Some people say that games aren’t usually designed for 3 players, but our list of the best 3-player card games should dispel this myth once and for all!
Whereas 2-player card games are fairly common, 3-player games are less so, but this doesn’t mean they should be discounted as an option when the need arises.
We have recommendations for short and long-playing card games, as well as games for adults, kids, or if you just have a trusty 52-card deck on hand.
Continue reading to learn all about our favorite 3-player card games.
Related: 4 player card games
Easy 3-player card games
DIXIT
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 8+.
Length of Play: 30 minutes.
Objective: Be the first player to earn 30 points across the game.
Dixit in a nutshell:
A party game that is quick-moving, Dixit is a description game where players need to describe what is displayed on the card to the other 2 players to earn points. Players pick a card in their hand that best matches the description of the card, and the describing players votes on which of the 2 cards best matches the description.
SEE ALSO: Dixit rules.
FAMOUS MOVIE LINES
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 13+.
Length of Play: Approx 35 minutes.
Objective: Gain 20 points before the other 2 players.
Famous Movie Lines in a nutshell:
Starting with the player to the dealer’s left, the player reads out a quote that is a Famous Movie Line, and the player to their left must correctly guess what movie the quote is from.
They gain a point and the card if they are correct; if they are wrong then the remaining player can guess to steal the point. The first to 20 points wins.
SEE ALSO: How to play Famous Movie Lines.
HAPPY SALMON
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 6+.
Length of Play: 90 seconds per round.
Objective: Match cards with other players to get rid of them first.
Happy Salmon in a nutshell:
The goal of Happy Salmon is to get rid of all your cards first and to do this, players need to match their cards with other players and then perform the action stated on the card. Actions can vary and be things like high five or happy salmon. Games are very quick, so crown the ultimate winner, whoever wins the most rounds after a certain number of games.
SEE ALSO: Happy Salmon rules.
SUPERFIGHT
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 13+.
Length of Play: 10 – 30 minutes.
Objective: Defeat other players created heroes with your own heroes.
Superfight in a nutshell:
Superfight is a card game of two halves, firstly, players need to draw black attribute cards to give powers to their drawn superhero, with each power having its advantages and disadvantages. Once their heroes have been created, each player has 1 minute to explain why their Superhero would win in a fight. Everyone must agree on who the winner is.
SEE ALSO: Superfight rules.
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UNSTABLE UNICORNS
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 14+.
Length of Play: 30 – 45 minutes.
Objective: Have the strongest Unicorn army containing the greatest number of Unicorns possible.
Unstable Unicorns in a nutshell:
Unstable Unicorns is played in rounds, in each rounds players have 4 options that they can take in phases which determines what move they make. Players collect either Unicorn cards to add to their stable, or action cards that either hinder other players or aids the cards they have already amassed. Whoever can get 7 Unicorns in their stable first wins the game.
SEE ALSO: How to play Unstable Unicorns.
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3-player card games for adults
BOHNANZA
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 13+.
Length of Play: Approx 45 minutes.
Objective: Earn the most gold coins by the end of the game.
Bohnanza in a nutshell:
Bohnanza is the bean counting card game where players draw cards that allows them to grow and harvest specialist beans. Players need to combine different beans to create a better harvest with more variety.
The beanometer tells players how many gold coins each harvest is worth, and earn the most gold coins to win the game.
SEE ALSO: Bohnanza rules.
COUP CARD GAME
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 13+.
Length of Play: 15 – 45 minutes.
Objective: Be the last surviving player at the end of the game.
Coup card game in a nutshell:
A game all about cunning and betrayal, Coup starts with players getting 2 character cards and these are hidden until a player loses influence. Once a player loses influence twice, both character cards are revealed and that player is out of the game. Players use coins and action cards to either trick or work together to eliminate people from the game.
SEE ALSO: Coup card game rules.
COUP REFORMATION
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 14+.
Length of Play: 15 – 60 minutes.
Objective: Become the last player left in the game at the end.
Coup Reformation in a nutshell:
For lovers of Coup, Coup Reformation is an expansion pack that adds new cards and actions to the game to keep it fresher for longer. New character cards and action cards get added to the game that has different powers attached which means that the game changes drastically. The goal of the game and how to achieve said goal stays the same, however.
SEE ALSO: Coup Reformation rules.
FUNEMPLOYED
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 18+.
Length of Play: 20 – 40 minutes.
Objective: Be voted the player with the best resume and interview at the end of the game.
Funemployed in a nutshell:
Funemployed is a game of 2 halves – the first half is drawing and swapping cards to get the most interesting or fun combination of skills for a resume.
The second half of the game, players need to use their created resumes as the basis of an interview for a random job with the other players. Agree on who has the best resume and interview at the end of the game.
SEE ALSO: Funemployed rules.
IF YOU HAD TO
![If You Had To… [A Party Game]](https://groupgames101.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/41ZlgVWoZBL._SL500_.webp)
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 17+.
Length of Play: 15+ minutes.
Objective: Earn the most points by out-arguing the other players.
If You Had To in a nutshell:
Start If You Had To by shuffling a deck and handing 5 cards to each player. Each card has a horrible or distasteful scenario and players need to pick one and then put forward their argument why that scenario is worse than the others.
1 player acts as the judge and picks their best argument, and the player making the argument gets awarded 5 points.
SEE ALSO: If You Had To game rules.
JOKING HAZARD
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 7+.
Length of Play: 10 – 20 minutes.
Objective: Become the first player to earn 3 points to win the game.
Joking Hazard in a nutshell:
Joking Hazard is a card game where a picture depicting two characters from creators Cyanide and Happiness are in a situation that needs a caption. Players pick a description card that best matches the picture on offer, and players collectively choose the description they think is the funniest. The first player to get 3 descriptions picked wins the game.
SEE ALSO: Joking Hazard rules.
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SHANGHAI RUMMY
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 10+.
Length of Play: 20+ minutes.
Objective: Be the player with the lowest score after 10 rounds of play.
Shanghai Rummy in a nutshell:
Shanghai Rummy can be a difficult game to get your head around as there are a lot of rules that you’ll need to understand before playing. Across 10 rounds, players need to make a specific combination of sets to avoid earning a score for that round.
Once the 10th round has been completed, scores get tallied up and a winner is announced.
SEE ALSO: Shanghai Rummy rules.
WHAT DO YOU MEME?
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 17+.
Length of Play: 30+ minutes.
Objective: Earn the title Meme King/Queen by having the most memes voted in your favor.
What Do You Meme? in a nutshell:
In What Do You Meme? each player gets handed 5 cards with captions that they use to pair it with a popular picture to create the funniest meme possible. 1 person is the judge while the other 2 attempts to create a meme, and the judge picks their favorite caption. Whoever wins the most meme captions at the end of the game wins overall.
SEE ALSO: What Do You Meme? rules.
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3-player card games for kids
DRAGONWOOD
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 8+.v
Length of Play: 30 – 60 minutes.
Objective: Defeat both dragons and be the player with the most victory points.
Dragonwood in a nutshell:
Dragonwood is a fantasy card game in which players work together to defeat enemies throughout the game, earn better equipment, and get stronger to have a fighting chance of winning.
Each player’s turn gives that player a chance to earn victory points as well, which is needed to become the final winner at the end of the game if the group is successful.
SEE ALSO: Dragonwood rules.
EXPLODING KITTENS
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 7+
Length of Play: 15 minutes.
Objective: Be the only player to avoid drawing an exploding kittens card.
Exploding Kittens in a nutshell:
A quick-fire card game that is very tense, Exploding Kittens requires players to draw cards from a shuffled deck and hope they don’t draw an Exploding Kitten card. Various cards can be drawn to either avoid drawing cards or saving a player from drawing an Exploding Kitten card. The player who avoids this card while the other 2 draw them wins the game.
SEE ALSO: Exploding Kittens rules.
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OLD MAID
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 4+.
Length of Play: 5 minutes.
Objective: Avoid being the player who gets left with the Old Maid.
Old Maid in a nutshell:
Deal out the set of Old Maid cards evenly between players, 1 player should be left with 1 more card than the others. Pair the cards that match, and players need to take 1 card from the player on their left hand, but cannot see the card that they take. The player left with the Old Maid when all other cards are paired up loses the game.
SEE ALSO: Old Maid rules.
SABOTEUR
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 8+.
Length of Play: 30 minutes.
Objective: Gather as much gold as possible throughout the game.
Saboteur in a nutshell:
Saboteur is a game where players are given roles as dwarves mining for gold, with 3 players you’ll just need 1 Saboteur card and 3 Gold Miner cards. Players get given 6 Action cards and use these to make moves to earn gold nuggets, or secretly ruin another player’s journey. After 3 rounds, the player with the most gold nuggets wins the game.
SEE ALSO: Saboteur rules.
TACO CAT GOAT CHEESE PIZZA
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 8+.
Length of Play: 10 minutes.
Objective: Get rid of all of your cards before the other players.
Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza in a nutshell:
This game with a funny name is like a harder version of Snap, players lay cards down while each saying Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza whilst each card is placed down in the middle.
If a player puts down a card that matches what is being said, the all players slap their hands down onto the deck. The slowest picks up the deck of cards and the game restarts. Whoever gets rid of their deck of cards first wins the game.
SEE ALSO: Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza rules.
3-player card games with a single deck of cards
BIG 2
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 10+.
Length of Play: 20+ minutes.
Objective: Either get rid of all your cards or be left with as few as possible.
Big 2 in a nutshell:
A card game ideal for playing with 3 people, Big 2 starts by dealing out all the cards to the three players until there are none left. The player with the 3 of Diamonds starts the game, and must play cards in a certain sequence or order to get rid of them. This game is turn-based, the first player to be rid of all their cards wins.
SEE ALSO: Big 2 rules.
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FOLLOW THE QUEEN POKER
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 17+.
Length of Play: 5 – 20 minutes per round.
Objective: Win the most chips by having the best hand at the end of every round.
Follow the Queen Poker in a nutshell:
Make sure you have a deck of cards and a set of poker chips before you begin playing as these are necessary. Players start the game by either folding or raising the stakes, once everyone has either folded or bet, the dealer draws 7 cards and players use both these cards and what is in their hand to create the highest-scoring hand to win the chips.
SEE ALSO: Follow the Queen Poker.
HORSE RACE GAME
Players: 3 players.
Ages: 17+.
Length of Play: 5 – 10 players.
Objective: Correctly guess the ‘horse’ who will finish the course first.
Horse Race Game in a nutshell:
The Aces act as the horses in this card game, players need to place chips on which horse they think will get to the end first, players start with 20 chips each. Cards are randomly drawn from a shuffled deck and placed along the top to decide the odds.
Cards get drawn one at a time to determine which horse moves along the course first, with the card that matches the Aces suit deciding which is moved first.
SEE ALSO: Horse Race game rules.
MANNI CARD GAME
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 7+.
Length of Play: 20 – 50 minutes.
Objective: WIn tricks and earn points, the first player to 10 points wins.
Manni card game in a nutshell:
The Manni card game is a trick-taking form of Rummy designed specifically for 3 players. Start the game by removing all of the 2’s, and deal out 12 cards to each player whilst leaving a deck of 12 on the table. Players need to pick a card they believe will be the highest value while other players attempt to beat it. Whoever wins the trick gains a point.
SEE ALSO: Manni card game.
NINES CARD GAME
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 8+.
Length of Play: 10 – 20 minutes.
Objective: Win tricks and lose points until 1 players has 0 points left.
Nines in a nutshell:
Nines is another trick-taking card game designed for 3 players, with the main difference being that players start with 9 points and attempt to lose them by winning tricks. Deal out 13 cards to each player, and leave the remaining 13 cards spare on the table. The player who has the highest value card played per round wins the trick and loses a point.
SEE ALSO: Nines card game rules.
OH HELL CARD GAME
Players: 3 players.
Ages: Ages 10+.
Length of Play: 25 – 50 minutes.
Objective: Score the most points by correctly predicting how many tricks will be won.
Oh Hell card game in a nutshell:
Players start Oh Hell by analyzing the trump card and the cards in their hand and predicting how many tricks they can win throughout the game. This means that it’s not necessarily advantageous to win every trick.
The person who wins a trick gains 1 point, but players who successfully guess the number of tricks won gain 10 points. The most points at the end win.
SEE ALSO: Oh Hell card game rules.
