Virtual happy hour ideas people actually show up for.

What makes a virtual happy hour work

• Short. Thirty to forty-five minutes. People stay longer when they want to, and come back when it didn't drag.
• Optional. Inside working hours, and truly optional. A happy hour people must attend is a meeting.
• Something to do. A game, a question or a theme gives quieter people an easy way in.
• Small groups. More than six or seven people in one conversation, and most of them stop talking. Split up.
• Not about drinks. Coffee, tea or a soft drink is just as welcome. Call it a social if the name puts people off.

No-prep ideas

Start here. Each of these works with five minutes' notice.

1. 1.

   Show and tell

   Any size · no prep

   Everyone shows one thing within reach and tells its story. A mug, a book, a plant, a pet that wandered in.

2. 2.

   Two truths and a lie

   Up to 10 · no prep

   Each person says three things about themselves; the others guess the lie. Our two truths and a lie ideas help anyone stuck for something to say.

3. 3.

   Would you rather

   Any size · no prep

   Read out a question, let everyone answer and defend their choice. Our would you rather questions are sorted for work.

4. 4.

   Desk tour

   Up to 8 · no prep

   Turn the camera round for thirty seconds each. It's surprising how much people learn about each other from a bookshelf.

5. 5.

   Photo of the week

   Any size · no prep

   Each person shares one photo from their week and says why they took it.

6. 6.

   Question round

   Any size · no prep

   One light question, everyone answers: best meal this year, first concert, a skill they'd like to learn. Pick from our icebreaker questions.

Games

Games give a happy hour a shape, so nobody has to think of what to say next.

1. 7.

   Trivia

   Teams of 3 to 5 · 15 minutes to prepare

   Five rounds of five questions, one round about the company. Rotate who writes the questions each month.

2. 8.

   Draw and guess

   Up to 8 · no prep

   One person draws a word on a shared whiteboard, the rest guess. Free browser games such as skribbl.io run the rounds for you.

3. 9.

   Baby photo guess

   Any size · collect photos first

   Collect a childhood photo from each person beforehand, then show them one by one and guess who's who.

4. 10.

   Team bingo

   Any size · 10 minutes to prepare

   Bingo cards of facts about the team: "has lived in three countries", "plays an instrument". People ask each other to fill the squares.

5. 11.

   Word and party games online

   4 to 10 · no prep

   Codenames, Gartic Phone and similar browser games need only a link, and most are free.

Ideas worth a little planning

Keep these for once a month or a special occasion; a bit of preparation makes them feel like an event.

1. 12.

   Tasting

   Any size · order a week ahead

   Send everyone the same coffee, tea, chocolate or snacks, then taste and rate them together.

2. 13.

   Cook or mix along

   Up to 12 · share a list ahead

   One person who loves cooking leads a simple recipe or a drink, with or without alcohol.

3. 14.

   Lightning talks

   Up to 15 · a few days' notice

   Three volunteers each talk for five minutes about anything but work: a hobby, a trip, how to make bread.

4. 15.

   Playlist party

   Any size · collect songs first

   Everyone adds two songs to a shared playlist; play them and guess who picked what.

5. 16.

   Online escape room

   Teams of 4 to 6 · book ahead

   Hosted escape rooms run over video and suit teams that like puzzles. Most charge per person.

Ideas for big or spread-out teams

Above fifteen people, or across many time zones, one shared call stops working. Mix small groups and written formats.

1. 17.

   Rotating small groups

   15 people or more

   Groups of four for ten minutes, then reshuffle. In a virtual office people simply walk from one group to another, as at a real party.

2. 18.

   Random coffee pairs

   Any size · weekly or monthly

   Pair people at random for a fifteen-minute chat at a time that suits them both. Over a few months everyone meets everyone.

3. 19.

   A happy hour that moves with the sun

   Many time zones

   Hold it twice, at a time that suits each half of the team, or start a photo thread that runs all day.

4. 20.

   Seasonal theme

   Any size · a few days' notice

   Hats in winter, favourite snacks from home, a fancy-dress Friday. A theme gives people something to talk about before anyone speaks.

How to host one

• Pick a time inside working hours. Late afternoon on a Thursday or Friday works for many teams. Across time zones, use our time zone meeting planner to find the overlap.
• Invite with a plan. "30 minutes, two rounds of trivia, then chat" gets more people than "happy hour, 5pm".
• Open with one easy question. Everyone answers in a sentence. It gets every voice in the room in the first five minutes.
• Split groups above six. Use breakout rooms, or a space where people can drift between groups on their own.
• End on time. Close at the time you said. Anyone who wants to stay can, but nobody feels trapped.