Conversation Starters
A good conversation starter livens up any situation – whether it's a family dinner, a gathering with friends, or a quiet evening for two. Here are our favorites for every occasion.
For any group
- What was the best moment of your day?
- If you could pick a superpower right now, what would it be?
- What's something you definitely want to try this year?
- Which era would you travel back to for a single day?
Always have a good question ready
The Cards by Guessy app has hundreds of conversation starters for family, friends and couples. Try it free.
Conversation starters for kids
- If you could invent a new holiday, what would we celebrate?
- Which animal would you be, and what would you do all day?
- What was the funniest thing that happened to you today?
- If you had a magic wand, what would you change first?
Deep questions for friends
- When did you last feel truly proud of yourself?
- What can we always count on you for?
- What's something you wish we knew better about you?
- Which of our shared memories comes to mind when you smile?
Deep questions for meaningful conversations
- What's a belief you once held strongly that you've completely changed your mind about?
- What do you think people misunderstand most about your generation?
- If you could know one truth about your future, would you want to?
- Is it better to be deeply happy or deeply fulfilled, and is there a difference?
- Which question do you wish someone would ask you more often?
- What's something you're grateful for now that you used to take for granted?
- Do you think people can truly change, or do they just get better at hiding things?
- What would you want to be remembered for a hundred years from now?
- When have you felt most connected to a complete stranger?
- What quiet act of kindness has stayed with you for years?
- What do you think is worth fighting for, even if you might lose?
- How do you know when you can truly trust someone?
Conversation starters for the family dinner table
- What's a family recipe we should cook together this month?
- Who in our family do you think you're most like?
- What did you learn this week that surprised you?
- If our family had a motto, what would it be?
- Which family vacation would you most like to do all over again?
- What's one chore you'd happily trade for a different one?
- What should our next family tradition be?
- Who was kind to you this week, and what did they do?
- Which relative's life story would you like to hear more about?
- If we all swapped jobs for a day, who would struggle the most?
- Is there anything on your mind that the rest of us could help with?
- What's the best thing about being part of this family?
Fun questions to ask kids
- If you could shrink to the size of an ant, where would you explore first?
- What would you put on the menu if you ran your own restaurant?
- Which of your toys do you think comes alive when we're asleep?
- If your stuffed animal could talk, what secret would it tell?
- What would your dream treehouse have inside?
- What's something grown-ups do that you think is really strange?
- If you were the teacher for a day, what would you teach the class?
- What's the bravest thing you've ever done?
- Would you rather fly like a bird or swim like a dolphin?
- What would you name a brand-new planet, and who would live there?
- What makes someone a really good best friend?
- If you invented a new sport, what would the rules be?
Questions to ask your friends
- What's a hobby you've secretly been wanting to drag us all into?
- Which trip should we finally stop talking about and actually plan?
- What's the best advice one of us has ever given you?
- How did we actually become friends, in your version of the story?
- Which of us would last the longest in a zombie movie?
- What are you excited about that you haven't told us yet?
- Which of us is most likely to end up famous, and for what?
- What's a goal you want us to hold you accountable for?
- Which of our inside jokes is your favorite, and how did it start?
- Which song instantly reminds you of our group?
- What's one thing you'd like us to do together more often?
- How can I be a better friend to you this year?
Conversation starter questions for work teams
- What was your very first job, and what did it teach you?
- Which tool or app makes your workday noticeably easier?
- Which part of your job would surprise people outside our team?
- What's the best piece of career advice you've ever received?
- If you could add one perk to our workplace, what would it be?
- What's a skill you have that most of us probably don't know about?
- What does a really good workday look like for you?
- Who outside of work inspires the way you approach your job?
- What's your go-to snack for getting through a long afternoon?
- If our team had a theme song, what would it be?
- What's a win from this month that deserves more credit?
- If you weren't doing this job, what would you be doing instead?
Funny conversation starters
- What's the most embarrassing thing you've ever said to someone you just met?
- Which everyday object would make the worst superhero sidekick?
- If animals could talk, which species do you think would be the rudest?
- What's the silliest thing you believed as a kid?
- If you were a kitchen appliance, which one would you be and why?
- What's the worst gift you've ever received, and did you keep it?
- Which song gets stuck in your head no matter how hard you fight it?
- What's the funniest autocorrect fail you've ever sent?
- If you had to eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?
- Which famous person would you least want to be stuck in an elevator with?
- What's the dumbest way you've ever managed to hurt yourself?
- If your life had a laugh track, which moment this week would get the biggest laugh?
Nostalgic questions about growing up
- What was your favorite cartoon growing up?
- Which smell instantly takes you back to your childhood?
- What was the first concert you ever went to?
- What toy did you beg your parents for and never get?
- Which school lunch do you still remember, for better or worse?
- What was your go-to game at recess?
- Who was your favorite teacher, and what made them so great?
- What did your childhood bedroom look like?
- Which song from your teenage years can you still sing every word of?
- What were your summers like when you were ten?
- What's an old trend you secretly miss?
- What's the first thing you ever bought with your own money?
Questions about the future and imagination
- What do you think everyday life will look like fifty years from now?
- If you could live in any fictional world, which one would you choose?
- Which invention do you wish someone would hurry up and create?
- Would you move to Mars if you were promised a comfortable life there?
- What's a job that doesn't exist yet but probably will someday?
- If you could design your dream house with no budget, what's the first room you'd add?
- What do you picture yourself doing when you're eighty?
- If you could master any language overnight, which one would you pick?
- Which world problem do you think will be solved in our lifetime?
- If a robot assistant showed up at your door tomorrow, what would you have it do first?
- What would you put in a time capsule to open in twenty years?
- If you could live for a year in another country, where would you go?
Always have a good question ready
The Cards by Guessy app has hundreds of conversation starters for family, friends and couples. Try it free.
Frequently asked questions
What is a conversation starter question?
It's an open-ended question that can't be answered in one word and sparks a real conversation in a group or a pair.
What conversation starters suit couples?
For couples, more personal, emotion-opening questions work well. The Cards by Guessy app has a dedicated relationship category for this too.
What are the best questions for kids?
For kids, imaginative, playful questions are best – they answer them willingly and honestly.
What makes a good conversation starter?
A good conversation starter is open-ended, easy to answer, and invites a story rather than a yes or no. The best ones are specific enough to spark a memory but light enough that nobody feels put on the spot.
How do you use conversation starters in a big group?
Let one person ask a question and have everyone answer in turn, then pass the next question to someone else. Keep answers short at first, and let the group decide which topics are worth digging into.
Can these questions be used for team building at work?
Yes. The work team questions are designed as icebreakers for meetings, onboarding or offsites. They stay friendly and professional while still helping coworkers learn something new about each other.
