Best Two-Player Board Games for Couples and Pairs

The best two-player board games for couples are built for exactly two people, not scaled down from a group game. Patchwork is a calm quilt-building puzzle rated 8+. Jaipur and Lost Cities are quick card duels. 7 Wonders Duel is the strategy pick. Star Realms suits competitive players, and Onitama plays in about 15 minutes.

How to choose a two-player game for a partner

A two-player game is played face to face, often by the same pair many times. That changes what matters.

Think about how your partner likes to win. Some people enjoy a quiet puzzle where you barely interfere with each other. Others want to attack, bluff or block. Then think about the evening: a 15-minute game fits after dinner on a weeknight, while a 30-minute game suits a slow Sunday.

The sections below are organized by occasion rather than by rank, since there is no single best game for every pair.

For an anniversary or a thoughtful gift: Patchwork

Uwe Rosenberg’s Patchwork (Lookout Games, 2014) has two players sewing a quilt. You buy fabric pieces of different shapes with buttons and fit them onto your own board. Lookout calls it “a challenging puzzle for 2” with simple rules and a short playing time.

It is rated 8+ and plays in about 30 minutes. Patchwork was on the Spiel des Jahres recommended list in 2015, according to spiel-des-jahres.de. The quilt theme and gentle look make it a natural gift for someone who sews or likes calm games, though Wikipedia quotes one reviewer describing it as “devious and cutthroat” once you start blocking each other.

For a partner who loves strategy: 7 Wonders Duel

7 Wonders Duel, designed by Antoine Bauza and Bruno Cathala, adapts the group game 7 Wonders for two. Repos Production lists three ways to win: push the conflict pawn into your opponent’s capital, collect six different science symbols, or finish with the most points after Age III.

It is rated 10+, plays in 30 minutes and is strictly two players. Wikipedia reports it won two 2015 Origins Awards and sold one million copies in five years. It was also on the Kennerspiel des Jahres recommended list in 2016, the connoisseur category of the Spiel des Jahres. Our strategy games guide for adults has more picks at this weight.

For a quick game over coffee: Jaipur or Lost Cities

Both are small card games that fit on a cafe table.

Jaipur

In Jaipur, by Sébastien Pauchon, the players are merchants in the Indian city. Each turn you either take goods from the market or sell cards from your hand, with bonuses for selling in larger sets. The first to win two “seals of excellence” wins.

Space Cowboys lists it at 2 players, ages 10+ and 30 minutes. It was on the Spiel des Jahres recommended list in 2010.

Lost Cities

Reiner Knizia’s Lost Cities (1999) is a card game about funding expeditions to five lost cities. Cards must be played in ascending order in each color, and an expedition you start but don’t build up costs you points.

Wikipedia lists it at 2 players, ages 10+ and about 30 minutes. It won the International Gamers Award in 2000. Recent editions, starting in 2019, add a sixth expedition.

Two-player board and card games on eBay

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• 7 Wonders DuelShop on eBay →
• PatchworkShop on eBay →
• JaipurShop on eBay →
• Lost CitiesShop on eBay →
• OnitamaShop on eBay →

For a competitive partner: Star Realms

Star Realms, by Rob Dougherty and Darwin Kastle (Wise Wizard Games, 2014), is a deck-building card game in space. You buy ships with trade points and attack your opponent’s authority with combat points. Each player starts at 50 authority, and the first to reach zero loses.

Wise Wizard Games lists the Core Set at 2 players, ages 12+ and 20 minutes. Wikipedia notes that standalone sets such as Colony Wars and Frontiers can combine for games of up to 6. Its direct attacks make it the most confrontational game on this page.

For a short, chess-like duel: Onitama

Onitama, by Shimpei Sato, is played on a 5 by 5 board. Each player has a master and four students, and you win by capturing the other master or moving your own into your opponent’s starting space. Movement comes from a small set of cards that pass between players, so the options keep shifting.

Arcane Wonders lists it at 2 players, ages 14+ and 15 minutes. It suits partners who like abstract games such as chess but want something far shorter.

Two-player games at a glance

• Patchwork: 8+, about 30 minutes, calm puzzle.
• 7 Wonders Duel: 10+, 30 minutes, strategy with three win paths.
• Jaipur: 10+, 30 minutes, trading card game.
• Lost Cities: 10+, about 30 minutes, card game with push-your-luck scoring.
• Star Realms Core Set: 12+, 20 minutes, direct combat.
• Onitama: 14+, 15 minutes, abstract duel.

Prefer to play on the same side? Codenames: Duet is a cooperative two-player version of Codenames, and our cooperative board games guide covers more games where you win or lose together. For award winners at every weight, see our Spiel des Jahres guide.

Buying a two-player game on eBay

• Buy new and sealed for a gift. Card games like Jaipur and Star Realms are easy to leave incomplete, and a missing card changes the balance.
• Check which edition you are getting. Lost Cities editions from 2019 on include a sixth expedition, and Star Realms is sold in several sets.
• Read seller feedback and returns before buying.

More board game gift guides

• Board game gifts: the best games to give, by who’s playing
• Small card games that fit a stocking