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The short answer The best Halloween party games for teens are social, a little competitive and just scary enough: a hidden-role werewolf game, a flashlight scavenger hunt, a costume contest with real categories and our free Halloween This or That cards for teens. Below are 18 games sorted by the kind of party you’re throwing, from a sleepover of six to a basement full of twenty. Nothing here is gory, and every printable is free.
Teens can smell a “kids’ game” from across the room. They’ll happily play, though, if the game lets them talk, compete or scare each other a little. The trick is giving them something to do in the first 20 minutes, before everyone retreats to their phones.
Start with the card deck below. It needs zero explaining, works for 3 or 30 players and gets people arguing about vampires within a minute.
Halloween This or That: Teen Edition
How to play: Cut the cards apart and shuffle them into a stack. Draw a card and read both choices aloud. Everyone picks at the same time: point left for the first choice, right for the second.
- Would you rather spend the night in a haunted house or a haunted school?
- Would you rather have a ghost as a best friend or a vampire as a lab partner?
- Would you rather wear the same costume every Halloween or never repeat one ever?
- Would you rather be scared by a clown or by a doll that moves when you're not looking?
- Would you rather hear footsteps in the attic or whispers in the basement?
- Would you rather have your phone at 1% in a corn maze or no flashlight in a haunted house?
- Would you rather be a werewolf on every full moon or a vampire who can't have garlic fries?
- Would you rather win the costume contest or win the candy haul?
- Would you rather watch a scary movie alone or with someone who screams at everything?
- Would you rather trick-or-treat one more year or throw the party instead?
- Would you rather have a group costume with 8 friends or a solo costume nobody guesses?
- Would you rather get only full-size candy bars or triple the amount of fun-size?
+ 38 more in the printable.
Icebreakers for the first half hour
Mixed friend groups (school friends, cousins, the kid from swim team) need a reason to talk to people they don’t know. These games give them one without anyone having to stand up and perform.
1. Halloween This or That, teen edition (free printable)
The deck above has 50 would-you-rather cards written for ages 12 to 17: haunted school or haunted house, a ghost who does your homework or one who cleans your room. Draw a card, everyone points left or right at the same time, and whoever ends up alone has to defend their answer. It takes no setup and runs 10 to 30 minutes, so it’s a good first game while people are still arriving. Want more questions? Our would you rather questions list has 300.
2. Two truths and a spooky lie
Each person shares three short stories: two true, one made up. Ask for at least one to be Halloween-related, like a costume disaster or a time they got lost in a corn maze. The group votes on the lie. It works best with 5 to 12 players and takes about 15 minutes.
3. Costume guess board
If most guests come in costume, tape a sheet of poster paper to the wall and number it. As each person arrives, give them a number. Everyone writes down what they think each costume is. It’s surprisingly competitive when half the costumes are internet references the parents won’t get.
Games that get loud
These are the ones teens talk about on Monday. They need a bit more space and a host willing to referee.
4. Werewolf (the hidden-role game)
This is the one to plan the party around if you have 8 or more players. One person narrates. Everyone else secretly gets a role: two werewolves, one seer and the rest villagers. At “night,” everyone closes their eyes; the werewolves open theirs and silently point at a villager to catch, then the seer points at one player and the narrator nods if that player is a werewolf. At “day,” the caught player is out, and the group argues about who the werewolves are and votes someone out. Villagers win by finding both werewolves; werewolves win once they match the villagers in number. You can deal roles with a regular deck of cards (black aces are werewolves, a king is the seer). A round runs 15 to 25 minutes, and they’ll want a rematch.
5. Wink vampire
A faster, sitting-down cousin of werewolf. Everyone draws a slip; one slip says “vampire” and one says “detective.” The vampire “bites” people by winking at them, and anyone winked at waits a few seconds, then dramatically slumps over. The detective gets three guesses to name the vampire. It suits a crowded couch and 8 to 15 players.
6. Mummy wrap race
Split into teams of three. Two players wrap the third in toilet paper, head to toe (leave the face clear), and the first finished mummy that can walk to the finish line without tearing wins. Two rolls per team is enough. It’s two minutes of chaos and makes great photos, which teens will want.
7. Doughnuts on a string
Hang glazed or cider doughnuts from a string tied across a doorway at about chin height. Players keep their hands behind their backs and race to eat one. Check for food allergies first, and have napkins ready. It’s the teen-approved version of bobbing for apples, without everyone sharing one tub of water.
8. 60-second challenges
Quick one-minute tasks like stacking candy corn, moving mini pumpkins with a spoon or flipping a bottle cap into a cup. Run them as a team tournament with a phone timer. Our Halloween 60-second games post has plenty more to pick from.
Games for after dark
Turn the lights down and the mood changes fast. Keep these indoors or in a fenced yard, and do a quick walk-through for tripping hazards first.
9. Flashlight scavenger hunt (free printable)
Our printable hunt is a chain of rhyming clue cards that lead around the house, from the front door to the pantry to the towel rack. For teens, split into two teams, give each a single flashlight and the lights stay off. Start the teams on different cards so they don’t just follow each other. Kids ages 10 and up can read the clues themselves, and a hunt takes 15 to 30 minutes.
Halloween Hunt
How to play: Print the clue cards and the answer sheet. Keep the answer sheet out of sight. Hide each card at the spot the card before it points to. Hand over card 1 to start. Read each clue aloud for little kids, or let older hunters read and race. No running on stairs.
- Trick-or-treaters knock on me all night. Look by my handle, on the inside, left or right.
- I'm cold inside like a haunted cave, and I keep the leftover pizza you save.
- A ghost could hide in me, it's true. I hold the coats and the rain boots too.
- Vampires can't see themselves in me, or so the stories say. Look in the bathroom; you'll see yourself just fine today.
- Mummies need their wrappings clean. Look on top of the washing machine.
- A witch keeps her spells in a book on a shelf. Find where your books live and look for yourself.
- Pick a scary movie, then press play. Look under the thing that clicks channels away.
- Where the snacks and the cereal hide, open my door and look inside.
- After a fright, where do you lay your head? Look under the pillow on top of a bed.
- Wipe your boots before you creep inside. Under me, the next clue hides.
- A witch stirs her pot with a spoon, but where do yours stay? Open the drawer where the forks are put away.
- I'm not a pumpkin vine, but I'm leafy and green. Look by a plant in a pot for a clue to be seen.
+ 3 more in the printable.
10. Sardines in the dark
Reverse hide-and-seek. One person hides, and everyone else searches. When you find the hider, you squeeze into the hiding spot with them, quietly. The last person searching is the next hider. It gets funnier as the closet fills up. Set clear off-limits rooms before you start, and no hiding on stairs.
11. Glow-stick ring toss
Connect glow-stick bracelets into rings and stand a few empty soda bottles in a triangle. In a dark room, it’s surprisingly hard. Give each player five tosses, and assign more points to the back bottle.
12. Story circle, one sentence at a time
Someone starts a ghost story with one sentence: “The bus dropped us at the wrong stop, and the street was completely empty.” Each person adds one sentence. It swerves into comedy almost every time, which is fine. For a harder version, each sentence has to start with the next letter of the alphabet.
Contests and creative games
13. Costume contest with real categories
One “best costume” prize means one winner and 15 people who feel like they lost. Make categories instead: scariest, funniest, best group costume, most homemade, best last-minute save. Guests vote on slips of paper, and a parent counts the ballots. Have a small prize for each category, like a full-size candy bar or a gift card to a snack shop.
14. Pumpkin decorating face-off
Give pairs a pumpkin, markers, paint pens, googly eyes and 20 minutes. If you want carving, have an adult handle the knife work or use the small serrated saws from a carving kit, which are safer than kitchen knives. Line the finished pumpkins up and hold a vote.
15. Halloween trivia (free printable)
Teams of three or four work well here, since solo trivia puts the quiet kids on the spot. Our printable quiz is multiple choice, so nobody draws a total blank. For more questions, grab our Halloween trivia questions and answers.
Halloween Trivia
How to play: Print one quiz per player or team, or play on a TV and read each question aloud. Players circle one answer per question. No phones. Swap sheets and mark them as the host reads the answer key.
- Halloween grew out of which ancient Celtic festival held at the end of the harvest?
- The word "Halloween" is a Scottish shortening of what?
- Halloween is the night before which holiday?
- Which pope moved the feast of all saints and martyrs to November 1?
- Before pumpkins, what did people in Ireland and Scotland carve into lanterns?
- In the Irish folk tale behind the jack-o'-lantern, a man tricks the devil and ends up wandering with only a carved lantern. What is he called?
- In old-time "souling," people went door to door offering prayers for the dead. What treat did they get in return?
- "Guising," going door to door in disguise for treats, is an old Halloween custom from which country?
- The earliest known use of the phrase "trick or treat" in print, from 1917, appeared in a newspaper in which country?
- In what year did kids first carry cartons door to door for Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF?
- What was candy corn called when it was first made in the 1880s?
- The National Confectioners Association named which date National Candy Corn Day?
+ 18 more in the printable.
16. Candy guessing jar
Fill a jar with candy corn or wrapped candy, count it ahead of time, and let everyone write down a guess as they arrive. Closest guess takes the jar home at the end of the night. It runs in the background and needs nothing from you until the reveal.
17. Blindfold taste test
Set out small cups of “gross-sounding” foods: peeled grapes as eyeballs, cold spaghetti as worms, gummy candy in odd flavors. Blindfolded players guess what they’re eating. Keep everything genuinely edible and ask about allergies before you plan the menu.
18. Scary movie vote
End the night by letting the group pick the movie. Pre-choose four options that fit your house rules, write them on slips and let everyone vote. Check the rating yourself before the party so there are no surprises when a parent picks someone up at 10.
- Printed This or That cards, trivia sheets and scavenger clues
- Pens, slips of paper and a bowl for votes
- Flashlights, one per team
- Glow-stick bracelets and a few empty bottles
- Toilet paper, about two rolls per mummy team
- String and doughnuts
- Pumpkins, markers, paint pens and googly eyes
- A clear jar and a bag of candy
- A deck of playing cards for werewolf roles
- Small prizes: full-size candy bars, snack gift cards, glow necklaces
How to plan the night
Say you’re hosting 12 teens from 7 to 10 p.m. A plan that works for most groups:
- 7:00: This or That cards and the candy jar while people trickle in.
- 7:30: Mummy wrap race or doughnuts on a string to break the ice with something silly.
- 8:00: Food, then the costume contest vote.
- 8:45: Lights off for the flashlight hunt and sardines.
- 9:15: Werewolf until pickup, or a movie if the group is winding down.
Four or five games is plenty. Teens like unstructured time too, and a party that runs like a school schedule won’t feel like a party.
Give the most reluctant teen a job: card reader, vote counter or werewolf narrator. Kids who don’t want to “play” will often happily run the game, and they end up in the middle of it anyway.
For younger teens (12 to 14)
This age still likes the active games, especially the mummy wrap and scavenger hunt. Keep the scary movie at PG or PG-13, and lean on the story circle, which stays as spooky as the group wants it to be. If there are younger siblings joining, our Halloween party games for kids has gentler options.
For older teens (15 to 17)
Older teens want competition and bragging rights. Run werewolf as the main event, make the costume contest a big deal, and turn trivia into a team tournament. They’ll also happily run a haunted-hallway walk-through for younger kids if you give them the job.
For a small sleepover
With four to six guests, skip the team games. Stick to This or That, the story circle, a movie and a late-night pumpkin decorating session. You’ll find more printables on our Halloween games page.
Questions hosts ask
What games do teens play at a Halloween party?
Hidden-role games like werewolf, a flashlight scavenger hunt, a mummy wrap race, a costume contest with categories and would-you-rather cards are all good picks for ages 12 to 17.
How do you keep a teen Halloween party from getting boring?
Start a no-setup game like This or That cards as guests arrive, plan four or five games in total, and give quieter teens a job such as reading cards or narrating werewolf.
What are good Halloween games for a small teen sleepover?
With four to six guests, try This or That cards, a one-sentence ghost story circle, pumpkin decorating and a movie the group votes on.
Are these games too scary for younger teens?
No. None of them are gory. For ages 12 to 14, keep any movie at PG or PG-13 and let the group set how spooky the story circle gets.
By the Party Game Book editors. Every game here is free to print for personal, classroom and non-commercial use. How we make and check our games.
