Wedding bingo: how to play it at the reception, with free printable cards

A reception game guests play at their own pace: no microphone, nobody picked, quietly through dinner and the speeches.

How to play wedding bingo

1. 1The card5x5, each square something that might happen. Someone cries during the vows.
2. 2Tick itWhen a guest sees it happen.
3. 3WinFive in a row, across, down or diagonal.
4. 4Free centreSo each card needs 24 prompts.

When to hand out the cards

A card and a pen at each place setting before dinner. Not at the ceremony: people should watch the vows.

What the MC should say

Read this once at the start of dinner:

There is a bingo card at every seat. Every square is something that might happen tonight. Tick them off as you see them, and when you get five in a row, wave your card at me. The first three winners get a prize. And no ticking someone cries during the vows unless you actually saw it.

Then a reminder before dessert and a last call before dancing. Three announcements, no more.

Prizes

Pick three and put them on display; people play harder when they can see them.

1. 01Flip-flops for the dance floor
2. 02Blister plasters (these go first)
3. 03The first slice of cake
4. 04A drink token for the bar
5. 05A miniature bottle of something strong

31 wedding bingo ideas

Ceremony

• Someone cries during the vows
• The couple fumbles a line and laughs
• A child walks the wrong way down the aisle
• A phone rings during the ceremony
• The ring gets stuck on the finger
• The officiant makes a joke that lands

Speeches and toasts

• A speech runs longer than five minutes
• Someone reads their speech from a phone
• A speaker cries
• An embarrassing childhood story
• A joke about the in-laws
• Someone says when I first met her
• A speaker thanks the wrong person

Dance floor

• The first dance ends in a dip
• A parent out-dances their child
• Someone dances barefoot
• A conga line forms
• The DJ plays a song from the year the couple met
• A grandparent on the dance floor
• The floor empties for a slow song

Guests

• Two guests in the same colour notice each other
• Someone asks so how did you two meet?
• A guest you have not seen in ten years
• Someone pulls a stranger into a group photo
• A guest changes into a second outfit
• A kid falls asleep at the table

Food, drink and venue

• Someone goes back for seconds of the same dish
• A glass gets knocked over
• The cake cutting needs three tries for the photo
• More than five people in the bar queue
• Someone pockets a table decoration

Three variations

Printing tips

• More than 24 prompts, so cards draw different mixes.
• One or two cards per Letter sheet. Four saves paper but squares get small.
• Card stock, 200gsm or heavier. Paper curls and goes soggy.
• Black and white for a hundred cards.
• One pen per seat. Everyone forgets; no pens, no game.
• Ten spares for spills and kids.

The free wedding bingo cards give every card a different shuffle of your prompts and print one to four cards per sheet from your browser. For tables that would rather chat than compete, add a few table talk cards.

Keep it optional

Never build it into the speeches. Some tables fill three cards; others use theirs as a coaster. Both are fine.