How the Couples Trivia Game works

This page holds two games. The first one is all about you: you make a short quiz about yourself, send it to your partner as a link, and find out how well they really know you. The second one is about love itself: a round of love and romance trivia that two people play together on one phone, taking turns and keeping score.

Both games are quick, both are free of sign-ups, and neither one saves anything. You can play the first one across a room or across the country, and the second one while you wait for dinner, sit on a train, or curl up on the couch with nothing else planned.

When you open the page, you pick a game. If you arrived by tapping a quiz link somebody sent you, the page skips that step and takes you straight to their quiz.

Game one: make a quiz about me

This is the "how well do you know me?" game, turned around. Instead of both of you answering on the same phone, you write the answer key ahead of time and your partner plays whenever they like, on their own phone.

1. Type your first name. It goes into every question your partner sees, so "What is your favorite season?" becomes "What is Sam's favorite season?" on their screen.
2. Answer 10 questions about yourself. The game picks 10 at random from a bank of 65. Each one has four answers to choose from, and you tap the one that is really true for you.
3. Swap any question you do not like. Under every question there is a "Swap this question" button. It replaces that question with a different one from the bank, one you have not already seen in this quiz. Swap as many times as you want before you answer.
4. Change your mind if you need to. The Back button takes you to the previous question with your answer still highlighted, so you can fix a slip without starting over.
5. Get your link. After the tenth answer you see your quiz link, a "Copy link" button, a "Send" button that opens your phone's share menu, and a list of the answers you picked so you can check them one last time.

That is all there is to it. Making a quiz takes about three minutes, and most of that time is spent laughing at the options.

What the questions cover

The 65 questions are light, specific and easy to answer. They cover food, habits, daydreams and little quirks: what you would order at a diner at midnight, what your ideal Sunday looks like, your go-to coffee shop order, which superpower you would choose, what you do when you cannot sleep, how you pack for a trip, which amusement park ride you would go on first, and what you would name a new puppy.

Every question has exactly four answers, written so that each one is a real possibility. That matters, because it means your partner cannot simply rule out three silly options and win by default. A question like "How does Sam act when hungry?" might offer totally calm, a little quiet, grumpy and fast, or suddenly talking only about food. Most people can picture their partner in at least two of those.

All of the questions are friendly and family-safe. Nothing is embarrassing, nothing is too personal, and nothing needs a long explanation. They are the small details that show someone has been paying attention.

What the link carries

Nothing is stored anywhere. There is no account, no database and no copy of your quiz on this site. The link itself is the quiz. Here is exactly what goes into it and what does not.

All of that is packed into one short code at the end of the address, and it is lightly scrambled so the answers are not readable at a glance. Your partner cannot peek at the link and spot "sunflowers" sitting in plain sight. Just keep in mind that the scrambling is there to keep the game fun, not to lock anything away, so send the link only to the person you want to play.

If a link gets cut off or mangled when it is copied, the page notices. Instead of showing a half-broken quiz, it goes back to the start screen with a short note asking for the link again.

Taking a quiz someone sent you

When you open a quiz link, you see "How well do you know" followed by the name of the person who made it. You can type your own first name if you like (it is optional), then tap "Start guessing."

You answer the same 10 questions, written about them. The four options appear in a mixed-up order, so the answer they picked is not always in the same spot as it was on their screen. Tap the one you think they chose. You can use the Back button to change a guess before you reach the end.

After the tenth guess you see your score out of 10, a short verdict, and a full reveal. Every question is listed with a check mark or a cross, what you guessed, and what they really said. This list is the best part. It is where "Wait, you would really give up coffee before social media?" conversations start.

From the results screen you have three choices:

• Send your score back. This shares a short message with your score and the verdict heading, plus a link to this page so they can make another. It does not include your guesses or their answers.
• Make your own quiz. This clears their quiz from the address and starts a new one about you, so you can send one right back.
• Play love trivia. Jump over to the second game.

How to read the score

Please do not take the number too seriously. Ten questions is a tiny sample, and with four options on each one, a lucky guess or two can swing it either way. People also change. The answer you were sure about three years ago may simply not be true anymore, and finding that out is one of the nicest things a silly quiz can do.

Tips for making a good quiz

A quiz is only as fun as the answers behind it. A few small choices make a big difference.

• Answer for who you are now. Not who you were in college and not who you want to be by next summer. If you secretly hit snooze three times, say so.
• Swap the questions that feel too easy. If your partner has watched you eat pepperoni pizza every Friday for six years, that question will not tell anyone anything. Swap it for one with a real chance of a surprise.
• Keep one or two gimmes. On the other hand, a quiz with no easy questions can feel like a trap. Leave a couple of answers they should know, so the score does not sting.
• Look for the stories. The best questions are the ones where your answer comes with a story. "Which city would you visit first?" might lead to a trip you have been quietly dreaming about.
• Check your answer list before you send. The link screen lists all ten answers. A quick read catches the one you tapped by accident. Use "Change an answer" to go back and fix it.
• Add a little message. When you tap "Send," your phone lets you type a note along with the link. Something like "no asking me for hints" sets the right tone.

Game two: love trivia for two

The second game is a friendly head-to-head on one phone. There are 43 multiple-choice questions about love, romance, weddings and dating traditions, and each one comes with a short "Did you know?" fact after it is answered.

1. Type both names. If you skip them, the game calls you Player 1 and Player 2.
2. Pick a length. Choose 10 questions for a quick round or 20 for a longer game. Either way, each player gets half.
3. Take turns. Player 1 gets the first question, Player 2 gets the second, and so on. The screen always says whose turn it is.
4. See the answer right away. After a tap, the right answer gets a check mark, a wrong pick gets a cross, and a "Did you know?" note appears. Read it out loud. It is often the most fun part.
5. Watch the score. The running score for both players sits just above the Next button.
6. Crown a winner. The end screen shows both scores and names the winner, or calls it a tie.

"Play again with new questions" starts a fresh round that leaves out every question you have already played during this visit, until the 43 run out. Then it mixes the whole set again. "Change players" lets a new pair take over.

What the trivia covers

The questions come from a few different corners of love and romance:

• Valentine's Day and its cousins. When Valentine's Day falls, how it is celebrated in Japan, and the lovers' days of other places, such as St. Dwynwen's Day in Wales and the Qixi Festival in China.
• Anniversaries. The traditional gift materials and gemstones for milestone years, from paper at the start to diamond far down the road.
• Weddings around the world. Customs from Jewish, Hindu, South Asian and Chinese weddings, plus the old English rhyme about something borrowed.
• Myths and famous stories. Cupid and Psyche, Orpheus and Eurydice, Romeo and Juliet, and Elizabeth Bennet.
• Love in history. The Taj Mahal, one of the earliest recorded diamond engagement rings, and the queen who made white wedding dresses fashionable.
• Love in nature and in words. Lovebirds, seahorses, the "cuddle hormone," and how to say "I love you" in a couple of languages.

Every question sticks to well-known, well-documented facts. Where something is a belief or a tradition rather than a hard fact, the question says so. The old idea of a vein running from the ring finger straight to the heart, for example, is presented as the lovely old belief it is, not as anatomy.

How it differs from the couples quiz

This site also has a Couples Quiz, and the two are easy to mix up. They share a spirit but work in very different ways.

The simplest way to decide: if you are sitting next to each other, the Couples Quiz is quicker. If you are apart, or you want to take your time picking the perfect questions, make a quiz here and send it.

Ideas for game nights

Both games slot neatly into an evening at home. A few ways to build a night around them:

• Swap quizzes, then compare. Each of you makes a quiz, sends it to the other, and you take them at the same time on your own phones. Then read the reveals out loud and see who knows whom better.
• Trivia with a stake. Play 20 questions of love trivia. The loser makes dessert, picks the next movie, or does the dishes.
• Party rounds. At a get-together, everyone makes a quiz about themselves and sends it to their partner, a best friend or the whole group chat. Whoever scores highest on someone else's quiz wins bragging rights.
• A double feature. Start with a round of love trivia to warm up, then trade quizzes for the main event. For even more to play, our list of couple games has plenty to fill the rest of the evening.
• Newlywed night. The quiz works as a gentle, low-stakes cousin of the Newlywed Game. Friends can each send the couple of honor a quiz ahead of the party, and the results make great toast material.

Ideas for long distance

The quiz was built with distance in mind. Because the link carries everything, your partner can play in another time zone, on their lunch break, or on a layover, with no need to be online at the same time as you.

• A weekly swap. Pick one night a week. Each of you sends a new quiz, and you talk about the results on your next call.
• A surprise in the morning. Send a quiz before bed so it is waiting when they wake up. "How well do you know me?" is a sweet way to start someone's day.
• Trivia on a video call. One of you shares the screen or reads the love trivia questions out loud, and you both answer. The "Did you know?" notes are good conversation starters when the call goes quiet.
• A countdown ritual. Swap a new quiz for each week left before you see each other again. By the reunion, you will know a surprising amount of new small stuff.

For more ways to play when you are apart, see our long distance relationship games.

Keeping it kind

These games are meant to be playful. A low score is not proof of anything except that there is more to talk about, and that is a gift, not a problem. Laugh at the misses, ask about the answers that surprised you, and never answer your own quiz the way you wish you were instead of the way you are. The goal is to feel a little more known by the end, not to win an argument.

Frequently asked questions

Want a bigger list for hosting out loud? Our newlywed game questions are made for a crowd.