The 11 Best Preschool Board Games

• Recommended Age: 4 to 8 years

Peaceable Kingdom is a brand known for its cooperative games for kids, and Hoot Owl Hoot! is among its best offerings for preschool-aged children. The gameplay involves working together to try to get the little owls back to their nest before the sun comes up. Through teamwork, the game helps little ones foster strategic thinking and problem-solving. Kids can even play solo if they want to keep the fun going while you make dinner.

Editor Praise: “My daughter received it as a birthday gift and it has such a simple premise, we started playing it mid-party. (I love any game that doesn’t require pouring over directions.) But even though the gameplay is simple, there’s still a nice bit of strategy involved that makes it fun for the whole family to play. Plus, the teamwork element means no one leaves the game in tears.” — Kate Miller, Scary Mommy editor

• Recommended Age: 3+ years

There’s a reason this game has been around for decades! In this classic, players try to scramble to the top of the ladder without falling back down. Your preschoolers can practice counting and number recognition as they get to the top ladder, but they need to watch out for the chutes, which can unexpectedly set them back on their journey. Plus, it’s easy to set up and your little one will love picking out their own game piece.

Editor Praise: “I’ll always be partial to Chutes and Ladders since it’s a game that anyone can win — and since it doesn’t require a ton of small pieces, it’s easy to start and stop if your toddler loses interest midway through. It’s also a great, simple introduction to board games.” — Karen Belz, Scary Mommy associate editor

• Recommended Age: 3 to 7 years

If your little one loves to go grocery shopping with you, this shopping list game will be a guaranteed hit. Boasting more than 6,500 perfect five-star reviews, it’s an educational game with an engaging theme. Players will get a shopping list and race to find the matching items to fill their cart or basket. This is a great memory and matching board game because your kids can work on observational skills and attention to detail.

Helpful Review: “This is a great toddler and preschool game (perhaps even a bit older). You find all the items from your shopping list and remember where your items are if another player turns one of your tiles/items over during their turn.”

• Recommended Age: 3 to 6 years

This cute game combines turn-taking, color matching, and dexterity in one woodland-themed adventure. It helps develop your little one’s hand-eye coordination and basic gameplay etiquette. Your kids can put those little hands to work by using the Squirrel Squeezer to pick up colored acorns and place them on their log. Not surprisingly, this pick has earned an impressive 4.8-star rating on Amazon after 8,000 reviews. (Just note that it does involve small pieces that would be a choking hazard for younger tots.)

Helpful Review: “This game is not only cute but it’s also educational, lots of fun, and easy for little ones to comprehend and play fairly independently once they know the instructions. My 5 and 4 year olds can play without my help now that we have played together a few times which is great.”

• Recommended Age: 3+ years

Another educational game from Peaceable Kingdom, this matching game will help your little preschooler develop their emotional intelligence. Using the “Helping Bag,” your little one can try to come up with solutions to help others. They’ll learn to recognize and name emotions, which can help develop compassion and empathy skills. Just note that some reviewers felt that it was best for younger tots as it didn’t have the level of engagement for their older kids.

Helpful Review: “This is a cute game that allows you to cooperatively play to match the ways you can help (pulled from a bag) to fill up the needs on a card. We walk around the game card between each turn pretending we are walking around our neighborhood. It comes with a little booklet that helps you engage your child in empathy. […]”

• Recommended Age: 3+ years

Your little one is in for a huge treat. If you loved playing Candy Land when you were a child, you can share the experience with your loved ones and go down the “magical” road to sweet treats. This adorable version features colored cards and fun illustrations that kids will love, and includes destinations like Cookie Commons or the dreaded Molasses Swamp. It’s a simple game to get up and running and there’s no reading required.

Helpful Review: “Bought as a gift for a 5 yearold and although he initally thought Candy Land meant there was actual candy inside the box, but after showing him the game, he loved it! Its a great game to teach counting, game playing and sometimes the unfortunate part of losing, even though these are all important lessons to learn.”

• Recommended Age: 3+ years

Winner of the prestigious Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Seal Award in 2013, this game is easy to learn and quick to play. Your kids will love getting their raccoons dressed while working on color recognition and matching skills. Each player gets a critter card and takes a turn rolling two dice. Players find the items that match the dice to dress their raccoon, but watch out, if you roll the underwear, you’ll lose all your clothes. This will have your kids breaking out into wild giggles.

Helpful Review: “The play time on this game is perfect. It’s not over so fast that it’s uninteresting, but it doesn’t drag out forever. This game is also not so time consuming that you have to stop mid game to make sure the kids get fed, bathed, and put to bed at a reasonable hour.”

• Recommended Age: 3 to 6 years

Learning to count is an important skill for your toddler to practice and you can help them do so all under the guise of fun with this classic game that first launched in the 1960s. Hi Ho! Cheery-O teaches players to count as they pick fruit and fill their buckets. This tried-and-true game also helps develop their math skills.

Helpful Review: “My 4 yearold loved it. I also like how Amazon’s version has different colored fruits which is a big improvement over the standard original version.”

• Recommended Age: 4 to 8 years

To get you started teaching your toddler one life skill, start the Memory Match game. Preschoolers will feel so empowered when they can learn the principles of a basic memory game. The enticing chunky-round shape cards will get them talking about camping once they play. There are a total of 32 cards, so 16 pairs to match, and you can customize how many pairs you want to introduce at once so your preschooler doesn’t feel overwhelmed.

Helpful Review: “This is a fun game for my 4 year old nephew! He’s still learning how to remember where something was, but he’ll get the hang of it.I like that there are so many cards, so you can choose the size/difficulty of the game and pick the pictures you want to use!Sturdy and durable! They are shaped and durable like a coaster.”

• Recommended Age: 3+ years

Pet the Cat is such a beloved children’s book character, so it’s no surprise that this playful game has racked up rave reviews on Amazon. This is a cooperative game for players to work together to retrieve delicious cupcakes back from the Grumpy Toad by singing, acting, and having fun. This game can help foster imagination and develop strategy skills and word associations.

Helpful Review: “This is such a fun game for little kids! Depending on what kind of spot kids land on, they have to think on their feet–and sometimes sing or act out a simple charade–to help Pete get his cupcakes.”

• Recommended Age: 4+ years

This “Eye Spy” game is over six feet long and has kids search for hidden objects while they race around Richard Scarry’s famous Busytown. It’s great for language development and paying close attention to the details. It’s another cooperative-style game, so you don’t have to worry about any losing tantrums.

Helpful Review: “This game is a great concept for kids who have issues with winning and losing. Especially at 3 and 4 years of age when other skills like patience, taking turns, and working together.”