Printable Car Bingo for Kids, Free

Short trips, short attention spans

A game for a five-year-old has to finish quickly. A card of nine squares fills in ten or fifteen minutes on a drive to Grandma's, which is about as long as a small child cares. These cards use only words a child can see out of the window and say aloud: truck, horse, tunnel, stop sign. Kids who cannot read yet often start to recognize a few of the written words by the end of the ride.

For pre-readers, an adult reads the card out before the trip and points at each word. Kids then match what they spot against the picture in their head, or against a small drawing you add. Older siblings can read their own. Mixing ages is easy because every card is different: a seven-year-old and a four-year-old in one seat cannot copy each other.

Print four cards per sheet and cut them apart for a pile of small cards that fit in a lap. A set of eight handles a family and two cousins. Crayons beat markers, which bleed through thin paper and leave stains on car seats.

Words on these bingo cards

Red car
Blue car
Yellow car
Truck
Bus
Bridge
Cow
Horse
Dog
Bird
Tree
Stop sign
Traffic light
Motorcycle
Bicycle
Airplane
Train
Tractor
Fire truck
Police car
School bus
House
Sheep
Cloud
Flag
Moon
Tunnel
School

Playing car bingo with young children

Hand each child a card and a crayon before you start the engine, and read the nine words aloud once.
Take turns shouting what you see. A kid who spots a bridge claims it for their own card, and the others look for the next thing.
A line of three wins a sticker. Keep going until every child has had a line, so nobody sits out with a lost game.
At the end, print more cards with New cards, because the ride home needs a fresh set.

Questions about car bingo for kids

What age is it for?

Four to eight is the sweet spot. Younger children need an adult to read and point, and older ones usually move on to the 5 x 5 road trip cards.

Can I add pictures?

Draw a quick sketch beside each word with a pencil after printing, or let the kids do it. Drawing the bridge or the cow is its own small activity.

What if my child is carsick?

Skip the card and just look out of the window. Looking at a paper card while the car moves can make it worse, so keep eyes up and name things aloud instead.

Are there other car games for kids?

Plenty need nothing printed: I spy, the license plate game, or counting cows on your side of the car. Put a few of them on the wheel and let the kids spin for the next game.

Car bingo for kids