What is the best platform to play online games with friends?

What to look for in a platform for playing with friends

These are the questions that decide whether a game night starts in one minute or twenty:

• Free, with no ads. Everyone should be able to play every game without paying, and without ads breaking up the round.
• Nothing to install. If one friend has to download something first, the whole evening waits for them.
• Private rooms and easy invites. A link, a short code or a QR code should be enough to bring someone in, and only the people you invite should get in.
• Voice chat. Half the fun is the banter, so being able to talk without setting up another app matters.
• Phones and computers. Friends turn up on whatever device they have, and the games should work on all of them.
• Games for different groups and moods. A quick word game, a quiz, something to draw, a card game, a slow board game: the same group wants different things on different nights.
• Group size. Some games are for two, some for a dozen, and some events have fifty people. Check the limits before you send the invite.
• Fairness. The platform's server, not someone's browser, should shuffle the cards and check every move, so nobody can peek at hidden cards or bend the rules.
• Your language. Players should see the games in their own language where possible.
• Host controls and safety tools. Whoever runs the room needs to be able to let people in, remove someone, mute a microphone and keep the chat clean.

The kinds of places people play

There is no single right answer for every group, but the options fall into a few broad kinds.

Dedicated single-game sites focus on one game, such as chess or a drawing game. They suit a group that already knows what it wants to play. Switching to something else usually means a new site, a new room and a new link.

General game hubs gather many games in one place. When you compare them, check how each is paid for (ads, subscriptions and in-game purchases are all common models), whether everyone needs an account, and whether your group can stay together when you change games.

Apps you install can be very polished, but everyone has to install the same app, on a device it supports, before the first game can start.

Video-call apps' own games and activities are handy when everyone is already on the call. What's on offer depends on the app, so check that it has games your group likes and that everyone on the call can open them.

Why Ping44

Here is how Ping44 meets each point.

Free, with no ads

Every game on Ping44 is free to play. There are no ads, no premium tier and no in-app purchases. The casino-style games use virtual chips with no cash value, so nobody can spend or win real money.

Nothing to install

Ping44 runs in the browser at ping44.com on phones, tablets and computers, with nothing to download. The host signs in with email or Google to create a room (it's free), and friends can join as guests by just picking a name.

Private rooms and easy invites

Each room has a 6-character room code, an invite link and a QR code. Friends open the link, scan the code or type the room code on the home screen. The host can also close the room, so anyone new waits for the host's approval.

Voice chat built in

The host turns voice chat on when creating the room, and everyone can talk while they play. Up to 16 microphones can be open at once and everyone else listens, so even a full room stays manageable. There's text chat with emote reactions too.

Enough games for any group

One room gives you word games (NOUN, Flexi Noun, Word Chain with eight modes, and 20 Questions), Trivia, three drawing games in Scribbly, card games (WHOT, UNO and Poker), casino-style games (Blackjack, Baccarat and Hi-Lo) and board games (Barricade, Four in a Row, Chess, Draughts and the Property Game). Between games the host can switch to another one and everyone stays in the same room, with room scores adding up across games. The full list is in our guide to free multiplayer games.

Room for big groups

A room holds up to 100 people, and each game has its own limits. NOUN and Trivia take the whole room; Poker seats up to 10; Barricade, Four in a Row and the Property Game take up to 8; a chess or draughts tournament takes up to 32. Anyone who isn't playing can watch as a spectator. See games for large groups.

Fair play

The server runs every rule. It shuffles and deals the cards using a cryptographically secure random source, checks every move, and sends hidden information (your hand, the secret word, who the impostor is) only to the player allowed to see it. Tinkering with your own browser won't show you anyone else's cards.

Your language

Ping44 is in English, French and Vietnamese, and it follows your browser's language.

Host controls and safety tools

The host can close the room and approve newcomers, remove a player, mute one player's microphone or all of them, make someone a spectator and hand the host role to another player. If the host leaves, the role passes to someone else automatically. A chat filter masks offensive words in the room chat, and any player can report or block another.

Small things that help

Signed-in players keep their seat for 15 seconds if their connection drops. Every game has a how-to-play page and a short tutorial the first time you play it. With an account you also keep your stats and wins, earn achievements, appear on leaderboards and build a friends list you can invite to rooms. Light and dark appearance are both there.

What Ping44 is not

Being clear about the limits helps you decide:

• Not a place to meet strangers. There is no public matchmaking right now. Ping44 is for playing with people you invite.
• The host needs an account. Creating a room takes a free account (email or Google). Guests can join and play, but can't create rooms.
• No real money. Poker, Blackjack, Baccarat and Hi-Lo use virtual chips with no cash value: nothing to buy and nothing to cash out.
• Not every game takes everyone. Some games cap the number of players, Poker at 10 for example. Everyone else can watch and chat.

How to start in under a minute

1. Go to ping44.com and sign in with email or Google. It's free.
2. Create a room. Choose whether it's open or closed, and whether voice chat is on.
3. Share the invite link, the room code or the QR code. Friends join as guests by picking a name, or sign in.
4. In the lobby, pick a game (for example Card, then UNO in Game settings) and adjust its settings.
5. Press start. When the game ends, pick another one without leaving the room.

Frequently asked questions