Card game
Dobble
Race to spot the one picture any two cards share
- Set-up
- Under a minute
- Reading
- None
The quick verdict
Full verdict ↓Great for Mixed-age tables, because quick eyes matter more than age or experience
Think twice if Your group dislikes loud, shouting-out-answers games
How we rate it
Learning curve. There is one idea to learn: find the only picture two cards share. That puts it alongside UNO and Connect 4 at 1 on our scale; the challenge is speed, not rules.
Luck & skill. The shuffle decides which cards come up, but who wins is down to quick eyes and quick reactions. There is no planning, so treat the 4 as 'mostly skill' in the sense of sharp spotting, not strategy.
Interaction. Everyone races for the same card at the same time, and in The Hot Potato and The Poisoned Gift you push cards onto other players.
Set-up. Shuffle the cards and deal them as the chosen mini-game says. The Tower and The Poisoned Gift need one card face down per player and a face-up pile in the middle; The Triplet needs nine cards face up.
Reading. The cards have only pictures. You call the picture out in any language you like; only the rules leaflet needs reading, once.
Learning curve: 1 = UNO or Connect 4; 3 = Catan; 5 = a heavy strategy game. These describe the experience, not an overall score.
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Is Dobble right for you?
Great if
- Mixed-age tables, because quick eyes matter more than age or experience
- Birthday parties and cousins' get-togethers with up to 8 players
- Filling ten spare minutes before dinner or while waiting at a station
- Families with members who don't read English, since there are only pictures
Skip it if
- Your group dislikes loud, shouting-out-answers games
- You want a game with strategy or planning to it; Dobble is pure speed and observation
- Your children are under 6, in which case Dobble Kids, with simpler animal cards, is the better pick
How Dobble plays
The deck has 55 round cards, and each card shows 8 pictures of everyday things, drawn in different sizes. The trick that makes the game work is that any two cards in the deck share exactly one picture, never more and never less.
- Time to teach: about 2 minutes.
- Reading and language: There is nothing to read on the cards, only pictures. You shout out the name of the matching picture, and nothing stops you naming it in Hindi, Tamil or English, so a grandparent calling out 'chabi' and a child calling out 'key' are both right. Only the rules leaflet needs reading, once.
Dobble Card Game - How To Play · asmodee UK · Official
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A turn, step by step
- 1Flip
There are no turns. Everyone turns a card face up at the same moment, and the race starts.
- 2Spot
Find the one picture your card shares with the centre card (or another player's card, depending on the mini-game) and call out its name before anyone else.
- 3Move
Take, drop or hand over the card as the mini-game says, then start looking at the next pair straight away.
- 4Win
When the cards run out, the player with the most cards wins in The Tower and The Triplet; in The Well you win by getting rid of your pile first, and in The Hot Potato and The Poisoned Gift the fewest cards wins.
The full explanation: how a game of Dobble goes
There are no turns. Everyone plays at the same time, looking for the match between two cards. The first person to spot it says the picture's name out loud, and then takes, places or gets rid of a card, depending on which mini-game you are playing.
The rules sheet has five mini-games. In The Tower you collect cards from a face-up pile in the middle, and whoever gathers the most wins. In The Well you start with a stack of cards and race to get rid of them all onto the middle card. In The Hot Potato and The Poisoned Gift you try to load your cards onto other players, and the person left with the fewest cards does best. In The Triplet, nine cards lie face up and you race to spot a picture shared by three of them; whoever collects the most cards wins.
Each mini-game lasts only a few minutes, so most groups play several in a row. Because the game rewards sharp eyes rather than knowledge, a quick seven-year-old can beat a parent, which is a big part of its appeal at family gatherings.
What's in the box
- 55Round picture cards
8 pictures on each card, from a set of 57 different pictures; any two cards share exactly one - 1Metal tin
round yellow-and-purple tin that holds the cards - 1Rules leaflet
explains the five mini-games
Box: 13.2 × 13.2 × 5.2 cm, 0.2 kg. Handy to know for gifting and travel.
Funskool's own box image (side panel 'Contents') lists 55 cards, 1 rulebook and 1 tin, so the Indian cardboard box has the tin inside. Zygomatic lists the same contents for its current box. The 57-picture total is from Asmodee UK and Wikipedia. The imported Asmodee box sold in India is the older box design with the same tin and 55 cards.
Where to buy
Paid link · We may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
How to make sure you get a genuine copyEditions and the details worth checking.
What reviewers and players say
Reviewers and parents treat Dobble as one of the easiest games to bring out with a mixed group: it takes a minute to explain, everyone plays at once, and a sharp-eyed child can beat the adults. The small tin and sturdy cards make it a favourite for trips. The usual complaints are noise, and that the five mini-games are really the same matching idea dressed differently, so long sessions can feel repetitive. Families often add a handicap, such as adults counting to three before answering, to keep games close.
What people love
- Everyone plays at the same time, so nobody waits for a turn, even with eight players
- Children can genuinely beat adults, and simple handicaps keep mixed-age games fair
- The small tin and tough cards travel well, to restaurants, trains and relatives' homes
- The 'exactly one match' design is clever, and pictures in different sizes make spotting harder than it looks
Common complaints
- It gets loud, so it suits a lively room rather than a quiet one
- The mini-games feel like variations on one idea, and it can get repetitive after many rounds
- Some modes, such as The Poisoned Gift, are meaner than others, which can upset small children
Based on 7 reviews and discussions
- Review Dobble Review (Nick T, January 2020) · Board Game Review (UK)
- Review Dobble review (Jenny Wonnacott, updated August 2025) · Mumsnet
- Review Spot It - Speed matching fun (Trent, December 2011) · The Board Game Family
- Players What is the math behind the game Spot It? (May 2011) · Mathematics Stack Exchange
- Reference How to Play Dobble (Asmodee UK, January 2026) · Asmodee UK
- Reference Asmodee's Dobble named UK's biggest-selling game of 2018 (January 2019) · Mojo Nation
- Reference Dobble · Wikipedia
Summarised in our own words from the sources above. We don't use Amazon reviews or ratings.
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Why consider it | This game Race to spot the one picture any two cards share | A different fit Another loud, fast reflex card game for up to 8 players, with slapping instead of spotting | A different fit Just as easy for mixed ages, but turn-based and calmer, with less pressure on speed | A different fit A quick, silly family card game that also has an Indian-made edition |
| Players | 2–8 | 2–8 | 2–10 | 2–5 |
| Best with | 3-6 | 4-8 | 4-6 | 4-5 |
| Play time | 15 min | 10–15 min | 10–30 min | 15–20 min |
| Age | 6+ | 8+ | 7+ | 7+ |
| Rules | Easy | Easy | Easy | Easy |
| Indian edition | Available | Imported | Imported | Available |
| On this page | Explore Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza | Explore UNO | Explore Exploding Kittens |
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Questions people ask about Dobble
Are Dobble and Spot It! the same game?
Yes. It is sold as Dobble in Europe and India and as Spot It! in North America. In India the Funskool-made Dobble is the cheapest genuine copy; Spot It! packs are imports.
Is Funskool Dobble original?
Yes. In October 2023 Funskool announced a partnership with Asmodee, which owns Dobble's publisher Zygomatic, to make and sell Dobble in India. Funskool's own product page lists the game (product code 9409000) with India as the country of origin.
What age is Dobble suitable for?
The publisher says 6 and up, and adults enjoy it just as much. For children of around 4 to 6, Funskool also makes Dobble Kids, a simpler version with animal pictures.
Are unbranded 'Dobble' decks the real game?
Not as far as we can tell. Some listings sell 'Dobble' at a fraction of the usual price without naming Funskool or Asmodee as the brand, and we could not confirm who makes those decks. Check the brand, the barcode and the spelling before you buy.
Game facts
- Designed by
- Denis Blanchot, Jacques Cottereau
- Publisher
- Zygomatic (Asmodee); first released in France in 2009
- In India
- Funskool India (makes and sells Dobble in India under an Asmodee partnership announced in October 2023)
- First published
- 2009
- Players
- 2–8
- Barcode
- 8901383940902
- Language
- No reading – There is nothing to read on the cards, only pictures. You shout out the name of the matching picture, and nothing stops you naming it in Hindi, Tamil or English, so a grandparent calling out 'chabi' and a child calling out 'key' are both right. Only the rules leaflet needs reading, once.
- Box size and weight
- 13.2 × 13.2 × 5.2 cm, 0.2 kg
Sources & photo creditsThe references behind this guide.
Facts on this page come from the publisher, the Indian maker or distributor, and the sources below. Photos are credited under each one.
- Dobble – Zygomatic (publisher page)
- Dobble – Wikipedia
- Dobble rules (English, PDF) – Zygomatic
- Funskool acquires mfg rights for Dobble in India – DT Next (17 Oct 2023)
- Funskool India and Asmodee partnership brings Dobble to India – Mediainfoline
- Dobble – Funskool (official product page)
- Dobble Kids – Funskool (official product page)
- Funskool Dobble Spot The Match Game – Toycra
- Asmodee Dobble Game – Toycra
- Funskool Games Dobble – Crossword
- Funskool-Asmodee Dobble – Hamleys