HOW TO PLAY
How to play Guess the Drawing
- Players
- 2–12
- Time
- about 10 minutes
- Ages
- 6+
- Price
- Free
Guess the Drawing is a live sketch-and-guess game for 2 to 12 players. One player is the artist: they pick one of three secret words and draw it on their screen while everyone else watches each stroke appear in real time and types guesses as fast as they can. Then the next player takes the pen.
You don't need to be good at drawing — in fact the game is usually funnier when you aren't. It works brilliantly on phones and tablets, where you draw with your finger, and it is one of the three games that are free to play on FamGames.
What you need
Two or more players with a phone, tablet or computer each. In one-phone mode, the artist draws on a single device and everyone shouts guesses out loud.
Rules: how a round works
- Pick a word. The artist privately chooses one of three secret words.
- Draw it live. Everyone sees the drawing appear stroke by stroke. No letters, numbers or symbols that spell the answer.
- Type your guesses. Guess as often as you like. If a guess is close, you get a private “so close!” hint that the others can't see.
- Hints drop in. As the timer runs down, letters of the word are revealed to help the guessers.
- Rotate. Every player takes a turn as the artist, so everyone draws at least once.
Scoring
Correct guesses score more the faster they come, and the first correct guesser gets a bonus. The artist earns points for every player who gets the word, so drawing clearly pays off.
Difficulty levels
- Easy: Short, simple words, more drawing time and three letter hints.
- Normal: A mix of words with two letter hints.
- Hard: Long or two-word prompts, less time and only one hint.
Tips and strategy
Big shapes first
Spend your first few seconds on the overall outline. A circle with ears says “cat” much faster than a perfectly shaded eye.
Use the guess feed
Wrong guesses appear for everyone. If people are typing “dog” when you are drawing a fox, add the one detail that tells them apart — a bushy tail.
Pick wisely
When choosing a word, pick the one you can draw in the fewest lines, not the one that sounds most fun.
For guessers
Type early and often. Guesses are free, and the close-guess hint tells you when you're on the right track.
Variations and house rules
- Wrong hand: everyone draws with their non-dominant hand for one full rotation.
- One line: the artist may not lift their finger once they start drawing.
- Team mode: split into two teams and only let the artist's teammates guess for the first 20 seconds.
Who it's best for
Families with younger children (six and up can draw and guess on Easy), visual thinkers, and groups who don't share a first language, since drawing does most of the talking.
Playing on FamGames
Free to play — every account gets weekly credits, and each round uses one credit for the whole group. The host picks the game and difficulty, creates a room and shares the five-character room code. Everyone else joins from their own device — no download needed. No phone for everyone? Switch to one-phone mode and pass a single device around.
Start a Guess the Drawing room →
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Last updated 2026-10-21