Choosing gifts for board game lovers is a bit of a roll of the dice, because the person you’re shopping for probably owns the game
you were about to buy.

And the one next to it. Then a third one you’ve never heard of, which they will happily explain.

So the hard part isn’t the budget, it’s that you can’t see what’s already on their shelf.

The safest gift for a board game lover who owns a lot is one they get to choose, because only they know what’s missing. A game from their wish list, a gift card, or a gift that lets them pick each game all do that.

Below, we cover why guesses miss, how a gift subscription works, what it costs and when to order.

What Do You Get a Board Game Lover Who Already Has Everything?

Start with what you can actually know, which isn’t much. You can’t tell which games are on their shelf, or which one they’ve been meaning to buy.

So the gift has to let them do the choosing. Guessing is how most gifts for people who have everything go wrong, and a full game shelf makes it easy.

There are 3 ways to hand the choosing over, so none of these gift ideas for board game lovers depend on a guess:

• Ask for 1 title they want. A game off their wish list is a safe way to buy a specific game, though it takes the surprise out of it.
• Give a gift card. UnboxBoardom gift cards run from $10 to $100, so they don’t have to match a plan price. The person gets a digital code by email and enters it at checkout.
• Give a subscription they pick from. On the 1st of each delivery month, an email lists 3 games, and they pick 1, so the choice stays theirs while a full-size board game lands on their doorstep.

A gift card is the quickest of the 3, and a subscription is the one that keeps arriving.

Why Do Gifts for Board Game Lovers Miss So Often?

Most board game gifts miss because the giver is guessing and the person unwrapping it knows exactly what they own. Researchers have put numbers on it.

In a 1993 paper in the American Economic Review, economist Joel Waldfogel surveyed Yale undergraduates and found that holiday gifts were worth between 10 percent and a third less to the people who got them than the givers had paid. On a $35 game, that works out to somewhere between about $23 and $32 of value, which is a polite way of saying the game comes out once and goes back on the shelf. The sample was students at one university, so treat it as a clue and not a promise.

Asking helps, and there is research on that too. In 2011, researchers Francesca Gino and Francis Flynn reported in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology that recipients appreciated gifts they had asked for more than gifts they hadn’t, across 5 experiments, while the givers predicted the opposite. So asking isn’t the lazy option, it tends to be the one that lands.

One more finding matters to game people. Cindy Chan and Cassie Mogilner reported in the Journal of Consumer Research in 2017 that gifts people live through, like an event, strengthened a relationship more than objects they keep.

A board game is an object, but it exists to make an evening, and that’s a fair argument for giving games over gadgets. The study didn’t test board games, so the board game part is our reading of it.

How Does a Board Game Subscription Work as a Gift?

A board game subscription gift can sound like homework for the person getting it, and it mostly isn’t. They pick the games, so by default you’re off the hook for the guessing.

You enter their email at checkout, and they get told by email within 24 to 48 hours, or on a date you set in the gift message, with no login needed. After that, an email lists 3 games on the 1st of each delivery month, and they have 5 days to pick 1. Games typically ship around the 15th.

The UnboxBoardom team hand-picks the games on each list, and no game repeats within 12 months. Here’s November 2026’s list as a dated example, and keep in mind a gift bought now starts with a later month’s list:

• Pack the Essentials: 1 to 4 players, ages 12 and up, about 20 to 30 minutes. A tile-drafting game about packing a suitcase, cats included.
• Cascadia: 1 to 4 players, ages 10 and up, listed at about 45 minutes. A spatial puzzle about building habitats that won the 2022 Spiel des Jahres, a yearly “game of the year” award picked by a panel of German-language game critics.
• Fealty: 2 to 4 players, ages 14 and up, about 15 to 30 minutes. A fast area-control game about a kingdom with no heir.

The list mixes a light tile game, a puzzle and a head-to-head game, which is the mix of type, player count and complexity the team aims for every month. Most of our games work great at 2 players, but not all of them, so if the person you’re shopping for is your partner, the board games for couples page lists the ones that do.

What do you get with a gift subscription?

• They pick the game. Or you can leave Trust the Experts on at checkout and let the team pick instead.
• They keep every game. It’s a purchase, not a rental, so nothing ships back.
• Nothing renews, and they’re never charged. The gift ends when its term does, unless you tick the renewal box at checkout, and the person who gets it is never billed.
• You can still pick the games yourself. Just say so in the Gift Message box at checkout.
• The price is per box. A box costs $29.99 to $33.99 depending on the plan, plus a flat $6 shipping.
• It gives something back. For every 10 new signups, UnboxBoardom donates a board game to a kids’ organization.

Code BLOGGAME20 takes 20% off a first box at checkout.

When Do You Need to Order?

Sooner than it feels, because the first game ships the month after you sign up, around the 15th. So if you sign up by the end of November, the first game arrives in December.

From there, the person is told by email within 24 to 48 hours, or on a date you set in the gift message, so they can find out on the day you choose.

If you’re still stuck on gifts for board game lovers, stop hunting for the one game they don’t own.

Start a subscription for your own table, or send one as a gift and let them pick the games themselves.

Frequently asked questions

What are good gifts for game lovers who already have every board game?

Gifts they get to choose themselves work best, because they know what’s missing from their shelf and you don’t. A game from their wish list, a gift card from $10 to $100, and a gift subscription where they pick 1 of 3 games each month and keep every game all qualify.

What are the best board games to gift?

The best board games to gift are ones the person asked for, so ask for 1 title. If you have to guess, check the age and player count first. Cascadia is listed for 1 to 4 players, ages 10 and up, about 45 minutes, and it won the 2022 Spiel des Jahres, a yearly award picked by game critics, which makes it a well-rated pick.

Is a board game subscription a good gift for someone who owns a lot of games?

Yes, because they choose the game each cycle instead of you guessing. An email on the 1st lists 3 games that the team hand-picks each month, they have 5 days to pick 1, and they keep every game. Nothing renews and they’re never charged, so there’s no wrong guess to make.

Will the person who gets a gift subscription be charged?

No, the person who gets it is never charged. A gift ends when its 3, 6 or 12 month term does, unless the buyer ticks the renewal box at checkout, and every game they receive is theirs to keep. Nothing ships back.

How much does a board game gift subscription cost?

A box costs $29.99 to $33.99 depending on the plan, plus a flat $6 shipping per box. Gift cards are separate, run from $10 to $100 and don’t have to match a plan price. Your first box can be 20% off with code BLOGGAME20 at checkout.

When should I order a gift subscription so it arrives in December?

Sign up by the end of November and the first game arrives in December. The first box ships the month after you sign up, around the 15th, and the person is told by email within 24 to 48 hours, or on a date you set in the gift message.

Can I pick the games for them?

Yes, though the person who gets the gift picks by default. You can note your own picks in the Gift Message box at checkout. Otherwise they get an email listing 3 games each month with 5 days to choose 1, or you can leave Trust the Experts on and let the team pick.

Why did Phil Jacobs start UnboxBoardom?

Because the board-game-of-the-month gift his wife went looking for didn’t exist. So Phil (the owner) built it himself, and more than 50,000 boxes have shipped since. The UnboxBoardom team still hand-picks the games each month, and roughly 2 of every 3 subscriptions are bought as gifts.

More questions about shipping, billing or gifts? The UnboxBoardom FAQ covers them.