Cards Against Humanity
Cards Against Humanity is a Chicago-based private game company that designs and sells irreverent card and party games, including its flagship $29 fill-in-the-blank adult game, Family Edition, themed packs, and boxed expansions, distributed globally via webstore, Amazon, Target, and international retailers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Cards Against Humanity does
Cards Against Humanity is a Chicago-based, founder-controlled private LLC (Cards Against Humanity LLC, Illinois) that designs, manufactures (via AdMagic), and distributes an irreverent, edgy card- and party-game portfolio under its own brand. The flagship product is a fill-in-the-blank party game — 500 white cards and 100 black cards, now at version 2.3 with substantial annual content rewrites — priced at $29, accompanied by a Family Edition (600 all-new cards for ages 8+) and an extensive catalog of themed $5 packs (Culture Wars Pack, Science Pack, Climate Catastrophe Pack, Scary Pack, Ass Pack, Weed Pack, Pride Pack, and 30+ others), boxed expansions ($20-$30; Hot Box, Absurd Box, Everything Box, Ultimate Expansion at ~2,000 cards), alternative game modes (Shit List, Out of Line, Twists Bundle, Tales Vol. 1 & 2), and adjacent core games (Party Mouth, Head Trip, Contact!, Business Walrus via the ClickHole acquisition). Accessories and novelty items include branded mugs, caps, bumper stickers, posters, the Bōks premium leather storage case, Tiny Cards Against Humanity, Clammy Dick: A Novel, and the satirical 'Please Do Not Buy This Product' empty box.
The company's technical footprint is a content platform built around a proprietary humor-writing methodology and creative IP rather than a traditional software stack: there is no native mobile app, and the core game is distributed as a free PDF under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). The Cards Against Humanity Lab (lab.cardsagainsthumanity.com) is an official online testing environment for new cards. Manufacturing is outsourced to AdMagic (sole printer) and payments run through Stripe; the 'Cards Against Humanity Explains the Joke' special edition is classified as an informational product to maintain tariff exemption, with proceeds supporting the American Library Association. The company ships globally, with five localized editions (US, UK, Australia, Canada, International) at ~15% content variation per market.
The business model is direct-to-consumer-led and transactional: products are sold one-time via the owned webstore (cardsagainsthumanity.com), with supplemental distribution through Amazon, Target, and other third-party retailers. Revenue streams include physical game sales, expansion packs and add-ons ($22.99-$29 boxed, $5-$10 themed), themed packs whose proceeds fund partnerships (Science Pack → Science Ambassador Scholarship; World Wide Web Pack → EFF), and sponsorship/brand campaigns. Pricing spans $5-$100. There is no SaaS, subscription, licensing (except defensive IP), or advertising revenue line; the company is private with no disclosed institutional investors or funding rounds. The operating team is 11-50 employees; the company has expanded into adjacent categories via acquisition (ClickHole, 2020) and product lines, while pulling back from a costly Original Prongles potato-chip foray.
Cards Against Humanity firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cards Against Humanity
- Legal name
- Cards Against Humanity LLC
- Website
- https://cardsagainsthumanity.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Cards Against Humanity is a Chicago-based private game company that designs and sells irreverent card and party games, including its flagship $29 fill-in-the-blank adult game, Family Edition, themed packs, and boxed expansions, distributed globally via webstore, Amazon, Target, and international retailers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cards Against Humanity industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Party Card Games
- NAICS
- Doll, Toy, and Game Manufacturing (339930), Hobby, Toy, and Game Retailers (45912), Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Retailers (45942)
- SIC
- Games, Toys & Children's Vehicles (No Dolls & Bicycles) (3944), Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Collectibles, Trading Cards & Blind Box Toys Retail (CRALAFAI)
Keywords
Where Cards Against Humanity is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Cards Against Humanity business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Operations
Revenue model
- Physical game sales: Sale of physical card game products including main games, expansions, and themed packs at various price points ($5-$100)
- Expansion packs and add-ons: Additional card packs and boxed expansions to enhance gameplay variety
- Themed packs: Specialty themed packs like Science Pack (proceeds fund Science Ambassador Scholarship), World Wide Web Pack (proceeds benefit EFF), Culture Wars Pack, and others
- Sponsorship and partnership campaigns: High-profile marketing campaigns like Black Friday sales, Science Scholarship donation, Holiday Hole, and brand activations
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Main game editions |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Expansion products |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Themed card packs |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Novelty and accessory products |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels4 records
Cards Against Humanity product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cards Against Humanity designs, manufactures, and sells a popular adult party card game in which players fill in the blanks of humorous, often irreverent prompt cards with the funniest matching answer card from their hand. The company releases numerous themed expansion packs, limited-edition boxes, and special editions, and distributes them directly through its own online store.
Product overview
Cards Against Humanity is a card-based party game company offering a portfolio of products centered around its core fill-in-the-blank card game. The main offerings include the flagship Cards Against Humanity game (with 500 white cards and 100 black cards, now at version 2.3), the family-friendly Cards Against Humanity: Family Edition (600 all-new cards for ages 8+), and Party Mouth as an alternative party game. The company provides numerous expansion products including themed boxes (Hot Box, Absurd Box, Everything Box, Glow in the Dark Box, Ultimate Expansion), story-based products (Tales Vol. 1 & 2), and alternative gameplay modes (Shit List, Out of Line, Head Trip). A wide variety of $5 themed packs cover topics including Culture Wars, Science, Climate Catastrophe, School Sucks, Scary, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and more. Additional products include accessories like the Bōks leather storage case, Tiny Cards Against Humanity, greeting cards, mugs, hats, and novelty items. The company also offers a digital platform (Cards Against Humanity Lab) for testing new cards, and an online version is available through third-party sites.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Cards Against Humanity: Base Game The flagship adult party card game where players combine prompt cards with answer cards to create the funniest combinations; targeted at adults who enjoy irreverent humor at social gatherings.
- Cards Against Humanity: Glow in the Dark Box Special-edition version of the base card game featuring glow-in-the-dark packaging; targeted at collectors and party-goers.
Companies that use Cards Against Humanity
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Cards Against Humanity technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Cards Against Humanity partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- SpaceXminorCards Against Humanity and SpaceX reached a confidential settlement in October 2025 over a trespassing lawsuit concerning land in Cameron County, Texas adjacent to SpaceX's Starbase. SpaceX admitted to using the land without permission and agreed to vacate. The company had bought the border land to prevent wall construction and sued after SpaceX stored construction materials on the property. SpaceX agreed to remove equipment and restore the land.
- AdMagiccoreAdMagic is identified as the printer for all Cards Against Humanity products, handling manufacturing of all game cards and packaging
- StripecoreStripe is the payment processor for the webstore, handling all credit card transactions; Cards Against Humanity does not store credit card information
- American Library AssociationminorProceeds from the 'Cards Against Humanity Explains the Joke' special edition are donated to the American Library Association to fight censorship. The edition is classified as an informational product to avoid tariffs.
- Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)minorThe World Wide Web Pack was written with anonymous Reddit users and benefits the EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation)
- ClickHoleminorClickHole is a related satirical site; Cards Against Humanity sells ClickHole Greeting Cards and Business Walrus game on their platform
- Sir Mix-A-LotminorThe Ass Pack was co-written with Sir Mix-A-Lot, the iconic rapper known for 'Baby Got Back'
- Science Ambassador ScholarshipminorA full-tuition scholarship for women in science, funded by proceeds from the Science Pack
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Cards Against Humanity competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Unstable Games: Publisher of adult card games like 'Drunk, Stoned, or Stupid' — a near-direct competitor to CAH in the irreverent party-card-game niche with similar pricing, expansion cadence, and marketing voice.
- Exploding Kittens: Kickstarter-origin irreverent card game company selling illustrated party/strategy games directly to consumer. Closely comparable to CAH on product format (card games), target audience (adults/families), Kickstarter-to-D2C GTM, and irreverent brand voice.
- What Do You Meme?: Adult party card game built around humorous comparison/meme mechanics, sold direct and through mass retail. Direct competitor in the adult-party-card-game category with the same Target/Barnes & Noble shelf placement.
- Bezier Games: Indie party and card-game publisher (Werewolf, One Night Ultimate series). Similar scale, similar irreverent adult-game positioning, and overlapping retail partnerships with Target and Amazon.
- Buffalo Games: US-based party/trivia card-game publisher (Smart Ass, Trivial Pursuit: Family Edition). A direct comparable for adult party-card-game SKU mix, mass-retail distribution, and expansion-pack model.
Broad incumbents
- Mattel163 / Mega Construx (adjacent): Mattel-affiliated special categories – included because CAH occasionally competes against Mattel-licensed card/pack products in similar shelf-placement opportunities.
- Hasbro: Largest US games and toys incumbent with party-game franchises (e.g., Monopoly, Apples to Apples, Trivial Pursuit). Competes for the same adult party-game shelf space at mass retail and benefits from significantly broader distribution.
- Asmodee: Major board and card-game publisher (Catan, Ticket to Ride, Codenames). Overlaps with CAH as a tabletop card-game publisher targeting hobbyist and family audiences with sold-through specialty retail channels.
- Mattel: Global toys and games incumbent holding UNO, Scrabble, and similar party-game categories. Comparable as a broad incumbent competing for game-night occasions and shelf space across all major US retailers.
Others
- Hachette Book Group (ClickHole parent / adjacent publishing): Adjacent publishing partner for CAH's ClickHole-aligned products (greeting cards, Business Walrus). Comparable as a publisher of humor/satire content that enables CAH's adjacent product categories.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Cards Against Humanity social profiles
Digital presenceCards Against Humanity financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cards Against Humanity leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
Cards Against Humanity funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cards Against Humanity M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Cards Against Humanity
What does Cards Against Humanity do?
Cards Against Humanity designs, manufactures, and sells a popular adult party card game in which players fill in the blanks of humorous, often irreverent prompt cards with the funniest matching answer card from their hand. The company releases numerous themed expansion packs, limited-edition boxes, and special editions, and distributes them directly through its own online store.
Is Cards Against Humanity a public or private company?
Cards Against Humanity is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Cards Against Humanity founded?
Cards Against Humanity was founded in 2010. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Cards Against Humanity based?
Cards Against Humanity is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does Cards Against Humanity make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Physical game sales are the primary driver. The others are expansion packs and add-ons, themed packs and sponsorship and partnership campaigns.
Who are Cards Against Humanity's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Unstable Games, Exploding Kittens, What Do You Meme?, Bezier Games and Buffalo Games. Broad incumbents are Mattel163 / Mega Construx (adjacent), Hasbro, Asmodee and Mattel. Hachette Book Group (ClickHole parent / adjacent publishing) is listed as an others.
Does Cards Against Humanity have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cards Against Humanity.
What industry is Cards Against Humanity in?
Cards Against Humanity's product category is Party Card Games. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRALAFAI, Collectibles, Trading Cards & Blind Box Toys Retail. Its NAICS code is 339930 and its SIC code is 3944.