Trivia games scratch a specific itch: the thrill of knowing something. Pub quiz night or a solo session on your phone, the best trivia games make you feel brilliant when you are right. Like the best brain-training games, they teach you something when you are wrong.
Before the list, a warm-up. A ranking of trivia games written by someone who plays them ought to open with a quiz, so here are ten questions about trivia itself: where the word came from, who invented the pub quiz, why Jeopardy! phrases everything backwards, and how many billion times a Sporcle quiz has been played. Four choices per question, a score at the end, and a rank to go with it. Then on to the games.
Nobody pays to be on this list, and we earn nothing when you click through to a game. Read how we choose and review games.
Trivia on Trivia: 10 Questions Before the List
Ten questions, four choices each. Pick one and the answer opens under it with the story behind it; answer all ten and you get a score and a rank, from Wheel Spinner up to Quizmaster. Nothing is saved, so play it as many times as you like.
1. Sporcle
Developer: Sporcle, Inc. | Released: 2007 (web); app 2012
Platforms: Web, iOS, Android
Difficulty: Easy to very hard | Price: Free (ads); Sporcle Orange subscription removes them
Where to play: Website · App Store · Google Play
Editor's note: Sporcle is my favorite site on this list, and I want to be upfront about why it moved to number one: it is the one I actually use. I'm a paying Sporcle Orange member. That is the ad-free subscription, so the money flows from me to them, not the other way round. Nobody at Sporcle asked for this ranking. What keeps me coming back is that it is the only game here that tests recall rather than recognition. No multiple choice, no lifelines, just a timer and a blank box.
Timed quizzes where you type as many answers as you can. "Name all 50 US states in 10 minutes." "Countries of Europe." "Every Best Picture winner." The community has written more than two million of these, on everything from Premier League goalscorers to Pokémon, and the site's play counter is closing in on seven billion. Sporcle is for testing yourself, not competing. Watching the clock run out with three states missing is its own kind of hook.
Sporcle Orange, the paid tier, costs about $4 a month or $44 a year. It strips every ad from the site, gives you advanced stats (your most-played categories, which quizzes you have and haven't tried, your best score on each), doubles your monthly quiz-creation limit, and puts a small orange badge on your avatar. The free site is the full game. Orange is for people who already know they will be here every day.
Screenshot: Sporcle, Sporcle Inc.
2. Trivia Crack
Developer: Etermax | Released: 2013
Platforms: iOS, Android, Web
Difficulty: Easy to medium | Price: Free (ads + IAP)
Where to play: Website · App Store · Google Play
The most downloaded trivia game in mobile history, with over 600 million downloads. Spin a wheel to pick a category (Science, Entertainment, Art, Geography, History, Sports), then play head to head to collect all six crowns first. The social multiplayer format drove its viral growth.
Screenshot: Trivia Crack, Etermax.
3. Jeopardy! PlayShow
Developer: Sony Pictures Television | Released: 2020
Platforms: iOS, Android, Amazon Fire TV
Difficulty: Medium to hard | Price: Free (limited); subscription for full access
Where to play: Website
Play along with actual Jeopardy! episodes in real time. The app syncs with the TV broadcast, letting you answer as questions appear. Between broadcasts, a library of classic games is available for solo play. Jeopardy! is the longest-running quiz show in American TV history.
Screenshot: Jeopardy! PlayShow, Sony Pictures Television.
4. Kahoot!
Developer: Kahoot! ASA | Released: 2013
Platforms: Web, iOS, Android
Difficulty: Varies | Price: Free for basic; paid plans for educators
Where to play: Website · App Store · Google Play
The classroom trivia platform with more than 12 billion cumulative (non-unique) participants across 200+ countries. Teachers create quizzes, students join on phones using a game code. The leaderboard and the countdown timer are what turn a quiet room loud. It is widely used in corporate training too.
Screenshot: Kahoot!, Kahoot! ASA.
5. QuizUp (Legacy)
Developer: Plain Vanilla Games | Released: 2013 (shut down 2023)
Platforms: Was iOS, Android
Difficulty: Varies by topic | Price: Was free
The trivia game that proved niche topics drive massive engagement. Thousands of very narrow topics: The Office quotes, 1990s one-hit wonders, periodic table elements. At peak, 100 million registered players. The service shut down in 2023, and every quiz app that followed copied its narrow topics.
Screenshot: QuizUp, Plain Vanilla Games.
6. HQ Trivia (Legacy)
Developer: Intermedia Labs | Released: 2017 (shut down 2020)
Platforms: Was iOS, Android
Difficulty: Medium to hard | Price: Free (cash prizes)
The live trivia app that briefly took over the internet. At peak in early 2018, over 2 million simultaneous players competing for real cash. Host Scott Rogowsky became a minor celebrity. 12 questions, elimination-style, real money. It burned out fast, but it proved live synchronized trivia could pull a crowd.
7. Trivia Royale
Developer: Teatime Games | Released: 2020
Platforms: iOS, Android
Difficulty: Medium | Price: Free
Battle-royale-style trivia: 1,000 players start answering at the same time, and slow or wrong answers are knocked out each round until one player is left. Rounds take about 5 minutes. The last-player-standing format makes the final rounds tense.
Screenshot: Trivia Royale, Teatime Games.
8. Psych!
Developer: Warner Bros. / Ellen DeGeneres | Released: 2016
Platforms: iOS, Android
Difficulty: Social | Price: Free
Where to play: App Store · Google Play
Players make up fake answers to real trivia questions, then everyone votes on which is real. Writing a convincing fake is the whole point, not knowing the answer. The best digital party trivia game for groups, and it works well over video calls.
Screenshot: Psych!, Warner Bros.
9. Learned League
Developer: Community-run | Released: 2006 (web)
Platforms: Web only
Difficulty: Hard to extremely hard | Price: Free (invitation-only)
The most exclusive trivia community on the internet. Invitation-only, head-to-head daily rounds, typed answers (no multiple choice), and a league structure with promotion and relegation. If pub trivia is too easy, this is the next step up.
10. Trivial Pursuit (Digital)
Developer: Hasbro / Ubisoft | Released: Various digital versions
Platforms: iOS, Android, PC, Consoles
Difficulty: Medium | Price: Varies ($4.99–$19.99)
The board game that defined the trivia genre, now digital. Multiple editions cover different eras and themes. Best played with friends on a shared screen. The physical game has sold over 100 million copies worldwide since 1981, and the digital versions keep the same competitive feel.
Screenshot: Trivial Pursuit, Hasbro and Ubisoft.
Quick Guide
| If you want... | Try... |
|---|---|
| Type-the-answer marathons (editor's pick) | Sporcle |
| Head-to-head mobile | Trivia Crack |
| TV game show format | Jeopardy! PlayShow |
| Group/classroom | Kahoot! |
| Party game with friends | Psych! |
| Serious competition | Learned League |
Like games that test your brain? Try Pairdle, a daily word puzzle where logic beats luck.
By Tim Nye, Logic Loft Games
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