Library of teambuilding games & icebreakers

Ever tried to untangle a group of adults? Now’s your chance. In human knots, everyone stands in a circle, crosses hands, and grabs someone else's hand to create a “human knot.” The goal? Work together to untangle without letting go.

It’s the perfect mix of awkward handshakes and creative problem-solving, making it an ideal icebreaker. You’ll quickly see who’s a natural leader, who’s patient, and who might need to work on their spatial awareness! This is a great way to bring your team together while sharing a few laughs—perfect for loosening up those office vibes.

How to play:

• Form a circle and hold hands with different people.
• Work together to untangle without releasing hands.
• Team wins when the knot is fully untangled.

5-minute energizers don’t get much better than this one. Got Your Finger is fun, fast-paced, suitable for groups of all sizes, and sure to lift the mood. Oh, and it requires no prior planning or preparation either.

Here’s how to play:

Ask the team to stand in a circle, close together, and face inward. Next, tell each participant to stick their right hand out with their palms facing the ceiling. They then have to put their left index finger on the open palm of whoever’s standing to their left.

Now the fun can start! When you shout “Go”, each participant must try to close their hand around their partner’s finger before they escape. It’s multi-tasking at its finest – trying to stop the colleague to your left from catching your finger, while simultaneously trying to grab whoever’s on the right.

How to play Baamboozle!

In this online game, everything is already set up for you. Baamboozle is a great website with thousands of topics ready to go, all you need is one host to screen-share. 2 to 4 teams can compete, with topics from videogame trivia to icebreaker games.

Allocate more than 3 teams for a more tactical game, as 2 teams can decide to gang up on 1 unfortunate team. Remember to make use of the ‘power up’ function for point-stealing mischief and leader-swapping bonus cards.

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How to play Snowball fight

This activity is pretty simple and straightforward. If you live in a climate where snow is on the ground, get outside and dig in! Organize your larger group into smaller teams and have an old-fashioned snowball fight outdoors. For maximum fun, you can set up barriers or partitions in advance for people to hide behind, or set out supplies for building a “fort” for protection.

Get your virtual whiteboards ready for remote sketch-off! One player describes an object in detail, and everyone else has to draw it based solely on the description—no peeking. The results? Often hilarious.

It’s a great way to have some fun, practice communication, and see who’s got the best artistic (or interpretive) skills.

How to play:

• One person describes an object, step by step.
• Everyone else draws it on an online whiteboard.
• Compare drawings for some laughs and see who got closest to the real thing!

Looking for more fun team-building activities to try with your remote or in-person team? Browse our full guide for more ideas.

Ready to see where your team’s creativity lies? In idea spectrum, everyone writes down ideas related to a topic or challenge on sticky notes. Then, the team arranges them in order from conventional to wild, out-of-the-box thinking.

This exercise is one of those simple yet effective teambuilding activities for work that helps teams explore new perspectives while understanding the balance between practicality and creativity. It’s a fun and collaborative way to get everyone thinking and bouncing ideas off each other - perfect for brainstorming sessions when you need to mix things up.

How to play:

• Give everyone sticky notes and a topic or challenge to brainstorm ideas.
• Write down one idea per note.
• Arrange the notes in order from conventional to out-of-the-box thinking.

How to play Paper Plane Contest

Instructions: Each participant creates their own paper airplane using a standard sheet of paper. Measure the distance or time each plane stays in the air. The person with the longest distance or longest airtime wins.

Materials needed: Sheets of paper.

Prepare to fold, fly, and fiercely compete in the epic Paper Plane Contest. It's a creative extravaganza that will take your team back to childhood dreams of aeronautical glory. Bring your finest folding skills, unleash your inner innovator, and get ready to soar to victory in this friendly battle of airborne awesomeness.

How to play Dance-freeze

A very popular high-energy game, this one is great for students and teams. You’ll need music that you can dance to and participants that aren’t too shy about dancing. The concept is simple: everyone must dance when music is playing. When the music stops, everyone must freeze just as they were when they were in motion. Anyone who keeps dancing is out of the game and it continues until there is a single winner.

Bring on the cuteness with pet parade party! Team members show off their pets (or favorite stuffed toys, if they don’t have pets) in a virtual showcase. Whether it’s a dog, cat, or even a pet rock, everyone gets a turn to introduce their little (or big) buddy to the team.

This is a fun, lighthearted way to bond over something everyone loves—adorable animals. Plus, who doesn’t love a chance to show off their furry friends?

How to play:

• Each team member gets a turn to show off their pet (or stuffed toy).
• Introduce the pet and share a fun fact or story.
• Enjoy the cuteness and some laughs as you meet everyone’s pets!

You can discover even more fun team-building activities to bring your team together in our full guide.

How to play Drama-freeze

Best for small groups, this option can be really interesting. You start with pairs of two and a supervisor. The first team will act out a spontaneous scene without discussing it beforehand. While they do so, the supervisor of the game calls out “freeze” (any time they want). At that time the acting team must remain still. Then the next team of two begins and will start upon the supervisor saying “action”. They need to come up with a scene entirely different from the one from the pair before them. This will go on until each team gets a turn to act and freeze.

Looking for an energizer that’s great for enhancing the group dynamic as well? This one should do the trick.

How to play Walk and stop in sync

Simple and sweet, start by asking everybody to stand side by side in a line – preferably in a large space – before issuing a simple instruction:

“Walk forward together and then stop at the same time.”

The catch is that they’re not allowed to talk! Whether they communicate through body language, facial expressions, and/or entering some sort of group consciousness, they have to walk and stop in sync, without speaking.

Keep going until they achieve the goal and consider debriefing when they’re done. What did they learn? How did it feel? What lessons will they take forward?

How to play Hula Hoop Challenge

Instructions: Each participant is given a hula hoop and must keep it spinning around their waist for as long as possible. The person who keeps the hoop spinning the longest wins.

Materials needed: Hula hoops.

The Hula Hoop Challenge promotes physical activity, coordination, and determination. It adds a light-hearted and nostalgic element to the picnic, and participants can cheer each other on and share in the fun.

How to play Mock commercials

This activity is the opposite of a quick office game. It requires some time and preparation, but is worth it! Have employees choose a product or service and then create a commercial to sell it. You’ll need a space for everyone to act in, plus recording devices and a way for everyone to watch. Some companies add another layer of complexity by using two bowls.

Each bowl has several slips of paper with a word written on it. In one bowl is the style of commercials, such as humorous, scary, or emotional. In the other bowl is an object, such as soda or a copy machine. Have each group pick one paper from each bowl and base their commercial on that. So, you might have one group that creates a scary commercial about a copy machine. Doing it this way necessitates more creativity and often leads to a lot of laughs.

How to play Boxes and bells

This is a great one for holiday events! You’ll need five boxes and 15 small round bells. In each box, place between 1 and 5 bells (so 1 bell, 2 bells, and so on). Make sure they are in random order, and then task each player with picking up and shaking the box, then guessing the number of bells. Their ultimate goal is to reorganize the boxes based on the number of bells inside. Have each player try and whoever does it fastest wins.

How to play Egg and Spoon Race

An egg and spoon race is another game that’s as fun for adults as it is for children! It’s also incredibly simple. As the name suggests, all you need is an egg and spoon for each participant. From there, you set a start and end point, line everyone up with the egg balanced on their spoon, and blow a whistle for the race to begin!

The first person to cross the finish line with their egg still intact wins. If someone drops their egg on the way, they must stop and pick it back up using only their spoon (no hands allowed!) before continuing.

Want to make the game less messy? Consider boiling the eggs beforehand. It’ll stop them from cracking when dropped, reducing the amount of cleaning up you’ll do when everyone’s ready to go home. You’ll be able to re-use the eggs, too – a bonus if you’re running multiple egg-and-spoon races throughout the day.

Oh, and don’t hesitate to combine this Field game for adults with the three-legged race we mentioned earlier! Making participants balance an egg on a spoon while their leg’s also joined to a teammate’s is a recipe for fun.

How to play Paper airplane race

Like the pencil javelin, the paper airplane race centers on how far you can get your paper airplane to fly. Each team constructs their best engineered plane and marks where they ultimately land. Each person on the team should have a chance to fly the place and the team that gets the furthest is declared the winner.

How to play Trade-up game

Negotiation is a crucial part of successful selling, and this game is a great way to practice. The objective is to trade for better objects than what you currently have at hand. Start by passing out basic items such as office stationary, a stapler, or a soda from the fridge. Then, let everyone talk to others and try to trade for something they deem as better. Whoever ends up with the best product wins the game - since obviously they were able to finagle their way into better items. Afterward, it’s a good idea to ask the top players how they performed so well and what negotiation tricks they might share.

How to play Recall quiz (at the end of an event)

How about a little icebreaker to wrap things up? Most icebreakers are at the beginning, but with longer events, we suggest interspersing them throughout - including the end. Have everyone go around the room and share their biggest takeaway from the day. Or, have a list of quiz-style questions that you ask everyone and see who can remember the most answers. Recall is an important part of memory, so this is a great time to reiterate the concepts that you really want people to take away.

Ever had a tough day and just needed a friend to get it? Empathy brings out the warm fuzzies, letting coworkers connect on an emotional level. When folks get each other's vibes, teamwork gets a boost and bonds grow stronger.

Empathy activity - "Walk in my shoes":

• Prepare several work-related scenarios involving challenges or team conflicts.
• Pair up colleagues and assign each pair a scenario.
• Each pair takes turns playing the roles of the people involved, expressing thoughts, emotions and perspectives.
• After both roles are played, partners discuss their experiences and insights from both sides.
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This immersive role-play activity fosters a deep sense of empathy and helps colleagues better understand each other's viewpoints.

Remember the Pinball exercise we described earlier? Well, Willow in the Wind is very similar. This time, however, there’s no walking involved…

How to play Willow in the wind

Instead, everyone stands in a circle, with one person in the middle. You then put a blindfold on whoever’s in the center and tell them to a) lock their legs and b) put their arms across their chest.

Then comes the nerve-wracking part:

They have to fall forward, or in any other direction, trusting their colleagues to stop them from hitting the ground! Each time they fall into someone, that person has to keep them upright and push them softly to another side of the circle.

After 30 seconds or so, swap the blindfold around and give someone else a turn. The activity ends when everyone has been in the middle.

Our pro tip is to stop the blindfolded person from falling too far! The further they fall, the harder it becomes to hold them up and push them away. Stay close together to make life easier and prevent accidents from happening.

For a variation of Willow in the Wind, consider doing a trust fall.

A popular team and trust-building exercise, the principle is the same except the blindfolded individual stands at a height (e.g. on a table or wall) and falls backward into the arms of their colleagues below.

What you need:

• Blindfold

21 Questions is the perfect game for passing the time, learning more about each other, and exercising critical thinking skills. Here’s how it works:

One person in the group thinks of an individual (e.g. a celebrity), a place, an animal, or an object. Then everyone else takes turns asking “yes/no” questions to work out what it is! The aim of the game is to work together to find the answer as quickly as possible. If they don’t succeed within 21 questions, they lose.

Here’s an example where Player One is thinking of an elephant:

• Player Two: “Is it an animal?”
• Player One: “Yes.”
• Player Three: “Does it fly?”
• Player One: “No.”
• Player Four: “Is it a large animal?”
• Player One: “Yes.”
• Player Two: “Does it live in Africa?”
• Player One: “Yes.”
• Player Three: “Is it a giraffe?”
• Player One: “No.”
• Player Four: “Is it an elephant?”
• Player One: “Yes.”

They’d then swap roles, with Player Four (i.e. the person who guessed the answer) thinking of something for everyone else to guess.

Whether you’re onboarding new employees or simply want your current employees to form a more cohesive unit, Hypeman’s sure to help. Incorporating personal introductions and an element of role play, it’s a popular activity that never fails to create a positive atmosphere in the office!

How to play Hypeman

Give it a shot by dividing the team into groups of 3 and asking them to assign themselves roles:

• Player 1 has to share some basic personal information with the group (e.g. where they’re from, what they do, what hobbies they have, and so on)
• Player 2 introduces Player 1 to the audience by recounting what they just learned about them in a simple, matter-of-fact manner
• Player 3 is the “Hypeman”. Their task is similar, except they introduce Player 1 in an exaggerated, hyperbolic way that makes them sound amazing!

For instance, Player 2 might introduce Player 1 by saying, “This is Arthur. He’s a salesman for our company who enjoys playing tennis at the weekends.”

Then Hypeman would step in and say, “Here’s Arthur – AKA, the coolest guy I know! He’s so good at his job that he could sell an ice pack to an Inuit! Oh, and he wields a tennis racket like Roger Federer too. Honestly, you’d be a fool not to be his pal.”

You’d then mix up the roles so everyone had a chance to be the Hypeman (and to be hyped by their colleague!). Encourage witty and outlandish claims; crazy compliments that make people laugh. You could even go a step further and award prizes for the most successful Hypeman – as voted by the group!

Did you ever play a drinking game at university called “never have I ever”?

How to play Spotlight

You sit in a circle, taking turns to say something you’ve never done that you think other people may have. Anyone who’s done the deed must then take a swig of their drink – revealing the fact they’ve done it and leading to ever-increasing levels of intoxication!

Spotlight is similar, although you wouldn’t (usually) be drinking at the same time. Instead, the entire team starts by covering or turning off their webcams. Then each participant takes turns saying fun/random statements that are true of themselves.

If it’s true for someone else in the group too, they have to uncover their camera.

Want a different way to decide who goes next? See who uncovers their camera! Instead of taking turns, whoever said the initial statement would pick someone who revealed their face. If only one person does so, then they’d go next. If nobody does, then you can choose someone at random.

We like Spotlight because it’s a more interesting way to get to know your teammates compared to typical networking events. It’s also super simple and accessible. The end result is a quick and enjoyable exercise that brings the virtual team together (if only in a figurative sense!).

How to play Pitch tournament

An important part of selling is understanding customer needs: what they want or what drives them to buy something. Help your team to hone these skills by pitching items to you or another panel of judges. Pick a few regular objects, such as things from around the office. Then, pair people up (or work as individuals if your group is already small) and have them take turns pitching the item to your judges. Give everyone a few minutes to come up with a unique presentation and make sure they understand the product. Add a prize for the winner to up the ante a bit.