Drinking games for 6 people: teams of three or all in

Why six works

Six splits into two teams of three or three pairs, every card game still deals well, and table games finally have enough people to get chaotic. You can pick almost anything; the question is whether you want teams or every player for themselves.

Quick picks

Game	You need	Why it suits six
Flip Cup, 3-on-3	Table, cups	Two even teams, one-minute rounds
Beer Pong, rotating	Table, cups, balls	Three pairs, winner stays on
Drunk Charades, 3-on-3	Paper slips	Two teams, two guessers each
King’s Cup	Deck of cards, a cup	Rules hit someone every time
Ride the Bus	Deck of cards	Six hands, a tense pyramid
Thumper	A table	Six signs is the sweet spot
Cheers to the Governor	Nothing	The count goes round three times
Most Likely To	Nothing	Six fingers pointing
Paranoia	Nothing	Plenty of suspects
Wrecked (app)	One phone	Alliances, votes and events with no admin

Team games (3-on-3)

Flip Cup

Two teams of three on either side of a table, a small pour in each cup. Drink, then flip your cup from the table edge until it lands upside down; then the next teammate goes. First team done wins. Best of five, losers sip. Flip Cup rules and variations.

Beer Pong, winner stays on

Three pairs. Two pairs play, the third waits and plays the winners. Fill the table cups with water and sip your own drink when a cup is hit. Beer Pong rules.

Drunk Charades

Two teams of three. One player acts out a film, song or person for their two teammates, who have a minute to guess. A miss means the acting team sips. Each team writes the prompts for the other.

Card games

King’s Cup

Cards around a cup, every card a rule, the fourth King drinks the cup. Six is right in the middle of the four-to-eight sweet spot. Rules card by card and a deck on your phone on our King’s Cup page.

Ride the Bus

Four guesses each, a pyramid where matches hand out drinks, and a bus ride for whoever ends up with the most cards. Ride the Bus rules.

No-equipment games

Thumper

Everyone picks a hand sign and drums the table. Do your sign, then someone else’s; they do theirs and pass it on. Miss it, sip. Six is the best number for it. How to play Thumper.

Cheers to the Governor

Count to 21 round the circle; on 21 everyone sips and the player who said it adds a rule to a number. Rules, plus 15 rules to add.

Most Likely To

“Who is most likely to…”, count to three, point. Most votes drinks. The most likely to generator deals real cards from the app.

Paranoia

Whisper a “who here…” question; the answer is a name, said out loud. The named player can sip to hear the question. Here are 60+ paranoia questions.

Or let the app run it

With six, Wrecked’s group cards come alive: alliances where your partner can betray you, votes with a clear winner, and a mid-game event every five cards. One person reads, the app decides who drinks and keeps count, and nobody has to remember any rules.

Keep it a good night

Team games move fast, so keep the pours small and the water on the table. Anyone can swap in a soft drink, no explanation needed. More on our responsible drinking page.

One short? See drinking games for 5 people. More coming? See drinking games for large groups.