Edition: Bezzerwizzer Original for 2 to 4 players or teams. Last checked October 25, 2026
Bezzerwizzer Rules: How to Play Bezzerwizzer
Bezzerwizzer is a Danish trivia game where you decide which topics you want to bet the most on. With the small tiles you can swap categories and jump in on other players' questions. Here are the rules and answers to the things that often spark debate.
- Players
- 2 to 4 players or teams
- Age
- 15 and up
- Playing time
- 30 to 60 minutes
How to win: Be the first player or team to reach the finish on the board.
Who is right?
The classic arguments at the table when you play Bezzerwizzer.
Can you swap a category that has already been used this round?
No.
The ZWAP tile can only swap categories that have not been asked yet. You use it on your own turn, before the question is read.
Some families allow ZWAP at any time, as long as it happens before the next question is read.
Can you lose points by playing a Bezzerwizzer tile?
Yes, in some editions.
In several editions you score if you answer right and the other player answers wrong. If both answer wrong, the player who used the tile loses a point. Check the rulebook in your box.
Many families play without the penalty so kids dare to use their tiles.
How long do you have to answer?
There is no set time.
The rulebook does not set a specific time limit for answering.
Many count slowly to 10 or borrow a sand timer from another game.
Does a last name alone count as a correct answer?
Agree before you start.
The answer has to match the answer on the card. Whether half an answer, like just a last name, is accepted is best agreed on before you start.
Many accept the last name if that is what the person is best known by.
What you need
- The game board, which is the box itself
- Question cards
- Category tiles and a bag
- One pawn and one player board per player or team
- Two Bezzerwizzer tiles and one ZWAP tile per player or team
Setup
- 1Each player or team takes a pawn, a player board, a ZWAP tile and two Bezzerwizzer tiles in the same color.
- 2Put all pawns on the start space.
- 3Put the category tiles in the bag, and everyone draws 4.
- 4Place your 4 categories on your player board. Put the one you know least about on 1 point and the one you know most about on 4 points.
- 5Draw lots to see who starts.
How to play
- 1First, each player gets a question in their 1 point category. Then 2 points, then 3, and finally 4 points.
- 2Play goes clockwise, and the question is read out loud without the person answering seeing the card.
- 3If you answer correctly, you move as many spaces as the category is worth. If you answer wrong, nothing happens.
- 4Flip the category tile over once its question has been used.
- 5On your own turn, before the question is asked, you can use your ZWAP tile to swap two categories that have not been used yet.
- 6On someone else's turn, you can play a Bezzerwizzer tile and answer the question too.
- 7When everyone has had four questions, the categories go back in the bag. Everyone draws 4 new ones and gets their tiles back.
- 8The game ends when a player reaches the finish and everyone has had the same number of questions. If several reach the finish, extra questions decide the winner.
The tiles
- ZWAP: one per round. Swap two categories, either between two players or on your own board.
- Bezzerwizzer: two per round. Answer someone else's question. If they get it wrong and you get it right, you score.
- In some editions you lose a point if both you and the other player answer wrong.
- Used tiles are flipped over and come back into play when new categories are drawn.
House rules
Pick the rules you want to play with tonight. Everyone at the table has to agree.
Our Bezzerwizzer rules for tonight
Everything else follows the official rules.
Frequently asked questions
How many categories are there in Bezzerwizzer?
Bezzerwizzer Original has 20 categories. Each player gets 4 of them every round.
What is the difference between Bezzerwizzer and Trivial Pursuit?
In Bezzerwizzer you choose which topics give the most points, and you can jump in on other players' questions. In Trivial Pursuit the die decides the category.
Source: The publisher's rulebook and common family tradition. The game was invented in Denmark by Jesper Bülow. The rules are written in our own words. Ask the referee if you are unsure.