Games Like Spyfall: Spy and Outsider Games, Plus Spyfall Rules, 60 Locations and Questions

By The Rondovo team · Published October 1, 2026 · Updated October 11, 2026 · 16 min read

The closest games like Spyfall are The Chameleon (everyone knows the secret word but one, and they give one-word clues instead of answering questions), A Fake Artist Goes to New York (the same idea with a shared drawing), Insider and Werewords (a hidden player inside a guessing game), and for bigger groups, Werewolf or Mafia. On screens, word games in the Undercover style, including our own Odd One Out, deal everyone a secret word and leave one player with a near miss.

Spyfall itself is a party game where everyone knows a secret location except one player, the spy. Players question each other about the place; the locals try to unmask the spy, and the spy tries to work out where they are before the clock runs out. Further down: the official rules and scoring, 60 new locations with roles, and 50 questions that actually catch spies.

In short

• Players: 3 to 8 in the original game, up to 12 in Spyfall 2. It is best with 5 to 8.
• Round: 8 minutes in the official rules. Beginners can stretch it to 12 to 15.
• The spy wins by guessing the location, by surviving the timer, or when the table convicts an innocent player.
• The locals win by agreeing, unanimously, on who the spy is.
• No box? Use the 60 locations in this article, a timer, and slips of paper or a group chat.
• Games like Spyfall: The Chameleon, A Fake Artist Goes to New York, Insider, Werewords, Werewolf or Mafia, and Spyfall 2 for groups of up to 12.
• Want a twist? Odd One Out on Rondovo gives the outsider a near-miss word instead of nothing at all, so even the outsider does not know they are the odd one.

Games like Spyfall

What makes Spyfall work is one player missing a piece of shared knowledge, and everyone else trying to prove they have it without giving it away. These games keep that and change how you prove it. Player counts are the publishers' box counts.

The Chameleon

The closest boxed game to Spyfall. A card shows 16 words in a category, and a dice roll picks the secret one. Everyone except the Chameleon sees it. Each player says one word linked to it, then the table votes. It is quicker than Spyfall and easier for shy players, because a single word is less pressure than an answer.

A Fake Artist Goes to New York

Everyone draws one line at a time on the same picture of a secret word, except the fake artist, who has to scribble along convincingly. It needs no talking at all until the vote, which makes it a good pick for groups who find Spyfall's questions too much.

Insider and Werewords

Both turn the formula into a guessing game. The group asks yes or no questions to find a secret word, while one hidden player who already knows it nudges them along. At the end you hunt for the insider (or the werewolf). They suit groups who like 20 Questions more than bluffing.

Werewolf and Mafia

The big table classic. Hidden teams instead of a lone spy, and elimination over several rounds instead of one vote. Our guide on how to play Mafia covers it with a deck of cards, and our games like Among Us list has more hidden role picks for screens.

Odd One Out: our own take on the outsider game

Odd One Out is a free game on Rondovo for 4 to 12 players. Everyone gets a secret word on their own screen, except the odd one, who gets a related word instead (with seven or more players the host can make it two). Nobody is told which group they are in, so a player might be the outsider and only realise halfway through.

Players type a hint each, twice round the table by default, then talk and vote. If the odd one is caught, everyone who voted correctly scores 2; an odd one who escapes scores 3, and a caught odd one can still steal 2 by guessing the majority word. A game is three rounds, about 15 minutes.

It is honest to say what it is not: there is no 8 minute questioning phase, no locations and no roles. It is closer to word games like Undercover. Groups who find Spyfall's free-form questions intimidating often find typed hints easier, and the host does not need to referee.

Other social deduction games on Rondovo

Nightfall is our version of Mafia for 4 to 16 players, with the night actions handled on everyone's screen, so nobody has to moderate. If you prefer clues to lying, Spy Grid is a two-team word grid game in the spirit of Codenames; see our list of games like Codenames.

For a full list of games for a bigger table, our party games guide is the place to start.

Which game like Spyfall suits your group

What is Spyfall?

Spyfall is a social deduction card game designed by Alexandr Ushan. Hobby World first published it in 2014, and Cryptozoic Entertainment brought it to English-speaking shelves in 2015. Store listings give 3 to 8 players and ages 12 or 13 and up, depending on the edition.

Each round, one player gets a spy card and everyone else gets the same location card, such as a submarine or a day spa. In the original deck each location card also names a role (the cook, the captain, the tourist), which gives non-spies a character to answer as.

Spyfall 2 added 20 new locations, room for up to 12 players, and an optional second spy for bigger groups. Both boxes can be mixed. There are also spin-offs, including Spyfall: Time Travel and DC Spyfall.

Spyfall rules: how to play

These are the rules from the original rulebook, in plain words. Agree how many rounds you will play first. Five rounds take roughly an hour.

Setup

1. Pick a location deck at random. Hand out one card per player, face down: every card shows the location except one, the spy card.
2. Everyone looks at their card and keeps a straight face.
3. Start a timer for 8 minutes. The dealer asks the first question.

Asking questions

• The dealer asks any player a question about the location, using their name: "Priya, how did you get here today?"
• The answer can be as vague or as precise as the player likes. No follow up questions.
• Whoever answered asks the next question, to anyone except the person who just asked them.
• Questions should come quickly. Long pauses help the spy think.

Accusing a player

Once per round, each player may stop the clock and accuse someone. Everyone except the accused votes. If the vote is unanimous, the accused reveals their card and the round ends. If not, the clock restarts and that player cannot stop it again this round.

The spy's move

At any moment, but not during a vote, the spy can reveal their card and guess the location. Right guess, the spy wins the round. Wrong guess, the locals win.

When the timer runs out

Starting with the dealer, players take turns naming a suspect. The table discusses and votes. The first unanimous vote decides it. If everyone has had a turn as accuser and nobody was convicted, the spy wins.

Spyfall scoring

Highest total after the agreed number of rounds wins.

How to play Spyfall online

There is no official free Spyfall website. Your options, as of October 2026:

• Fan-made browser versions. Search "Spyfall online" and you will find several free sites where one person makes a room and shares a code. They are unofficial, the location lists are usually the original ones, and some carry a lot of advertising. Test one before the party.
• One shared screen or a group chat. The host privately messages each player the location (or the word "spy"), then everyone joins a video call and plays by the normal rules. This works with any location list, including the ones below.
• A similar game built for screens. Odd One Out on Rondovo deals secret words to every screen, collects typed hints, and runs the vote for you. It is a different game (see below), but it scratches the same itch.

Spyfall with one phone

You can play Spyfall with one phone by passing it around. Open a notes app, write the location, and hand it to each player in turn, swapping the screen to "SPY" for one person. It takes a trustworthy host who sits the round out, or a random picker app that shows each player their card and then hides it. Paper slips folded in a bowl are just as quick.

60 Spyfall locations with roles

All of these are our own, written for this guide, and none repeat the locations in the official boxes, so you can mix them in without doubling up. Each has three roles, enough for a game of four; invent more on the spot or let players without a role answer as a visitor.

A good Spyfall location is a place most people have been, or at least seen on screen, with three or four obvious activities. Very small places (a lift) make the spy's job too easy. Very vague ones (a city) make it impossible for the locals.

Everyday places

Travel and transport

Fun and entertainment

Work and public places

Outdoors and adventure

That is 60 places in total. For a shorter game, use one table per night, or print the lot and cut it into cards.

Spyfall locations for kids

Younger players do best with big, familiar places and roles they can act out: playground, birthday party, swimming pool, zoo keeper's hut, school bus, toy shop, pizza restaurant, dinosaur museum, farm, fire station, library story time, beach, castle, pirate island, space rocket, ice cream van, puppet theatre, sports day, aquarium, bouncy castle. Use a 10 minute timer, let kids say "pass" once per round, and skip the scoring for the first few games.

Spyfall with countries, foods or jobs

Spyfall works with any category where everyone can answer questions. Swap places for:

• Countries: Japan, Brazil, Egypt, Iceland, India, Mexico, Kenya, Italy, Canada, Australia. Questions turn into "What did you eat for lunch?" and "Did you need a coat?"
• Foods: pizza, curry, sushi, birthday cake, porridge, tacos, salad, burgers. Ask "When do you usually have this?"
• Jobs: nurse, chef, pilot, teacher, farmer, astronaut. Ask "What do you wear to work?"

Categories with only a handful of options make the spy's guess too easy, so keep at least 15 in play.

Questions for Spyfall: 50 to ask

The best Spyfall questions get an answer that proves you know the location without naming anything a spy could copy. Questions that are too direct ("Is it wet here?") hand the spy the answer. Questions that are too vague ("Do you like it here?") prove nothing.

Safe openers

1. How did you get here today?
2. What are you wearing?
3. How long are you planning to stay?
4. Who did you come with?
5. What time of day is best here?
6. Would you bring your grandmother here?
7. What did it cost you to get in?
8. What can you hear right now?
9. Is it busy at the moment?
10. Have you been here before?
11. What would you post about this place online?
12. Is this a good place for a first date?
13. What do you need to bring with you?
14. Would a dog enjoy it here?
15. How do you feel about being here?

Sharper questions for the middle of the round

16. What is the most annoying thing about this place?
17. What would get you thrown out of here?
18. What is the first thing you notice when you walk in?
19. Who is in charge here?
20. What would go wrong if the power went out?
21. What should you never touch here?
22. What is the weather like where you are?
23. What would a child want to do first?
24. What is the smell like?
25. What job would you hate here?
26. Could you be here at 3 a.m.?
27. What is on the floor?
28. How loud would you have to talk to be heard?
29. What do people usually take home from here?
30. What would make today a disaster?
31. Is there a queue?
32. What sort of shoes are best here?
33. What do you do while you wait?
34. Would you find this place in a small town?
35. How do you know when it is time to leave?

Questions that put a suspect on the spot

36. Describe the person standing next to you.
37. What did you do right before this?
38. What is your role here, in one word?
39. What happens here that does not happen anywhere else?
40. What would you rate this place out of ten, and why?
41. What would you buy here?
42. What was the last thing you said to someone here?
43. What colour is everything here?
44. If you had to sleep here, where would you sleep?
45. What is the rule everyone breaks here?

Questions the spy can safely ask

The spy needs questions that work almost anywhere and invite a revealing answer.

46. What do you like most about being here?
47. Who would you not want to bump into here?
48. What is the best thing you have seen here?
49. How would you describe this place to a tourist?
50. What would you change about this place?

How to answer like a local

Answer with something only a local would know, but that does not narrow it to one word. At a lighthouse, "the stairs are killing me" is good: true for a lighthouse, but also for a castle, a stadium or an old flat. "I am counting the seagulls" is too much. Keep answers short, keep your eyes off the spy suspect, and do not over-explain.

How to play the spy

Listen hard to the first three answers before you ask anything. Give answers that would fit at least half of the possible locations ("I am here for work", "it is busier than I expected"). Accuse someone early if the table drifts, because a wrong conviction scores you 4. And guess the moment you are fairly sure: waiting for certainty usually gets you caught.

Questions people ask

What is a game like Spyfall?

The Chameleon is the closest: one player does not know the secret word and has to bluff through a round of one-word clues. A Fake Artist Goes to New York, Insider and Werewords use the same idea with drawing or 20 Questions.

How many players do you need for Spyfall?

Spyfall needs at least 3 players and the original box goes up to 8. Spyfall 2 goes up to 12. It is at its best with 5 to 8, because the spy has more answers to hide among.

How long is a round of Spyfall?

The official rules give 8 minutes. New groups often play 10 to 12 minutes until everyone is comfortable asking questions quickly.

How many locations are in Spyfall?

The original game has 30 locations. Spyfall 2 adds 20 more, and the two boxes can be mixed.

Can you play Spyfall online for free?

Yes, on unofficial fan-made browser sites, or by messaging each player their card and playing over a video call. There is no official free online version as of October 2026.

Can the spy win if nobody figures it out?

Yes. If the timer runs out and the table cannot agree unanimously on a suspect, the spy scores 2 points.

What makes a good Spyfall question?

One that a local can answer easily without saying the location. "What are you wearing?" and "How did you get here?" work almost everywhere. Avoid yes or no questions; they give the spy nothing to read but they also let a bluffer hide.

Is Spyfall good for kids?

It is rated for 12 or 13 and up because of the bluffing and fast questions, but younger kids can play with a simple location list, a longer timer and no scoring.

Find the spy tonight

Print a page of locations, set an 8 minute timer and you are ready. If your group would rather play on screens, open Odd One Out, share the four letter code, and the host can start as soon as four of you are in.

Spyfall, Spyfall 2, Spyfall: Time Travel, DC Spyfall, Cryptozoic Entertainment, Hobby World, DC Comics, The Chameleon, A Fake Artist Goes to New York, Insider, Werewords, Undercover, Codenames and Among Us are trademarks of their owners. Rondovo is not affiliated with them.