← TappyHour The house rules

How to play
TappyHour.

The next round is someone else’s problem.

One phone each. Quick party games. Someone drinks. Join in a browser and let the room settle the arguments.

The short version

Join the room, read the round intro, then play. The result tells you who drinks and why. The host starts the next round.

Let’s play →

01 · Get the room together

From invite to first round

  1. 01

    One person hosts

    Tap Start a game. Share the four-letter code, invite link or QR code.

  2. 02

    Everyone joins

    Open the link or enter the code on your own phone. Pick a name. You need 2–12 players; more people unlock more games.

  3. 03

    Set up and play

    The host taps Everyone’s in — set up game and answers First time playing? Then choose how many rounds to play. Everyone sees the lineup. Tap ? beside any game for its rules, then the host taps Start round 1.

First time? We’ll teach the table.

The first setup step asks First time playing? It starts on No if this browser already remembers a player or name, and Yes if it’s new. You can change either choice. Choose Yes, teach us, then choose how many rounds to play. You get Normal difficulty, Friendly cards and no callouts, with Big Talk last when enabled. Every round waits while everyone reads its rules, then starts once every player taps I’m ready. There’s no timer while you’re learning.

Choose your round count

Play 3–20 regular rounds, with 10 selected by default. Games are randomly picked from all the selected games that fit your group. Choose more rounds than the pool can fill and games repeat as needed. Big Talk appears once, at the end, when it’s on.

Every game

Play every selected game your table can play once. Setup shows the count for your current group. If fewer than three selected games fit your group, they repeat to reach three rounds. The lineup opens fast and spaces out the thinking games, with Big Talk last when it’s on.

Choose No on the first setup step to also skip games you don’t fancy and choose Most Likely To cards when that game is on and there are enough players. With three or more players, optional callouts add head-to-head challenges on top of your regular rounds. Setup shows your regular rounds, extra callouts and full total before you start. Open Difficulty & drinks on the final step to change those options. Later arrivals join the next round without restarting setup or making the game longer. Games start on Hard unless you choose Normal or first-time play.

02 · Know the stakes

Who drinks?

The host’s two drink settings control ranked games: speed, timing, memory, words and guesses. “Best” means the best result for that game. The game cards below call these settings Messier and Tamer.

🍺🍺 All but the best (Messier)

The best result stays safe. Everyone else drinks one. If players tie for best, they all stay safe, but none earns an outright win.

🍺 Only the worst (Tamer)

The worst result drinks one; tied worst results all drink. In games with an automatic loss, such as a false start or a Chicken bust, those players drink instead. Valid players are then safe.

Some games have their own stakes. Team matches, votes, the potato, horse races, Ride the Bus, Big Talk, Pocket Change, Fake Fact and duels say exactly who drinks below. Big Talk uses seconds of drinking, with a shared countdown on every phone. Hard mode changes some controls, clocks or stakes. The round intro and result show the rule that applies.

03 · Pick a game

Every round, explained

Open a game for the action, the drinks and the Hard mode change.

Read the table

Bluffs, bad drawings and shared guesses.

Fake FactMake it up. Make them believe it. 3+

What to do

Everyone sees an unusual question with a real, non-number answer. Write a short, believable fake in 35 seconds. Your first accepted fake locks. Every answer, including the truth, uses the same capitalisation, spacing and punctuation. Identical fakes appear as one option with shared authors. Writing the truth earns nothing here: if your fake includes the real answer or a known equivalent, you must write something else before the same deadline. You then have 30 seconds to find the truth among the shuffled options; you cannot vote for your own fake. Votes and authors stay secret. The host reveals the truth first, then the authors and voters of fakes that received votes, skipping the rest. If everyone picks the truth, go straight from its reveal to results. Winners have 20 seconds to give their earned sip to another connected round player; an unused sip expires. The same players and deadlines stay in place through reconnects; new arrivals watch.

Who drinks

Pick a fake or miss your fake or vote and take one sip at most. Wait for results for your answer or vote sip; reveals explain why you owe it. Submit a fake and pick the truth to avoid that sip. The author of the most-voted fake earns one win and one sip to give to another player; tied leaders each get both, but at least one vote is required. Winning with your fake does not cancel a sip for your own wrong vote. Nobody fooled means no winner and no sip to give. Missing your fake or vote makes you ineligible to win; a runner-up does not inherit a missed winner’s gift. With fewer than three submitted answers, voting is cancelled and only missing answers cost one sip. Winner-given sips are immediate and extra, even if you found the truth. Results recap those gifts as already given; do not drink them again. Both drink settings use these rules.

Hard mode

Same questions, writing and voting clocks, and sip rules. No extra winner’s prize or On Fire charge. Safe players keep their fire.

Pocket ChangeHide your coins. Hope the wheel misses you. 3+

What to do

Secretly choose 0, 1, 2 or 3 coins within 15 seconds. Your first choice locks. The name wheel picks one player after all hands lock. It spins for four seconds, then reveals their coins to everyone. Zero-coin hands can be chosen too. After a short pause, everyone has 15 seconds to guess the full table total, including the revealed coins. Guesses stay secret until results. Most players know two hands; the spotlight player only knows their own. Hands already locked stay in the total if someone disconnects.

Who drinks

The closest guesses are safe and earn one win each, including ties. Every other player drinks one sip. No coin choice or no guess costs one sip, with no double charge. Missing hands are left out of the total and wheel. At least three hands must lock: with fewer, only missing coin choices cost a sip and nobody earns a win. Both drink settings use these rules.

Hard mode

Same coins, wheel, clocks and sip rules. No winner’s prize or extra On Fire sips. Safe players keep their fire.

Same BrainOne team. One word. No hints. Even · 4+

What to do

Same Brain needs an even number of players, with at least four. The game puts everyone in pairs. Everyone sees the same prompt. Without talking or giving hints, each player locks one word within 20 seconds. The first word is final. Capitals and accents do not matter; spelling does.

Who drinks

Every member of a team must match. Matching teams are safe and earn one win per player. Everyone on the other teams drinks one. No matches means everyone drinks; if all teams match, everyone is safe. A missing word makes that team fail. Both drink settings use this rule.

Hard mode

Same rules, same time limit. Matching players keep any On Fire streak, with no extra fire drinks or winner’s prize.

Most Likely ToWho fits the prompt best? 3+

What to do

Read the prompt and vote for the player it describes. The host can change a prompt during the intro. Votes stay hidden until the result.

Who drinks

The most-voted player drinks one. A top tie makes everyone drink in Messier, or just the tied leaders in Tamer. Missing the vote also costs one. These do not stack.

Hard mode

Each top-voted player drinks two, including tied leaders. Other players caught by a Messier tie, or a missing vote, still drink one.

Trace ItDraw from memory. Judge the mess. 3+

What to do

Study the shape for 2.5 seconds, then redraw it in one stroke within 10 seconds. Lock it in, or your current drawing submits when time runs out. Vote for the worst drawing in the unnamed gallery. You may vote for your own. Needs three players: two drawings would only ever tie.

Who drinks

The artist with the most votes drinks one. Tied leaders all drink. No valid drawing or no vote also costs one, with at most one drink per player from this round. With fewer than two valid drawings, the vote is skipped and only missing drawings are charged. Both drink settings use these rules.

Hard mode

You see the shape for just 1.2 seconds. The drawing and voting rules stay the same.

Hot PotatoPass it before the fuse blows. 3+

What to do

When the potato lands on you, tap to pass it to a random player. Leave the screen alone while someone else has it. The results show who made the final pass and how little time was left.

Who drinks

The final holder drinks two. Your first out-of-turn tap costs one, but you stay in the game. If you also end up holding it, you drink three in total. Both drink settings use this rule.

Hard mode

The fuse is hidden, so there is no countdown to watch, and it runs 10 to 20 seconds instead of 8 to 18. Hit the moving potato target to pass it.

Horse RaceBack a horse. Shout at your phone. 2+

What to do

Pick a horse in secret, then watch the same race together. More than one player can back the same horse. There are four horses for two to four players, and eight for five or more.

Who drinks

Back the winning horse to stay safe. All other players drink one, including anyone who never picked. Both drink settings use this rule. A lucky horse does not add a win to your score.

Hard mode

Back the horse that finishes dead last and you drink two instead of one. Everything else is the same luck.

Ride the BusFour shared cards. One sip for each mistake. 2+

What to do

Everyone calls the same four cards: red or black; higher or lower than the first card; inside or outside the first two ranks; then whether the next suit matches one already showing. Aces are high. Calls stay private until the card turns over. Your first received choice locks: Sending call means it is awaiting confirmation; Call locked confirms it was received. In Normal, you have 10 seconds per card. A brief disconnect does not shorten the original clock. Each reveal shows your recorded call, who owes a sip and who is safe. The host taps Next card once the table is ready; after card four, the host taps Show round results.

Who drinks

Each wrong call costs one sip, taken at that card’s reveal. Matching a rank on higher/lower or inside/outside also costs one sip. A right call is safe. A missing call in Normal costs one sip. Four cards means at most four sips per player, in either drink setting. The final results recap sips already taken. The most correct calls earn one win per player, including ties; nobody earns a win if every player gets all four wrong. There are no drinks to give, winner’s prizes or extra On Fire charges.

Hard mode

Your call must arrive within 5 seconds. If no call arrives in time, the game makes a lower-odds automatic choice for you; it can still be right. The reveal names that choice and labels it automatic. Each wrong call or rank tie still costs just one sip, at most four for the round. Stay dry to keep your fire.

Trust your timing

Quick hands and a steady nerve.

Quick TapWait for green. Beat the table. 2+

What to do

Wait until the screen turns green, then tap as fast as you can. Your reaction time appears in milliseconds.

Who drinks

Messier: everyone except the fastest valid tap drinks one. Tamer: early taps, missed targets and no taps drink one; if there are none, the slowest valid tap drinks one.

Hard mode

Hit the white target when the screen turns green. A tap elsewhere is a miss. The wait for green can also stretch to 7 seconds instead of 5.

Balloon RaceRace to pop your balloon. 2+

What to do

Tap to inflate your balloon. It takes 18 taps to pop in Normal. Watch the other balloons grow beside yours. Pops rank in the order they reach the table; times show to a tenth of a second, and pops in the same tenth are marked a photo finish.

Who drinks

Messier: everyone except the first to pop drinks one. Tamer: the last to pop drinks one. Anyone who has not popped when time runs out drinks under either rule.

Hard mode

Land 12 hits on the moving pin. Your first miss costs one hit of progress; later misses cost two, and the other phones see your balloon shrink.

Stop the NeedleStop the needle on the line. 2+

What to do

The needle sweeps back and forth. Tap once to stop it as close to the target line as you can.

Who drinks

Messier: everyone except the closest drinks one. Tamer: the furthest from the line drinks one. Not stopping is an automatic drink under either rule.

Hard mode

The needle moves faster and you have less time to stop it.

Blind CountTrust the clock in your head. 2+

What to do

Read the target time. After the shared countdown, count in your head and tap when you think that time has passed. You can see who has stopped, but there is no running clock.

Who drinks

Messier: everyone except the closest to the target drinks one. Tamer: the furthest away drinks one. Never stopping is an automatic drink under either rule.

Hard mode

The target ranges from 3 to 10 seconds, instead of 5 to 10, and you cannot see who has stopped until you stop.

ChickenGet out just before the bust. 2+

What to do

Stay in as long as you dare, then tap once to leave before the hidden bust. You do not need to hold your finger down. The last player out before the bust has the best score.

Who drinks

Messier: everyone except the bravest safe player drinks one. Tamer: anyone still in at the bust drinks one; only if nobody busts does the earliest player out drink.

Hard mode

The bust can happen much sooner, and anyone still in when it blows drinks two.

Chicken CrossingKey West chickens. Golf-cart traffic. Cross the most roads in 15 seconds. 2+

What to do

You have 15 seconds from Go on the same endless road course as everyone else. Use the floating ↑ and ↓ arrows at the bottom right, or the Up and Down keys, to hop one row forward or back instantly, with no wait between hops. A help callout shows the controls before Go. Your chicken always faces forward and cannot back past the starting verge or move sideways. Time each hop between golf carts; they can also hit you while you wait on a road. Grass verges are safe from golf carts, but eight seconds without a successful hop ends your run anywhere. Your score is the roads at your furthest safely reached row: backing up keeps your score, and crossing the same road again adds nothing. Grass verges and fatal hops add no points. Rivals show Running until their final score arrives. Play ends at the shared 15-second deadline; results appear sooner if everyone has finished and sent their score. Your score still counts if you die before time is up. Hops and scoring keep working if your connection drops. Reloading keeps your run and the original deadline; traffic and inactivity continue while you are away. Final scores can take up to five seconds after the buzzer to arrive. A missing score counts as zero and shows no score reported. If you were already seated but your connection dropped at round start, reconnect before Go to play. After Go the starting lineup is fixed. New arrivals watch this round and stay safe.

Who drinks

The most roads crossed earns one win per player, including ties above zero. Messier: everyone except those winners drinks one sip. Tamer: the fewest roads crossed costs one sip, including ties; if everyone ties above zero, everyone wins and stays safe. Zero roads always costs one sip and never wins. No winner’s prize or extra On Fire charge.

Hard mode

Golf carts move faster. The course, arrow controls, 15-second round clock, eight-second hop limit and sip rules stay the same. Safe players keep their fire.

Use your head

Memory, words and your best guess.

EchoWatch the flashes. Play them back. 2+

What to do

Watch four pads flash, then repeat the pattern from memory. Each pad also has its own tone. The longest correct start ranks first, then total correct positions, then speed.

Who drinks

Messier: everyone except the best memory score drinks one. Tamer: players who submit nothing drink one; if everyone submits, the weakest score drinks one.

Hard mode

Remember six flashes instead of four. They flash faster too.

BallparkA big number. Your best guess. 2+

What to do

Answer the number question without seeing anyone else’s choice. Normal gives you options to pick from. The closest answer wins.

Who drinks

Messier: everyone except the closest guess drinks one. Tamer: missing answers drink one; if everyone answers, the furthest guess drinks one. Either way, a spot-on answer never drinks — even when the whole table gets it.

Hard mode

The options disappear. Type your own number; you get 20 seconds instead of 15.

Pin the CapitalFind the capital without borders. 2+

What to do

Keep your phone upright. Drag to spin the globe and pinch to zoom, tap where you think the named capital city is, then lock it in. U.S. state capitals are labelled before you pin and at results. Normal mode also names the state. The result spins to the real place; drag to explore everyone’s pins, including guesses on the far side.

Who drinks

Messier: everyone except the closest pin drinks one. Tamer: players who never lock a pin drink one; if everyone locks, the furthest pin drinks one.

Hard mode

The location hint is hidden. U.S. state capitals keep their label, but the state name stays hidden until results.

Word RushSame word. Four guesses. Go. 2+

What to do

Find the shared five-letter word in 4 guesses and 40 seconds. Green means the right letter in the right place; yellow means it belongs elsewhere. Fewer guesses beats a faster solve. If nobody solves it, the best hints found decide the ranking. Once you solve it or use all four guesses, watch the other players’ live coloured grids with letters hidden. Stuck after a guess? Bow out to lock your board so the table is not held to the buzzer; it still ranks on the hints you found. Answers favour familiar words; the wider dictionary still accepts rarer guesses.

Who drinks

Messier: everyone except the best board drinks one. Tamer: players who enter no valid guess drink one; if everyone enters a guess, the weakest board drinks one.

Hard mode

Every guess must use the hints already found: keep green letters in place and include yellow letters.

The finale

Big Talk appears once, at the end of the lineup, when enabled.

Big TalkThe finale: big bid, ten seconds, back it up. 2+

What to do

Everyone has 15 seconds to lock a secret bid of how many answers they can name. Highest bidder performs; tied highest bids get a random pick. Another player is randomly chosen as judge. After a five-second countdown that reminds the performer and judge what to do, the performer has 10 seconds to say distinct answers that fit the prompt. Repeats and answers after the timer do not count. The judge taps a counter for each valid answer, and every phone shows the count live. The verdict has no time limit: the judge can fix the count, then taps They made it (Pass) or They missed (Fail, using the count). With two players, the other player judges.

Who drinks

Pass: the performer earns one win and stays safe. Everyone else in the round drinks for the bid in seconds. Fail: only the performer drinks for the bid minus correct answers; everyone else is safe. Bid 6 and pass: everyone else drinks for 6 seconds. Bid 8 and get 5 right: only the performer drinks for 3 seconds. Every phone shows who drinks, counts everyone in with 3 · 2 · 1, then runs the shared drinking timer. Safe players see that they are not drinking. The usual next or finish button waits for the timer; the host can choose “Skip countdown & see results” to finish early. A missing bid cannot win the chance to perform, but that player still gets the usual result. No bids, no available judge, or a judge who stays disconnected for 30 seconds before ruling means no drinking, countdown or wins. Both drink settings use these rules.

Hard mode

Same clock and drinking seconds. No winner’s prize or extra On Fire charge. Safe players keep their fire.

04 · Make it personal

⚔️ Callouts

With callouts on and at least three players, one is added after every 4 normal rounds when more regular rounds remain. The caller is whoever drank last round and has the most drinks overall; if nobody drank, the table’s biggest drinker calls. The rival picks Quick Draw, Striker vs Keeper or Bar Slide. Everyone else backs a side. See the three duel games.

First to 2 points

Everyone sees the chosen game and both players for 3 seconds before play starts. At most 5 points are played, including draws. If nobody reaches 2, the leader at the limit wins. Striker vs Keeper is settled in strike-and-save pairs so neither player gets an extra shot: it is only decided once both have shot equally often, up to 6 points. Everyone sees the tap times, shot choices or coasters at each reveal, including the final point.

  • The loser drinks 2. The winner earns a win.
  • Back the loser, or back nobody, and you drink 1.
  • A tied contest means both duelists drink 1. All spectators stay safe, even if they did not back a side.

Hard mode adds no change. Callouts use their own stakes: no winner’s prize or extra On Fire drinks. The host can turn them off in Game options.

05 · Just the two of you

Two-player duel mode

With exactly two connected players, the lobby also offers Duel. Pick one game and play 5 sets. Each point moves the marker towards the loser. A lead of 3 points wins the set; at 20 points, the leader wins. A tied set is a draw.

The set loser drinks 2; a tied set is 1 each. Most set wins takes the match, with fewer drinks breaking a tie. Still level? Share the crown. Hard mode does not change these games. In a callout, the same games use the shorter first-to-2 rule.

Quick Draw

Ignore the fake-outs and wait for DRAW. The faster valid tap wins the point. Tap early and the point goes to your rival. No taps or an exact tie make a drawn point.

Striker vs Keeper

Take turns shooting and keeping goal. Both players choose left, centre or right in secret. Matching choices mean a save and a point for the keeper. Different choices mean a goal and a point for the striker. Missing your choice loses the point; if both miss, it is a draw.

Bar Slide

Pull your coaster back and release it towards the target. The closest coaster on the bar wins. Going off the end or into either side gutter is a scratch and loses to a coaster still on the bar. Two scratches, two missing throws or equal distances make a drawn point.

06 · Keep it going

Prizes and hot streaks

👑 Winner’s prize

With three or more players connected, win a round outright and take one prize before the host moves on. Choosing is optional; an unused prize expires when the next round starts.

  • 🎁 Give a drink — Give one sip to another connected player, immediately.
  • 🍻 Cheers — You and two different players take one sip each, immediately. With three connected players, tap Cheers to include everyone. With more, choose two.
  • 🎲 Lucky Dip — Pick another player for an immediate 50/50 draw: they are safe or take two sips.
  • 😌 Take It Easy — Once per player per game, play the next round with Normal controls or stakes while the table stays on Hard. Only offered before Quick Tap, Balloon, Pin the Capital, Word Rush, Most Likely To or Horse Race. Shared start cues and On Fire stakes still apply. After that round, you return to Hard.

Chicken Crossing, Ride the Bus, Big Talk, Pocket Change, Fake Fact, Same Brain, duels and callouts do not award this prize menu. Fake Fact has its own sip to give for the most convincing bluff. Give a Drink, Cheers and Lucky Dip add only their stated sips, in either drink setting and difficulty; they do not change wins or On Fire streaks. Each person who owes sips gets an alert that stays until they tap Got it.

🔥 On Fire

Finish 3 rounds without a drink from the round result and you are on fire. In supported games, you play the Hard version even if the table chose Normal. If the table is already on Hard, it stays that way unless you use Take It Easy for one compatible round. The fire stakes below still apply during that round.

  • Win a round with an individual winner and everyone else owes at least 2 drinks from that round. This tops up the result; it does not add 2 more.
  • If you could win but do not, staying dry still costs 1 and ends your fire. If the result already made you drink, there is no extra fire charge.
  • In rounds with no individual winner, Chicken Crossing, Ride the Bus, Big Talk, Pocket Change, Fake Fact, Same Brain and callouts, stay dry to keep your fire.

07 · Settle the score

Who wins the night?

Among the players who played the most rounds, the most wins takes the crown. The lowest drink tally breaks a tie. If both are equal, those players share the win. Each sip or Big Talk second adds one to the drink tally.

Big Talk adds one win for a passed attempt. Fake Fact adds one win to each eligible author of the most-voted fake, including ties with at least one vote. Pocket Change adds one win to each closest guess, including ties. Chicken Crossing adds one win to each furthest player with a positive distance. Ride the Bus adds one win for the most correct calls, including ties, unless everyone gets all four wrong. Same Brain adds one win to each matching teammate. Horse Race, Most Likely To, Trace It and Hot Potato do not award wins. If nobody earns a win, the lowest drink tally decides the crown among those with the best attendance.

The summary also shows drink tallies, the longest dry streak, and earned moments: the table’s worst drawing or the closest Chicken escape. The host can end early from a results screen, or let the full lineup finish. Only games that finish every planned round or duel set without a skipped round qualify for high scores. New game clears the scores and keeps the room together.

08 · Keep the phones happy

A few useful tips

Sound is optional

Use the sound button to choose Loud, Soft or Muted. Visual cues still show what to do. Your first tap on the page lets the browser play sound.

Choose accessible cues

Accessible cues are off by default. Open Accessible cues, then choose Turn on accessible cues to add symbols to Echo and extra cues in supported games. This only changes your phone, so another player’s board may look different. Opening or closing the explanation does not change the setting. Device reduced-motion settings reduce the game’s motion.

Choose the prompt decks

Most Likely To has Friendly, Chaotic, Flirty and Spicy decks. The host can mix them during setup when the game is on and there are at least three players. At least one deck stays on.

Stay on the same phone

If you lose the connection, return to the same room in the same browser. The game tries to restore your seat. Clocks keep running while you are away. Reloading or dropping out part-way through your turn in Quick Tap, Chicken, Blind Count, Balloon Race or Echo loses that attempt: it counts as a miss and you drink. A new player joins the next round; the current results, scores and game length stay in place.

If the whole game is interrupted, a paused screen keeps your scores and original lineup. The unfinished round is skipped without new drinks or wins; drinks already charged still count. The current host continues with the next round, or opens final results if that was the last one. Return to the same room in the same browser to keep your seat, even if someone else is now host.