Say “of the month club” to most people and they can probably picture jelly.
One jar shows up every month. Nobody even remembers asking for it and by spring there’s almost a shelf of it.
In National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989), a man expects a holiday bonus and gets a year of Jelly of the Month Club instead.
Long before that movie hit theaters, Book of the Month clubs had already perfected the formula.
Apply the same logic to tabletop gaming, and it is pretty much identical. With a dedicated board game of the month club, a brand-new physical board game ships directly to your porch every month.
Where the Term “Game of the Month Club” Comes From
The term comes from the Book-of-the-Month Club, which advertising copywriter Harry Scherman started in 1926. A panel of editors picked one book a month and mailed it to members. Record clubs and fruit clubs followed.
According to a Penn State University Libraries feature on the club, it had just 4,000 subscribers in its first year and 60,058 members by 1927.
Encyclopedia.com’s entry says members could later turn down that month’s pick and choose from a list of alternates.
In a January 2025 survey of 1,059 US adults from Researchscape International and published by Troy Press, about 74% of respondents reported playing a board game in 2024 (with a 4 point margin of error).
The most played were familiar household names:
- Monopoly (37%)
- Checkers (25%)
- Chess (24%)
Newer hits trailed way behind, leaving Catan at 5% and Ticket to Ride at 2%. Most people just stick to what they already know, so a club is an easy way to try newer games without spending hours researching them.
So the classics get played, and a club is a way to try the rest without hunting each one down.
Is a “game of the month club” the same as a board game subscription box?
Yes. “Board game of the month club” is the older name for a monthly board game subscription box: a new, full-size game shipped to your door on a set schedule.
How a Board Game of the Month Club Actually Works
Well, the way it works is pretty straightforward. You pick a schedule, whether that is monthly, bi-monthly (every 2 months), or quarterly. On the 1st of each delivery month, an email lands in your inbox with a few game choices.
You pick the one you want, and it ships out around the 15th. Keep in mind, your first game goes out the month after you join, so if you sign up in August, your first box heads your way in September.
Researchers have a name for this kind of subscription: curated, or discovery. A 2021 paper from researchers at Bournemouth University, published in the Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, describes it as one that brings new products and ideas to subscribers, and lists kids’ activity kits, beauty boxes and meal kits as examples.
In nationally representative YouGov Profiles data from January 2023, the market research firm found that 57% of Americans say they don’t use subscription boxes. Among those who don’t, 60% pointed to cost, and 58% said they would rather choose products themselves.
Among the people who do use them, 33% said part of the appeal is trying products they would not have picked out on their own. So people want new things, but a lot of them also want a say in what shows up.
Do you get to choose the game?
Yes. If you choose to pick, the email shows 3 games with descriptions, and you have 5 days to choose one. If you forget, the team sends the game it thinks you’ll like best.
For a surprise, pick Trust the Experts when you sign up and the team chooses every time. So it’s not a blind box unless you want it to be.
What if none of the 3 games sounds good?
Drop them a quick note before the selection deadline, and they will simply push your subscription back a month. There is no penalty or hassle. Because nobody wants to pay for a box they are not genuinely thrilled to open, and they do not want to send one either.
What You Get Every Month (and What You Don’t)
Every shipment includes one full-sized, well-rated board game curated by the UnboxBoardom team. Boxes average around $35 in retail value, giving you a permanent addition to your game shelf every time.
Selections span family, strategy, and party games, usually rated for ages 8 and up with 20 to 60 minute play times and easy to medium learning curves. For example, the December 2025 choices included:
- Canopy: A card game focused on growing your own rainforest.
- Sagrada: A colorful dice drafting game where you build a stained glass window.
- Station Master: A tactical train game all about loading passengers onto the right cars.
What you don’t get:
- A bundle of smaller games. Each box is 1 larger game.
- A PREMIUM game. Bigger strategy titles like Kokopelli, at $49.99 plus shipping, are sold on their own.
- A promise that every game works for 2. Most work great at 2 players, but party games usually need more people. The email lists each game’s player count, and board games for couples shows the ones that suit two.
Monthly vs. Bi-Monthly vs. Quarterly: Picking Your Plan
Over a course of a year, a monthly board game subscription is 12 games, bi-monthly is 6, and quarterly is 4. The more you prepay, the lower the price per box.
| Plan | How often | Games a year | Pay-as-you-go | Prepaid for a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gaming Guru | Monthly | 12 | $33.99 a box | $29.99 a box |
| Casual Gamer | Bi-monthly | 6 | $33.99 a box | $30.99 a box |
| Board Game Beginner | Quarterly | 4 | $33.99 a box | $31.99 a box |
The best value is the annual prepaid plan, which drops the price to $29.99 a box (around $360 up front). You can also prepay for 3 or 6 months at $32.99 and $31.99 per box.
A monthly game subscription fits active groups that burn through games quickly, whereas bi-monthly or quarterly pacing gives casual players breathing room between deliveries.
Pay-as-you-go memberships can be canceled at anytime, and neither option has a cancellation fee. Prepaid plans will not be renewed if canceled before the end of their term.
Shipping is a flat $6 a box to the continental US, added at checkout on top of every plan.
You can also save a little extra right now. Enter the exclusive coupon code below at checkout to take 20% off your first order.
Is UnboxBoardom a Game of the Month Club?
Yes. UnboxBoardom is a board game of the month club, though it’s usually called a subscription box now.
Phil Jacobs, the owner, started it after his wife wanted to give him a board game of the month subscription and found it didn’t exist. So he created it himself.
More than 50,000 boxes have shipped since, and 1 game goes to a kids’ organization for every 10 new signups. That means every time you level up your own game night, you are helping pass the fun along to kids who could really use it.
A game of the month club is a club in the Book-of-the-Month sense, not the meeting sense. Nobody takes minutes.
That is the main difference: nobody ever asked for random jars of jelly, but here you pick every title yourself.
So, go ahead and start a subscription for yourself, or send one as a gift and let the lucky person on the other end decide what to play. : )
Frequently asked questions
What is a game of the month club?
Members of a game of the month club get a new game on a set schedule, usually 1 a month. The format started with the Book-of-the-Month Club in 1926. In the board game version, each box holds 1 full-size game, and with UnboxBoardom you choose it from 3 options.
Is a board game of the month club the same as a board game subscription box?
Yes. “Board game of the month club” is an older name for a monthly board game subscription box: a new, full-size game shipped to your door on a set schedule. UnboxBoardom offers 3 plans: Gaming Guru is monthly, Casual Gamer is bi-monthly and Board Game Beginner is quarterly.
How much does a board game of the month club cost?
With UnboxBoardom, a box runs $29.99 to $33.99 depending on the plan, plus a flat $6 shipping to the continental US. Pay-as-you-go is $33.99 a box. A prepaid year of monthly is around $360, at $29.99 a box.
Can I choose the game each month?
Yes. If you choose to pick, an email on the 1st of the month shows 3 games with descriptions, and you have 5 days to choose one. If you forget, UnboxBoardom sends the game the team thinks you’ll like best. Prefer to be surprised? Pick “Trust the Experts” when you sign up.
Can I cancel anytime?
With the pay-as-you-go plan you can cancel at anytime. Neither option has a cancellation fee. Prepaid 3, 6, or 12 month plans will not be renewed if canceled before the end of their term. And if none of a month’s 3 games interest you, tell the team before the selection deadline and it will push your subscription back a month.
Do I keep the games?
Yes. Every game is yours to keep, and it’s a purchase, not a rental, so nothing gets returned if you cancel. Each box holds 1 full-size game with an average retail value of around $35. PREMIUM games like Kokopelli, at $49.99 plus shipping, are sold on their own and aren’t part of the subscription.
Can I give a game of the month club as a gift?
Yes. With a gift subscription, the person receiving it chooses each month’s game. A gift ends at the end of its term unless the buyer ticks the renewal box at checkout, and the recipient is never charged. Gift cards come in any amount from $10 to $100, if you’d rather they pick the plan.
Why did Phil start UnboxBoardom?
His wife went looking for a “board game of the month” gift for him and found that nothing like it existed. So Phil Jacobs built the subscription himself, and more than 50,000 boxes have shipped since. The UnboxBoardom team hand-picks the games, and each month you choose from a shortlist of 3.
More questions about shipping, billing or gifts? The UnboxBoardom FAQ covers them.
