subtract their way across the board to escape the swamp. The game, designed for 2-4 players, includes a Crocodile Shortcut that might give you an advantage, but beware of getting stuck in the Endless Loop!
Sum Swamp features special squares like Even, Odd, or Number spaces, that can trap players for a long time, making the game even more exciting. With funny swamp critters and arithmetic obstacles, it’s an adventure that 5-year-olds won’t forget.
- Age Range: 5-10 years old
- Number Of Players: 2-4
Blokus XL Family Board Game – Best Strategy Board Game For 5-Year-Olds
- Simple rules
- Colorful design and presentation
- Quality construction
- Sufficient complexity to maintain interest
- There are many small pieces, and if you lose any one of them, it affects the game’s competitive fairness
This board game offers unlimited strategy and entertaining challenges that will keep your 5-year-old engaged. With a larger board and bigger pieces than the standard Blokus game, Blokus XL is easy to play but difficult to master.
Each player gets a set of 21 colorful pieces to place on the board, taking turns to fit as many pieces as possible. The only rule is that the corners of each piece must touch another piece of the same color. It’s a race to see who can fit the most pieces on the board before the game ends!
- Age Range: 5-10 years old
- Number Of Players: 4
Scrabble Junior Game – Best Spelling Board Game For 5-Year-Olds
- Even early readers can learn to play on this set
- Great for the recognition and matching of letters, counting on and colors
- Hours of playtime
- Looks durable
- The beginner side can be tricky if you’re used to the original board but it works well for kids that are learning to create words
In Scrabble Junior, players match letters on one side of the board to create words, and on the other side, they can construct their own words. The game features four adorable character tokens: Wacky Wordy, DJ Word, Word Surfer, and Letter Sprinter. Each token has its own unique personality, making the game even more fun for kids.
As players complete words on the board, they earn points and move their tokens along the track. If they complete a word that matches the color of their token, they earn two points. The game ends when all the letter spots have been filled, and the player with the highest score on the scoring track wins. Scrabble Junior is a great way to encourage your 5-year-old to build their vocabulary and have fun while doing it!
- Age Range: 5-10 years old
- Number Of Players: 2-4
Hasbro Gaming Clue – Best Deduction Board Game For 5-Year-Olds
- Easy to learn
- Fun to play
- The Junior version of clue is great to get them thinking while not being as long, drawn out, and cynical as the regular Clue game
- Helpful with fostering improved memory, reasoning and problem-solving
- Can be complicated at first
Are you ready to solve a mystery? Get your magnifying glass and detective hat, because, in Clue Junior, you have to solve the case of the shattered toy! Was it Miss Scarlett, Col. Mustard, Mr. Green, Mrs. Peacock, Prof. Plum, or Dr. Orchid who broke the toy, and when did it happen? Roll the dice and move around the board to search for clues under furniture tokens or by peeking beneath other character pawns.
As you uncover clues, mark them down in your detective notebook and eliminate suspects and scenarios until you can make a true accusation. With the classic Clue characters and a kid-friendly twist, Clue Junior is perfect for little detectives.
- Age Range: 5-10 years old
- Number Of Players: 2-6
Monopoly Junior Dinosaur Edition – Best Learning Board Game For 5-Year-Olds
- Fun family game
- Great way for kids to learn monopoly
- Cute dinosaur characters
- Easy to learn
- You only start with 20 of the monetary unit so it’s easy to run out fast
Embark on an imaginative adventure to the land of dinosaurs! Your little ones can feed these prehistoric creatures with leafy banknotes as they move their cute dino tokens across the game board, all in an effort to collect the most money. But be careful, feeding the bigger dinosaurs like the Gigantosaurus can be pricey because of their massive appetite!
With phonetic spellings of dinosaur names on the board spaces, kids can practice their pronunciation skills while playing Monopoly Junior: Dinosaur. This family board game is a quick and easy version of the classic Monopoly gameplay, perfect for children aged 5 and up.
- Age Range: 5-10 years old
- Number Of Players: 4
Enchanted Forest – Children’s Game – Best Memory Board Game For 5-Year-Olds
- The pieces are nice and sturdy and satisfying to hold
- The rules are created to add a bit of a challenge
- Very cartoonish characters
- Entertainment for the whole family
- Challenging to remember where things are
Prepare for an enchanting search-and-find adventure in the land of fairy tales! Roll the dice and journey through the Enchanted Forest to discover hidden riches. You’ll need your keen eyesight to uncover the treasures that the king is seeking if you want to rule the kingdom! It’s a marvelous twist on the classic memory game that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
Deep within the forest, treasures from classic fairy tales await you, including Cinderella’s glass slipper, Rumpelstiltskin’s spinning wheel, and Jack’s magical beanstalk beans. You’ll need to use your wits and cunning to be the first player to find all the items and claim your royal prize!
- Age Range: 4-10 years old
- Number Of Players: 2-6
Peaceable Kingdom Hoot Owl Hoot – Best Cooperative Board Game For 5-Year-Olds
- Everyone works together
- The board is easy to follow
- Colorful
- Fun for kids
- About 15 minutes of gameplay
Is your 5-year-old ready to help the owls return to their nest before the sun rises? In this color-coordinated matching game, players work together to assist the owls in getting home safely. It’s a great way to teach kids basic strategies, turn-taking, and following instructions while having fun.
With two levels of play, the game is perfect for children of all ages and allows older kids to interact with younger siblings or friends. But this isn’t just any game – it’s a cooperative game that promotes emotional growth, collaborative decision-making, positive self-esteem, creative problem-solving, and a sense of community.
- Age Range: 4-12 years old
- Number Of Players: 2-4
Ticket to Ride First Journey – Best Problem-Solving Board Game For 5-Year-Olds
- Perfect game length
- Solid components
- Quick to teach and learn
- The Europe map offers many teachable moments
- Can be challenging at first
All aboard! Ticket to Ride First Journey is the perfect way to start your family’s journey into the world of board games. Set off on your very own railroad adventure across North America as you acquire rail cards, stake out routes on the map, and connect the locations on your tickets to win. The game ends when a player fills out six tickets and wins the Golden Ticket prize.
Younger players can also join in on the fun with special rules that maintain the gameplay, charm, and strategy of the original Ticket to Ride. First Journey is a great way to introduce 5-year-olds to the world of cross-country travel with a brand new map and simpler rules.
- Age Range: 5-10 years old
- Number Of Players: 2-6
The Floor is Lava – Best Physical Activity Board Game For 5-Year-Olds
- The pads are made well and have held up to lots of jumping
- Great for physical activity
- The whole family can play
- Keeps children active
- The spinner is kind of hard to assemble
Get ready to jump, hop, and skip your way to safety in the exciting game The Floor is Lava! As players spin the color wheel, they must imagine that the ground is covered in boiling lava and jump to the correct foam stepping stone to avoid getting burned. This game encourages kids and adults alike to get up and move while having loads of fun.
Not only is The Floor is Lava! a thrilling game, but it also helps children build their strength, balance, and endurance. The non-slip foam stepping stones are soft and sturdy, making them perfect for indoor or outdoor playtime. With 25 brightly colored foam “safety stones,” 27 challenge cards, a game spinner, and instructions, both boys and girls will have a blast playing this game at sleepovers or with family and friends.
- Age Range: 5-10 years old
- Number Of Players: 2-6
How To Choose The Best Board Games For 5-Year-Olds?
- Difficulty: You want a game that is challenging enough to keep them engaged, but on the other hand, you don’t want a game that is so difficult that it frustrates them.
- Number Of Players: Look for games that can be played with a variable number of people if your player count may fluctuate. Others may be played just as well with one or two players while certain games are more enjoyable with more players.
- Type: Games may have flat boards or be three-dimensional with several layers or construction components. Some people play with cards instead of a standard board, which is a great alternative for traveling or when there is little room. You may also discover board games with online or smart features that improve gameplay, virtual versions, or both.
- Child Interests: Consider the interests of your child. What do they enjoy doing? What kinds of things do they like to learn about? There are many board games that are designed to teach children about specific topics, so find one that aligns with your child’s interests.
What Are The Benefits of Board Games For 5-Year-Olds?
There are a number of benefits that board games can provide for five-year-olds.
- Helping to develop social skills, hand-eye coordination, and problem-solving skills (1)
- A great way for five-year-olds to bond with family members and friends
- Can help them learn important life skills such as counting, taking turns, and following rules (2)
Can 5-Year-Olds Play Board Games?
Yes, 5-year-olds can play board games! Board games can help young children develop important skills like counting, matching, and problem-solving. There are many different kinds of board games available, so you can find one that is appropriate for your child’s age and interests.
How Do I Keep My 5-Year-Old From Losing All The Pieces Of A Board Game?
There are a few things you can do to keep your 5-year-old from losing all the pieces of a board game. First, make sure the game is stored in a safe place where your child cannot reach it. Second, keep an eye on your child while they are playing the game to make sure they are not losing any pieces. Finally, if your child does lose a piece, try to find it before they have a chance to lose any more.
