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Baby Shower Bingo — the UK rules, free printable cards and ideas for the squares, played while the gifts are opened

Baby shower bingo is the game that keeps everyone watching the presents. Each guest has a card of gifts, and as the parent-to-be unwraps them, guests mark the ones they guessed. Below are the rules, a baby shower bingo game ready to print, with blank cards or filled ones, and 45 gift ideas for the squares.

Make the cardsSee the gift ideas

How the calls work

The presents are the calls

No caller and no numbers: every gift opened is one call, and a guest who knows the parents best has a small head start.

How to play baby shower bingo

Baby shower bingo, also called baby bingo, is played during the part of the shower where the gifts are opened. Before that starts, every guest gets a card, usually a four by four grid, and fills it with 16 presents they think the parent-to-be will receive: a baby blanket, muslins, a cuddly toy, tiny socks. Then the unwrapping begins. Each present is held up for the room, and any guest who has it on their card marks the square.

A table with a yellow cloth, a cake iced with Welcome Baby and a stand of pink and yellow cupcakes
A baby shower table with a Welcome Baby cake and cupcakes, 2011. Original by Witchhazel911, CC BY-SA 4.0.

It works because it gives everyone a reason to watch closely, even guests who do not know each other, and it turns a slow part of the afternoon into a game with a winner. There is no caller to organise and no equipment beyond cards and pens. If you print the card with the parent's name and the date, it also makes a nice keepsake.

Baby shower bingo rules, the UK way

In the UK the game is usually kept simple, with one card each and a single small prize. These are the rules most hosts use.

  1. One card per guest. Hand them out on arrival, so the cards are filled in before the gifts are opened.
  2. No two squares the same. "Blanket" can go on a card once. Guests who write "clothes" in every square miss the point: ask for specific gifts.
  3. The host decides what counts. If a guest has "sleepsuit" and a babygrow is opened, the host or the parent-to-be rules. Agree before you start whether a close match counts.
  4. A line wins first. Across, down or diagonal. With a large pile of presents, play on for a full card.
  5. Ties share or play off. If two guests complete a line on the same gift, give both a prize or ask a quick question about the parents.

Guests who brought gifts should still play; writing your own present on your card is allowed, and it is one square of sixteen. If there are fewer than about twenty presents, use a smaller card or play for any line rather than a full card, or the game will not finish.

Free printable baby shower bingo cards

The card maker below makes the cards in two ways. Baby shower, blank for guesses prints empty four by four grids with a title, which is the traditional version: guests write their own guesses. Baby shower gifts fills every card with a different random selection of 16 gifts from the list further down, which is quicker and works well when guests arrive at different times. Change the title to the parent's name, choose how many cards you need, and print: the printable layout puts two cards on each page.

Sample cards are shown. Set the theme and number of cards, then press Make cards.

BABY SHOWER BINGO

Card 1

BABY SHOWER BINGO

Card 2

To make pre-filled cards more personal, edit the list before making them: take out gifts you know the parents already have, and add items from their gift list. The printed baby shower bingo game prints in black on white, so it works on any printer, and you can save it as a PDF to email to guests.

45 gift ideas for the squares

These are the gifts the pre-filled cards are made from. They are also a useful prompt to put on the table for guests filling in blank cards, since most people run out of ideas after about ten.

  • Baby blanket
  • Muslin squares
  • Bibs
  • Teething ring
  • Rattle
  • Sleepsuit
  • Hooded towel
  • Nappies
  • Baby wipes
  • Cuddly toy
  • Board book
  • Tiny socks
  • Scratch mitts
  • Dummy
  • Bottles
  • Baby monitor
  • Night light
  • Changing mat
  • Changing bag
  • Baby shampoo
  • Sleeping bag
  • Knitted hat
  • Cardigan
  • Vests
  • Bath toys
  • Play mat
  • Cot mobile
  • Baby carrier
  • Photo album
  • Nappy cream
  • Soft brush set
  • Pram toy
  • Soft shoes
  • Swaddle
  • Burp cloths
  • Snowsuit
  • Keepsake box
  • Bouncer
  • Weaning spoons
  • Sippy cup
  • Bath thermometer
  • Hand and footprint kit
  • Personalised name sign
  • Gift card
  • Something handmade

A good mix of squares has everyday things that almost everyone gives, such as muslins and sleepsuits, and a few long shots, such as a snowsuit or a keepsake box. A card of only safe choices fills quickly, and everyone finishes together.

A baby shower bingo card of baby items with pink dabber dots on some squares, next to knitted booties, a soft toy rabbit, muslins and a basket (AI-generated image) AI
AI-generated image. Baby shower bingo: the squares are gifts, and each one is marked as the parent-to-be unwraps it.

Other baby bingo games

Baby picture bingo. With children at the shower, play ordinary called bingo with baby things: bottles, prams, ducks, rattles. Choose Pictures for children in the card maker and type short baby words into the list, such as bottle, rattle, teddy, duck, pram and bib, or use the words from the gift list with a caller.

Guess-the-baby bingo. Ask guests to bring a baby photo of themselves. Number the photos, and give each guest a blank card with the numbers; they write the name they think belongs to each one.

Due date bingo. On a blank calendar-style grid, guests each pick a date for the birth, or an hour of the day. It is a guess rather than a bingo game, but it is often played alongside it, and settled when the baby arrives.

Nursery rhyme bingo. Hum the first line of a nursery rhyme, and guests mark the title on their card. It is music bingo for a baby shower, and a good way to see who remembers the words.

Virtual baby shower bingo

For a shower over a video call, email the cards as a PDF a few days before, so guests can print them or fill them in on screen. The parent-to-be opens the gifts on camera, holding each one up and saying what it is, since it can be hard to see through a webcam. Guests keep their own cards and unmute to call bingo. Guests who sent gifts by post can watch their own present being opened, which makes it more personal than just a list of thank-yous.

Prizes and timing

Keep the prize small and useful: a candle, a plant, a box of chocolates, or the table decorations. Some hosts give the prize to the parent-to-be instead, and the winner gets the credit. Play the game once, during the gift opening, rather than as a separate game, and allow about half an hour for twenty to thirty presents. If the pile is big, start with a line and move to a full card; if it is small, stop at the first line. More games for other occasions, from hen dos to birthdays, are on our party bingo page.

FAQ

What is baby shower bingo?

It is a bingo game played while the parent-to-be opens the presents. Each guest has a card of baby gifts, either filled in by the guest or printed in advance, and marks a square when that gift is unwrapped. The first guest to complete a line, or the whole card, wins a small prize.

How to play baby shower bingo?

Give each guest a blank 4 by 4 card and a pen as they arrive, and ask them to write in 16 gifts they think will be opened. When the presents are unwrapped, the guests mark any that match. The first with a full line calls bingo, and play carries on for a full card if there are enough presents.

How does baby shower bingo work?

The presents are the calls. Nobody draws numbers: as each gift is opened and shown around, every guest who has that gift on their card marks it. Because guests fill in their own cards, every card is different, and a guest who knows the parents well has a slight edge.

How to make baby shower bingo cards?

The simplest cards are blank grids with a title, which guests fill in. For printed cards, list 30 to 45 likely gifts and give each card a different random selection of 16. The card maker on this page does both: choose Baby shower, blank for guesses or Baby shower gifts, then press Make cards and Print cards.

What is baby bingo?

Baby bingo is another name for baby shower bingo, the gift-opening game. Some people also use it for picture bingo with baby things, such as bottles, rattles and prams, called at random for children at a family gathering.

How to play baby bingo game?

For the gift version, guests mark the presents on their card as they are opened. For the picture version, the host draws baby-themed pictures or words from a bag and calls them out, and players mark the ones on their card. Either way, the first full line wins.

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