55 Fun Things to Do at Home – With Friends, Alone, Couples, and More

Luckily, we are no longer obligated by law or a global p*ndemic to remain at home, but that doesn’t mean we don’t need to think up fun things to do at home for the occasional night in.

While I may have written this list when I was unable to leave my home for weeks (months? years? I forgot), I have continued to add to it over the years and make it into the most comprehensive and most creative list of fun things to do at home that you maybe not have thought of before.

Whether you need things to do at home with friends, alone, or with your significant other, this list has tons of ideas for you. From Mad Libs (how long has it been since you did one of those??) to murder mystery parties, from going live to planning trips to different kinds of crafting, I think I have the perfect idea for you here.

So whether you are stuck at home or living on a remote island, here are some fun things to do when external activities are not an option. I’ve split the ideas into fun things to do at home with friends, alone, and for couples, and lastly a section of fun things to do at home to feel extra-productive for good measure.

It’s mostly actual ideas with a bit of silliness thrown in too, because how else can we maintain our mental health besides having a lil laugh here and there?!

Fun Things to Do at Home with Friends 

Apart from trying to lick your elbow, there are actually tons of awesome and unique ideas of fun things to do at home with friends! Take these with a dose of open-mindedness and silliness, and anything is possible.

I mean, what’s better than getting weird with your friends at home when the bar is out of the question?! Just make sure to take their temperature upon entry. Safety first! 😛

AmazingCo At-Home Experience

If you haven’t heard of AmazingCo, prepare to be… amazed. This company organizes activities, tours, and scavenger hunt picnics in 50+ cities, but their HUGE range of at-home experiences is seriously impressive.

They have a whole range of mostly digitally-delivered at-home SUPER fun experiences that you can do with friends OR your S.O. Some of the best include:

• Themed Murder Mystery Parties
• Girls Night In Activities
• Foodie Fun Night or Foodie Date Night (activities, trivia, and challenges involving food, cooking and tasting)
• At-Home Bar Crawl (Make each room into a different bar- fun!!)
• Virtual Challenge Parties (with or without live video hosts)
• Online Trivia Night
• and more!

All Experiences come with digital instructions OR video call-in hosts, equipment lists to prepare beforehand, and of course built-in at-home FUN.

View their list of at-home experiences here and get ready to have fun with friends at home. If you aren’t yet convinced, check out my AmazingCo review.

Cards Against Humanity

Literally ALWAYS a good laugh, never boring. Cards Against Humanity is the ultimately inappropriate fun game to play with friends at home whether you are drinking or not. Don’t have the game? Amazon Prime it – you STILL don’t have to go outside that way!

Board Games or Online Games

EVERYONE has some dusty old board games at the back of the cupboard under the TV, right? Or perhaps above the washing machine?

For some reason board games seem to have become outdated when thinking of fun things to do at home, but trust me when I say that once you start playing again you’ll remember how epic they really are (and how humans survived before smartphones). Guess Who? Pictionary? Monopoly?! Come on, you KNOW these are an epic way to spend time with friends when you don’t particularly want to catch a virus at the club.

No board games? Time to stockpile. Order some online to extend your non-house-leaving ability, OR play some online straight away. Check out free online multiplayer games, like this Yahtzee game here.

And if you’re more into puzzles than party games, try solving Sudoku online on sites like Sudoku Bliss. It’s an easy way to challenge your brain, unwind, and still have fun without leaving the house.

Another option is to play online casino games with friends virtually, bringing the feel of a real casino night home through BetUS Casino.

If you and your friends or family are looking for a tabletop game that’s a level up from the usual card-game rotation, multiplayer mahjong is the perfect fit. It plays best with four people, takes about 30–45 minutes per round, and has just enough strategy and tile luck to keep everyone engaged. My friends actually love this game! You can play in person with a physical tile set, or jump into a free multiplayer mahjong game online and invite friends from anywhere, which is a great option for game nights when not everyone is in the same room.

Watch TV/Movies

This option will be in every section because it’s basically the best fun thing to do at home no matter who you are with. Leave this world for a minute and escape into a different one that isn’t ending. I mean, not unless you watch War of the Worlds.

Customize a DIY Neon Sign From Home

Nothing adds to the vibe of a space like a neon sign, and if you’re hanging at some anyway, why not make the space more your own?!

Customize your own neon signs and choose your favorite color, shape, and font style. Use them to decorate your garden, office, or bedroom to set the vibe and make your spaces more fun at night (and in the day)!

Have a Picnic

Whether you can go outside or not, you can always set up a fun picnic with a grazing board, different drink options, and great company. Set up some blankets either on the floor of the TV room or on the grass in your backyard, set the mood with some decorations, and set out some food you already have in your fridge. It’s like a lovely day out, but like, still at your house.

Online Virtual Hangout With Kumospace

If you can’t see your favorite people in person, why not hang out with them online? We all know about Zoom, but ther are a few other options out there that are less business and more fun – think fun and colorful themes and backgrounds and easily organized gatherings. For more ideas of what to do in man online hang sesh, check out these virtual hangout ideas for ways to spend time with someone online.

Murder Mystery

Why not have a bit of a morbid game to match what’s going on in the world at the moment? There are options for free murder mystery games online that you can download, which have roles for 6+ people. This works well because you don’t have to spend money or order a game set ahead of time. If you’re looking for premium murder mystery experiences, check out Masters of Mystery.

This will definitely keep you and your friends entertained for AT LEAST an evening, keep your brains working to figure out ‘whodunnit,’ and keep your minds off the news for a hot minute.

Have a Paint Night

Use supplies that you have, or order cheap canvases (as in a 12 pack for $14), cheap easels (this one is $7), lots of cool acrylic paint colors, and a pack of paintbrushes online and set up a paint night with your friends or significant other! All the products I just linked to are Amazon Prime, cheap AF, and can be on your doorstep basically tomorrow (unless Amazon goes under too, in which case I cannot help you).

PaintingParties.com is an awesome resource to have a paint party at home and not have to come up with something to paint all on your own! They have dozens of different designs too. The website is membership-based but not too pricey, considering most paint parties are upwards of $30 per person!

Proper Nerf Gun Fight

They might be made for children (apparently), but I am convinced that nerf guns are WAY more fun for adults. Stock up on 4+ nerf guns, assign each friend an area of the house, activate stealth mode, and ATTACK! Make prizes for the first person who can invade someone else’s territory first, or perhaps the first person to make it into a certain part of the house without getting shot.

This 4-pack of small Nerf Guns is the same price at this “Elite Delta Trooper” Nerf Gun. Pick your poison.

Have a Cocktail-Making Contest

Round up the alcohol, juices, soft drinks, fruits, and ingredients in your house and have a cocktail-making challenge with your friends! Give a time limit for everyone to make a cocktail and then try each other’s drinks, voting on the winner (other than yourself). Then make some for everyone! Boozing is obviously the best way to forget that the world is ending.

Truth or Dare 

Whether you know these friends really well or not, it’s always a good laugh. And you always find out a thing or two you definitely didn’t want to know.

Spin the Bottle

Read above.

Play Charades

This is an epic game to play at home where you don’t even need a board game kit! It’s also always a good laugh. You can also download those smartphone apps that you hold at your forehead, such as the aptly named ‘Charades!’ or ‘Heads Up!’

Cook Something Together

We have all heard about the banana bread boom, but what about venturing into other cooking ideas and new recipes? THere are sooo many food blogs online that can tell you how to make anything from Cottage Pie to delicious rich brownies. And nothing brings people together more than food.

Have a BBQ

Why not head outside on a nice day and light up the barbie. If you and your friends are stuck at home, you might as well eat well! Find some meat that’s leftover in the freezer, or, dare I say, even buy some at the supermarket (or nominate the healthiest friend to do so)?!?!

Customize Keychains at Home

Maybe you and your friends have some hilarious inside jokes that you have laughed about for years – or a favorite line from a TV show you constantly quote. Or even a favorite flower, a shared car you love to road trip in, or a destination you go to together.

If you are feeling creatively inspired, head online to create custom keychains with your friends, family, or significant other. Incorporate any funny words or quotes you like, along with images and elements of your liking. This way, the keychains will always remind you of each other, and they are super fun to make! Similarly, a funny and cute keychain is a great gift for friends, too.

Film a Cooking Show

Maybe one of your friends is a pretty good cook…. or maybe none of you are. Pick a recipe that you have ingredients for, and make an event of it by filming the process into a cooking show!

Take turns filming, stirring and chopping things, and mimicking salt bae (sunglasses included). You can make an actual video for your memories, or just chuck it on your insta-story. Fun for the whole group/family!

Ring Around the Rosies

Pocket full of posies. Ashes, ashes, we all fall down. (Do you know the origin of this song? Morbid yet fitting.)

Film a Facebook Live Newscast of Your Night

Wanna get creative? Grab your friends and pretend to be newscasters covering the unfolding of some current events. You could cover the virus in your city, the status of the toilet paper in your home, or a pretend zombie apocalypse. The weirder, the better.

Card Games or Poker Night at Home

You can get a full-on casino night together as one of the fun things to do at home with friends that makes you feel like you’re outside! Poker would be an obvious choice, but you can always play Spoons (my fave), Nertz, Gin Rummy, Bullshit, Go Fish…. you get the idea. Here’s a list of 40 card games to choose from.

Or, you can just plan online, whether alone or with friends! If you’re looking for a strategy card game to play, try playing an online game of Hearts here, where you can play against other players or against the computer.

Prank Calling

Yes, I actually did suggest prank calling. Does *67 still work? Honestly though, how much fun was this when you were 12? It may or may not still be as fun as an adult, but there’s surely only one way to find out.

What Do You Meme

If you haven’t played before, this is a hilarious card game where you essentially make your own memes matching an image to a feeling/situation (similar to Cards Against Humanity, but not).

Make yourselves feel better about your self-quarantined life by making fun of other peoples’ situations. Always works, right?! You can order this game online too.

Choreograph a Dance to Your Favorite Song

Let’s pretend, again, that we are 12. Pick a song and have someone choreograph a dance to it, or assign each person an 8-count and teach each other the moves. Trust me, this will be a POWER MOVE for you all at the club once the world recovers again… if you can still remember the dance, that is.

Have a Karaoke Night

Whether you have an actual microphone or a hairbrush/rolling pin, karaoke is an awesome way to spend a night at home with friends. This is especially true if there is booze involved.

You can type in karaoke songs on YouTube, or you can get serious and download a Karaoke program (like KaraFun) on your computer that has thousands of songs built-into it.

Have a Photoshoot

Having a photoshoot is actually one of the most fun things to do at home with friends or partners. You can take it in any of a few different directions, too. You can have a ridiculous/silly photoshoot wearing costumes or crazy outfits to post as a gag on social media, or you can actually make productive use of your time and have a straight-up professional photoshoot for your next LinkedIn headshot. That is, assuming we will physically turn up to work ever again.

Find a friend with a nice DSLR and low-aperture lens, or just use portrait mode. Get creative!

Play Some Sports

If you have access to a backyard, grab a soccer ball to kick around or a frisbee to play with. Even if you are stuck at home you can still move around a bit and get some fresh air!

Fun Things to /Do at Home Alone

No friends with you at home? No worries! There are plenty of ways to have fun all by yourself. No, not that kind of fun… I mean, well, if you want to. d

Learn Some New Skills at Home

If you are stuck at home, you might as well use your time wisely to learn something new. For those in the marketing world, find a marketing class online. If you are starting a blog, now might be the time to read some content or take some e-courses. If you want to improve your financial skills, learn accounting, start photography, or even just teach yourself how to make a certain kind of craft, why not now?!

I suggest browsing through the hundreds of courses on Skillshare, which is a cool platform where people upload their courses to zillions of different subjects from drawing to SEO. You can get a couple of weeks free, too, which is conveniently the same as the incubation period of a virus.

You can also take TONS of classes on Masterclass, from cooking classes to film/tv to sports, design, tech… have a browse!

Students can use this time productively too, especially by improving their essay writing, research habits, and ability to organize ideas clearly. When a deadline feels overwhelming, an A+ essay writing service can offer human writing support, essay help, and guidance on how to shape a stronger academic paper.

Scroll Through Instagram/Facebook for Approximately 7.8 Hours Straight

You would have done it anyway; I’m just saying it out loud. This way, you can catch up with the news, become even more afraid of leaving your house, talk some shit to your friends who are still traveling, and set your confirmation bias deep into stone. If you’re set on the screen, why not read more of my blog too?!?! (please)

Learn a New Language

I honestly think that there are 2 types of people in the world right now – people who WANT to learn a new language during quarantine, and people who despise people who want to learn a new language during quarantine. Am I right?!

Well, if you’re person 1, there is honestly no better time to start learning a new language. I mean, if not now when locked inside… when? My language learning platform of choice is Rype. Unlike many apps, Rype works by pairing you up with a native speaking teacher for video lessons for around 4 hours a month, in 30-minute sessions.

Having live sessions holds you accountable AND enables you to cure your loneliness a little by chatting with a nice foreign teacher. Seriously, this is the time to get on it (otherwise you probably never will)!

Try Your Hand at Knitting

Hear me out here – knitting is actually an awesome hobby. Not only is it satisfying, but it gets to a point of being nearly meditative as you focus solely on your next stitch. The best part? You make your own clothes! Start with a scarf and you can move on to things like hats and sweaters. This website teaches you how to knit.

Watch Netflix/A Movie/TV

This is a really obvious one, but I had to point it out. Make sure to watch all the new Netflix shows before the Netflix-pocalypse happens and no one can film new TV shows anymore because they too are not leaving their houses. You might as well start watching this finite streamable content now.

Like to travel? Why not check out our list of Travel Movies Available on Netflix!

Read a Book

It seems that reading actual books has been largely replaced by staring at screens, but there’s truly nothing that can replace the feeling of curling up with a good book. It’s good for the soul, and a great way to spend a day at home. If it’s cold, light a fire and make some tea! Mmmmmm, cozy.

Paint Your Nails

Fun for the girls AND the boys – if you aren’t leaving home, why not?! Grab that clotted nail polish from someone’s 8th birthday, give it a good shake, and let the fabulousness ensue. Make sure to do a mani AND a pedi.

Write Letters/Cards to Your Friends at Home

If you have paper, a pen, and a mailbox, you can send letters or cards to your friends and family! Whether it’s Christmas/Valentine’s Day or not, it’s always fun to receive a hand-written letter or some kind of ridiculous handmade craft letter that someone made at home when they were bored. Get scissors, paper, and glue involved if you can. Get creative!

Play Games and Surf on Bored.com and Poki.com

Bored.com was made for bored people who are generally alone or just in need of some fun online games. They have all kinds of hilarious, random, and fun things to do at home alone. There are mostly interesting computer games, but there are hundreds.

Poki.com is a platform where you can play alone or with other people on the computer, too. There are lots of classic games (like UNO online, tic tac toe, snakes and ladders) to fun + educational games where you can learn about staying safe during these times, too! Life: The Game: Stay Safe was specially created to make it fun and playful to learn about the global health situation.

Listen to Your Favorite Music

Chuck some soothing music in your ears (or, I mean, hard techno if that’s your thing) and tune the world out. It’s actually amazing how comforting it can be to listen to your favorite music (although I’m still kinda unsure how anyone finds comfort in screamo).

Watch the News

Learn even more about how the world is collapsing. And the US presidential election, which is basically the same thing.

Go on Pinterest and Pin Images of Where You’d Rather Be

Pinterest is the hub of lust, whether that be for travel, a dream wedding, interior design, fashion, or literally anything else. Jump onto Pinterest and fantasize about your dream cruise, a fairy-light picnic, festival outfits, or mountaintop hikes. Start with my Pinterest for some travel inspo! 😉

Start/Continue a Journal

Writing is cathartic. Even if you aren’t a writer, get out a journal or your computer and write down what you have been up to this week, how you are feeling, etc. You can look back at it later, or not… it’s still something to do!

Play an Instrument

Got a guitar at the back of the closet? Your old violin from 4th grade? Hell, is there a recorder in your attic? There’s no better time to try to make a bit of music than when bored at home alone.

Fish out your old instruments, watch some tutorial videos online and try to learn a song. You’ll feel much more productive if you do this than if you play video games for 9 hours, trust me.

Play iPhone/iPad Games (Or Candy Crush for 5 Hours)

The app market is strong for a reason, people. Grab some fun phone/tablet games that you can play on the couch while watching something on Netflix that requires approximately 40% of your attention.

Some ideas of fun games to play on your phone at home alone: Doodle Jump (my fave since ’09), Candy Crush (my mom’s fave), Cube Runner, Jumbline 2, WordStacks, Lily’s Garden (modern-day Farmville, interactive and fun) Snake vs Block (my other fave), Matchington Mansion (kinda like Lily’s Garden but restoring a house), and….. give me some more tips of games to add in the comments!

Do a Puzzle

Everyone has some old puzzles laying around, right?! Even if you have to make a trip to your attic, doing a puzzle will give your brain a nice little break from staring at screens and stretch its muscles a bit farther.

Dye Your Hair

If you’ve always wanted to experiment with a crazy hair color, now might be the time to try! Grab some dye on Amazon and frost those tips, baby.

Video Games

You can obviously fall down a rabbit hole with video games, and my guess is that if you are reading this article you may be looking for fun things to do at home alone that are a bit different than being glued to your Playstation… or your Nintendo Switch. Rumor has it that GameStop is still stocked with Nintendo Switch…. but you’ll have to see for yourself.

You can also go super hard and try getting an Oculus VR headset, so you can ACTUALLY depart this current reality… well, in your head. Totally needed during an apocalypse.

Things to Do at Home for Couples

Stuck self-quarantining with your other half? Here are some silly and fun things to do at home for couples. Warning: you might have to mentally lower your age by a few dozen years, but acting like silly children is always a fun thing to do with your partner, right?!

Take An Online Cooking Class Together

Taking an online cooking class together is a great way to bond AND learn something new! Masterclass has tons of different kinds of cooking classes from true experts. You can find everything from a general cooking class literally with Gordon Ramsay to more specific classes like French pastry making, a Mexican Food Masterclass, and so many more.

If you think you can take on more specific classes with your partner, Masterclass has classes with experts on everything from photography to music and more. Time to learn a new skill – together!

Do an AmazingCo At-Home Date Night

I mentioned AmazingCo above, but if you have jumped straight to this section, they have some really fun at-home date night opportunities. You just sign up for an activity, get your instructions and equipment list delivered to you digitally, and then have FUN with your partner!

Check out the Foodie Date Night, Home Bar Crawl, romantic date night, and other at-home date ideas by checking out their at-home experiences page here.

Take a Dance Workout Class on Youtube

I made my partner do this hip hop class with me once and I have never laughed harder in my whole life.

Have a Crafting Night

Crafts are fun for kids AND adults, and it’s awesome to get in touch with your creative side especially if you tend to work a corporate job or a cash register all day. Crafting is a fun thing to do at home for couples OR for friends/family, and there are literally dozens of different kinds of crafts you can do to make anyone happy.

From seasonal crafts to decorate the home, to dreamcatchers and macrame, to more practical luggage tags and the like – there’s something for everyone. Check out what Pinterest reckons are the best crafts for adults here.

Be Romantic

I mean, it’s definitely a fun thing to do at home for couples.

Have an In-Home Spa Night

Having a Spa night can be a romantic thing to do at home for couples or a fun thing to do at home for the girls. Either way, you can bring out your old face scrubs and moisturizers for a facial, run an epic bubble bath, and do manicures and pedicures for the ultimate night of relaxation.

Afternoon Tea

Pile up the groceries that you have left and prepare yourselves for a fancy afternoon tea! If you have bread, veggies, meat, or cheese, make some little finger sandwiches. Add in any sweets, scones, or biscuits you may have and brew a nice pot of tea (or champagne if you are fancy).

Put on a nice outfit and, voila! You can have a fancy daytime date right at home. Make sure to fake a British accent the whole time for some extra fun, and drink with your pinkie out at all times.

Make Each Other Fun Scavenger Hunts at Home

Take turns making each other a scavenger hunt and get in touch with your inner 12-year-old on a play date. Make 4-10 clues to different places in your house that your significant other would know, where they can find another clue and so on. Think of a fun prize at the end!

Have a Costume Night at Home

Again, release your inner child, forget your adult responsibilities, and open up the costume trunk. Everyone has one, right?! Set up a theme for both of you or maybe just put on the craziest and most random stuff you can find, and then have a dance party, play some card games, or cook dinner in your silly outfits.

Make Jewelry for Each Other

Assuming you’ll be able to leave the house again one day, try making jewelry for each other to wear to your next gathering. Don’t trust your partner to make you something? Make jewelry for yourselves, but just… together. Ha.

No supplies? This jewelry kit is also amazon prime and has so much stuff included you can use it for your extended family.

Make a Scrapbook

When you aren’t out making NEW memories, you can at least appreciate the old ones – the old memories of a forgotten time when you could actually leave the house.

If you have photos and paper lying around, you can glue things together into a little book of good times you’ve had. If you do not, grab a scrapbooking kit online to get you started.

Cook Something Together

What better way to bond than working together to make a new recipe?! I mean yeah, this could always be the recipe for a massive fight too, but if you work through it, you will be closer than ever AND have some epic food to eat.

Do Mad Libs

Mad Libs was one of the most hilarious things to do as children, and now they have moved online and even have mad libs just for adults! Get together with your partner and try some mad libs for some silliness and a laugh.

Productive Things to Do at Home 

Exercise at Home

No gym, no problem. Type in whatever kind of workout you want to do into YouTube and pick one, such as “40 minute pilates” or something of the sort. I do yoga, pilates, and HIIT classes on YouTube all the time – super productive AND fun, AND at home!

Rearrange The Furniture

Has the furniture in your living room, bedroom, or lounge been the same for multiple years? Is it time for a bit of spice in your life? HELL YES, IT IS! Reach deep into your right brain and come up with a cool new way to set up the furniture in your room of choice (or hell, do them all)! You will feel like you are somewhere else when, in fact, you still have not left your house.

Clean Out Your Wardrobe

It’s always a good idea to go through your clothes! You will feel as productive as ever if you get rid of clothes that you don’t like anymore, don’t fit, or are old. When you can go outside again, you even can donate them to GoodWill for a dose of charity as well as productivity! 😛

Get Some Gardening Done

Got a garden? Get to it! Doing some of your gardening will allow you to have fun, be productive, AND leave the house (but don’t worry, you’ll only be a few meters away and can’t catch a disease from there).

Study a New Language at Home

If you are like a lot of people, you “always wish you had learned another language.” Well, what are you waiting for? You may not ever make it to a country that speaks said language if our world ends up imploding, but at least you will know how to say ‘goodbye, world’ in German. Duolingo is a great way to study languages for free!

Paint Your Room/Kitchen

If you are stuck at home, you might as well redesign said home precisely to your liking! If there’s a wall you have always been meaning to paint or an area you don’t like the color of, now’s a great time to get those tasks on your to-do list done.

I mean sure, this MIGHT involve a trip to the hardware store if you don’t have paint already, but you can take your life into your hands if you must. 😛 Or, see if you can find the color you want on Amazon.

Get Out Your Labcoat and Work on a Cure for the C-Word

Because I want to go outside again, DAMMIT!