Is there a free version of Jackbox?

Jackbox sells its party packs, though a few games have been given away over the years. On eatnow.lol, Bluff Buffet and Would Eat are free to host with no account, and hangtime.games has three free games.

What does the Launch Pack cost?

It's a one-time purchase for whoever hosts: $5 at launch, $10 after. It adds Impasta, Breadwinner and the Picnic Panic race. Players never pay.

Do players need to buy anything?

No. Everyone joins in their phone's browser with a room code. Nothing to buy or download.

How many people can play?

Up to 12 phones in Bluff Buffet and Would Eat, 10 in Impasta, 8 in Picnic Panic and 5 in Breadwinner.

Can I play on a Fire TV or Roku?

You need a screen with a web browser. A laptop with an HDMI cable is the simplest. Many smart TVs also have a browser.

A Jackbox alternative

eatnow.lol works the way Jackbox does: the game runs on the TV and everyone plays from their own phone with a room code. It runs in a web browser instead of a console, Bluff Buffet and Would Eat are free to host, and every game is about food.

Bluff Buffet2-12 · TV
The closest to a classic Jackbox writing game. Make up what an odd real dish is and fool your friends. Free.
Impasta3-10 · Pack
Social deduction for 3 to 10. One or two of you got a slightly different food and nobody knows who.
Breadwinner2-5 · Pack
A longer card game for 2 to 5 when the group wants to scheme for half an hour.

How they compare

	Runs on	Cost	Games about
Jackbox Party Packs	Consoles, PC, Mac and some TVs	Each pack bought separately	Everything
eatnow.lol	Any web browser	Free games plus a $5 pack	Food
hangtime.games	Any web browser	Free games plus a $5 pack	Trivia, drawing, words and cards

Jackbox has far more games and years of polish. Each Party Pack is sold on its own on consoles, Steam and other stores, and players join at jackbox.tv.

eatnow.lol and hangtime.games are smaller and run on anything with a browser, so a laptop plugged into the TV is enough. On both, only the host ever pays, once, and players join from their phone without an account.

For games that aren't about food

hangtime.games works the same way. Its free games are a Jeopardy-style trivia board, a drawing game and a five-letter word race. Its pack adds an imposter game, a fill-in-the-blank card game, Fishbowl, Rummy and a property card game.

How to set it up

Open the game on a laptop, smart TV browser or a tablet everyone can see. A laptop plugged into the TV works best.
The screen shows a four-letter room code and a QR code.
Everyone opens eatnow.lol/play on their phone and types the code with their name.
The first person to open the room is the host and taps Start.

Playing over a video call

Share the game screen on Zoom, Google Meet or FaceTime, and everyone joins on their phone with the code. Bluff Buffet and Impasta work well this way because all the writing happens on the phones.

Questions

Is there a free version of Jackbox?: Jackbox sells its party packs, though a few games have been given away over the years. On eatnow.lol, Bluff Buffet and Would Eat are free to host with no account, and hangtime.games has three free games.
What does the Launch Pack cost?: It's a one-time purchase for whoever hosts: $5 at launch, $10 after. It adds Impasta, Breadwinner and the Picnic Panic race. Players never pay.
Do players need to buy anything?: No. Everyone joins in their phone's browser with a room code. Nothing to buy or download.
How many people can play?: Up to 12 phones in Bluff Buffet and Would Eat, 10 in Impasta, 8 in Picnic Panic and 5 in Breadwinner.
Can I play on a Fire TV or Roku?: You need a screen with a web browser. A laptop with an HDMI cable is the simplest. Many smart TVs also have a browser.