Draw and Guess on your own devices
Start a room and send the link: each turn one player is the artist and draws the secret word on their own screen, while everyone else watches the lines appear on theirs as they are drawn. Guessers type their guesses, and the box beside the drawing shows every wrong one, so nobody repeats it. A right guess is never shown: the others just see that you got it, and the faster you are, the more points you score.
The word starts as a row of blanks, one per letter, and from half time on a letter fills in every few seconds. The host chooses typed or spoken guessing, the word level, the categories, the drawing time and how many turns each player gets. Spoken suits a group in one room or on a video call: you say your guesses out loud and the artist taps each player who got it.
Free for 3–12 players, each on your own phone, tablet or computer. Share a link or a 6-character code; nobody needs an account or a download.
How to play draw and guess online with friends
A draw and guess room is a party room for three to twelve players. Everyone who opens the link before the host taps Start gets a place, and every player draws in turn. The host sets the game up in the lobby, and every screen sees the choices as they change:
- Guesses: Typed, where everyone types on their own device, or Spoken, where you say them out loud.
- Words: Easy, Medium, Hard or Mixed.
- Categories (under More options): any mix of the ten built-in ones, from Animals and Food to Things that go and Make-believe.
- Drawing time (More options): 60, 90 or 120 seconds a turn.
- Turns each (More options): one, two or three.
A room plays the built-in words. Word lists saved on your own phone stay on the one-device game.
One player draws, every screen watches
Each turn begins with the artist’s card, and only the artist’s device shows the word. They hold the card to read it and tap Start drawing; if they don’t, the drawing starts by itself after 20 seconds. The card has one New word for a word they’d rather not draw.
The artist draws with a finger, a pen or a mouse, with eight pens, three sizes and an eraser, plus buttons to remove the last line or clear the paper. Lines appear on the other screens while they are being drawn, not once they’re finished, so guessers can call out a guess halfway through a line. A phone that goes to sleep or a page that reloads gets the drawing so far back straight away.
Guessers see a row of blanks, one per letter, with the count beside it, so they know how long the word is before the first line goes down. From half time, letters fill in one at a time, spread out until near the end of the turn, and at least two letters always stay hidden.
Typed or spoken guesses
With Typed guesses, each guesser has a box under the drawing. A wrong guess goes in the list for everyone, so nobody repeats it. On a laptop, or a tablet held sideways, that list sits beside the drawing like a scoresheet, under the players and their points. On a phone, the newest guess shows on one line under the drawing, with a count of how many have been tried. A guess one letter off tells you alone that you’re close; the others don’t see it until the turn ends. A right guess is never shown to anyone: the others only learn that you got it.
With Spoken guesses, nobody types. Say your guesses out loud, in one room or on a video call, and the artist taps the name of each player who said the word.
The turn ends when every guesser has it, when time runs out, or when the artist taps End turn. Every screen then shows the word, the drawing, who got it with their points, and the turn’s guesses. Getting it early pays: the order you solve in sets your points. The next turn starts after 8 seconds, or as soon as anyone taps Next.
Tips for a drawing game on a call
- Shapes first, details later. A circle and four lines say “animal” before the ears and tail tell everyone which one.
- No letters or numbers. The card reminds the artist: the drawing has to do the work.
- Pick Typed for friends in different homes, and Spoken for one room or a lively call, where shouting guesses is half the fun.
- Easy words and Animals for children. A short list of things they can picture keeps every turn moving.
The draw and guess rules cover turns, skips and scoring, and the drawing tips help artists draw faster and guessers think wider. Need warm-up ideas? Try this list of things to draw. Everyone around one tablet? Play Draw and Guess on one device instead.
Rooms are private and close by themselves after the game; the server keeps a room’s names and moves only while it is open. See the privacy policy for the details.
