Whoever said “Teamwork makes the dream work” was right. In fact, a survey by Zippia revealed that more than half (52%) of US employees say teamwork is very important.
Now, one of the best ways to improve teamwork and collaboration is through team building activities. The great news is that it doesn’t have to break the bank.
Today, I’ll give you 22 cheap team building ideas. These low-cost activities will focus on communication, problem-solving, creativity, and morale. So let’s get straight to it!
Read More: 28 Creative Team Building Over Zoom Ideas
22 Low-Cost Team Building Ideas
Anna Roberts and Phil Kendall of RotaCloud give this advice:
“One thing first: you need to decide what you want to achieve with the activities you choose.”
If you’re in charge of organizing team bonding activities, always start with an end goal. Do you want the team members to improve communication or problem-solving skills? Maybe you just want to boost morale so that the work week won’t be so burdensome. Obviously, you’ll want it to be cheap or even free.
To make planning easier for you, I’ll divide the 22 cheap team building ideas into categories…
Category 1. Activities to improve communication:
- Reverse Pictionary
- Minefield
- Icebreaker Games
- Potluck Dinner
- Spectrum Mapping
- Charades
- Presentation showdown
Category 2. Activities to improve problem-solving skills:
- Scavenger Hunt
- Mystery Box Challenge
- Board Games
- Escape Room
- Seemingly Nothing in Common
Category 3. Activities to enhance creativity:
- Scattergories
- Host a Class
- Themed Days
- Marshmallow Challenge
- Designing Contest
- DIY Team Newspaper
Category 4. Activities to boost morale:
- Happy Hour
- Beach Day
- Sports Day
- Movie Night
1. Reverse Pictionary
If the aim is to improve communication skills, reverse Pictionary is one of the best team-building activities. Plus, it’s FREE.
Now, you probably already know how to play Pictionary – a person draws an object and someone tries to guess what it is. But in reverse Pictionary, the person will have to try the explain the object instead of drawing it.
You can split the whole team into two groups. One person in the group will be the speaker, while the rest of the team will be guessers. For each round, switch up the speaker. This way, everyone will have a chance to improve their communication and listening skills.
In the end, the group that guesses the most words correctly and quickly is the winning team.
2. Minefield
Minefield builds trust and communication. So you’re hitting two birds with one stone. Again, this is a free activity that everyone can take part in.
In this game, you team together 2 to 4 coworkers. You then scatter objects on the floor – like mines in a minefield. The objects can be anything from office supplies to office chairs.
The goal is to get someone from one end to the other without hitting any of the objects. The catch is that the person walking is blindfolded. It’s the other team members’ job to direct them by giving left and right instructions.
If someone runs into an object, they have to go back to start. The fastest team to get someone across and avoid the mines will win.
This fun and low-cost team building activity promotes and encourages team members to communicate precisely and trust each other.
3. Icebreaker Games
Say you want to organize a chill, low budget team building activity that builds camaraderie and communication. Well, icebreaker games can do the trick. It’s especially great to help new team members or remote teams get to know each other.
Now, there are many different kinds of Icebreaker games you can choose. The most basic one is to come up with a few questions and ask each team member to answer them. You can have everyone answer the same question or a different question every time.
If you want it to be a team building game, you can go for ‘Two Truths and a Lie’. For this, have everyone write down two truths about themselves and one lie. When read out, everyone will try to guess which one is the lie. Whoever guesses it correctly will earn a point.
4. Potluck Dinner
One of the best bonding ideas for large groups is a potluck dinner. Since it’s a potluck, it will be very cheap.
When you prepare for this, reserve the conference room and prepare it for a dinner get-together. Then, ask everyone to bring at least one dish. I tell you, it will be like a feast.
If you want to add conversation starters, you can put a theme on the food people bring. Let’s say you tell everyone to bring their favorite meals or a meal from their home city/state/country. Roberts and Kendall add:
“Remind staff that these potlucks shouldn’t be treated as competitive — it’s perfectly okay to bring in a ready meal so long as it fits the theme!”
5. Spectrum Mapping
You’ll encounter a variety of people with different backgrounds in the work environment. This is especially true in virtual teams with members from all over the world.
If you want better collaboration, it’s important to understand different perspectives. Spectrum mapping will help with that. Plus, it’s great for communication and doesn’t cost a thing.
To start, choose a topic. It can be about work, personality traits, preferences, etc… On a whiteboard, draw a horizontal line to represent your spectrum. On each end of the line, label the extremes or endpoints of the topic. For example, you can write introvert above and extrovert below.
Have the team place themselves in one spectrum and explain their perspective. According to Tasia Duske, the COO of TeamBuilding.com:
“Mapping helps start discussions about similarities and differences. Thus, this activity promotes teamwork and empathy.”
6. Charades
Not all communication has to do with speaking. If you want to improve the non-verbal side of it, playing charades is a fun and cheap team bonding idea. Plus, it’s known to lift team spirit.
To prepare, create a list of words or phrases to act out. If you don’t have any ideas, you can use an online charade generator.
When the game begins, split the players into 2 teams. One player from Team A starts by selecting a word or phrase and then acting it out without using any words or props. The rest of the team will have to shout their guesses. If they can get it right within the time (around 1-2 minutes), they’ll earn a point.
Up next, have Team B do a round. For each round, switch the actors up. This way, everyone can work on their non-verbal communication skills.
7. Presentation Showdown
One cost-effective team building activity that helps with public speaking is a presentation showdown. This will also allow team members to use their creative juices.
Before the presentation night, give everyone a topic. If it’s a large team, you can make them work together in groups or pairs. If not, each person gets to do their own presentation.
The topic can range from “Most likely to win Squid Games” to “Top 5 funniest office moments”. Whatever it is, have the person/team create a PowerPoint presentation with their takes. Whoever can deliver the best presentation wins!
8. Scavenger Hunt
The World Economic Forum (WEF) conducted a survey that saw problem-solving skills as the top skill in the workplace. They mentioned that at least 36% of jobs require complex problem-solving abilities.
With that in mind, it’s important to organize team building exercises that improve problem-solving skills. The first inexpensive team building idea I thought of was a Scavenger Hunt.
Yes, it’s low-cost, but it will take a lot of planning and preparation. You’ll first have to decide if your treasure hunt will be riddle-based, task-based, or both. You then have to create clues leading to the prize, such as a gift card or office supplies.
When everything is set, make teams and give them the first clue. When they guess the riddle or complete the task, hand them the next clue. And the next… until they reach the treasure.
9. Mystery Box Challenge
Here’s another low-cost team building idea that enhances problem-solving abilities. In the Mystery Box Challenge, you’ll need to split everyone into small groups.
You’ll then grab a few random items from the office and hide them inside a box. Hand the box over to the team and start a timer to however long you’re giving the team.
When the time starts, the team will open the box, examine the items inside, and create a new product or solution to a problem with the items. When the time runs out, they will need to present their product/solution to the judges. Whoever can come up with the best creation wins.
Besides problem-solving, this game also enhances resourcefulness, teamwork, and creativity.
10. Board Games
There are so many different board games that require problem-solving to win. Now, the team building budget might have to be a bit higher as you’ll have to buy the board games (unless someone already has it. Don’t forget to ask). Also, since these games are slower, it’s a great idea to provide snacks and beverages.
For game night, select popular and indie board games that you know everyone will enjoy. You can include Jenga, Pictionary, Sushi Go!, Hanabi, Settlers of Catan, Ticket to Ride, Chess, Trivia cards, and the list goes on and on.
If you’re unsure what board games to bring, have everyone take a vote. This way, you know that each game will go down well.
11. Escape Room
Want to take the corporate team building outside the office? Then a team-building idea that won’t break the bank is an escape room. This will usually cost around $20 to $40 per person per hour.
Escape rooms are great for problem-solving and critical thinking, as well as teamwork and communication. All that will help your team with workplace productivity.
For an escape room escapade, have the team first choose a theme. You can do detective mysteries, historical adventures, science fiction scenarios, or even haunted houses. You can then book your reservation to the nearest escape room.
When you arrive, you’ll be put inside a room. Everyone has to work together to find clues, search for objects, decipher codes, unlock locks, solve puzzles, etc… The goal is to escape the room before the time rounds out (usually within an hour).
12. Seemingly Nothing in Common
Seemingly Nothing in Common is a great game as it challenges problem-solving, critical thinking, innovation, and conventional thinking.
For this game, grab a couple of items that seem to have nothing in common. The team’s task is to group items by 3s or 5s and find something that connects them all.
Let’s say there&#