What is Spy?
Spy is a social deduction party game played on a single phone. Each round the app secretly makes one or more players the spy; everyone else is a citizen. All citizens see the same secret word. The spy only learns that they are the spy — no hint, no category.
Then the talking starts. Players ask each other questions to prove they know the word without making it so obvious that the spy catches on. The spy has to answer convincingly while piecing the word together from everyone else’s answers.
How many players and spies?
You need at least 3 players; it is at its best with 5–10. Above 10, split into two groups. The app recommends a spy count and you can set anything from 1 to one less than the number of players:
| Players | Recommended spies |
|---|---|
| 3–7 | 1 spy |
| 8–10 | 2 spies |
| 11+ | 3 spies |
With more than one spy, the spies are not told who the others are — which leads to some brilliant misunderstandings.
Setting up
- Saved group: enter your friends’ names once and the app keeps everyone’s wins and losses. Round time is 1–30 minutes (default 5).
- Quick game: no names needed — pick players (3–12), spies and minutes (1–15, default 3) and go.
- Word categories: from Easy and Hard to adult packs, plus your own custom categories. Words from the last 20 rounds are not repeated.
How a round of Spy works
- Deal the roles: pass the phone. Each player taps “Show role” or holds the card. Citizens see the secret word; the spy just sees “Spy”. Then “Got it — next player”.
- Discuss: the timer starts and the app picks a random starter to ask the first question (it might be the spy!). A suggested-question card helps if you are stuck. The last 10 seconds beep and vibrate.
- Secret vote: when time runs out or someone taps “End discussion — vote”, everyone votes in turn, privately, for anyone but themselves. Spies vote too.
- Count the votes: if a citizen gets the most votes, the spies win on the spot. If the vote is tied, the citizens win.
- The spy’s last chance: if a spy is voted out, they get one chance to type the secret word. Right guess: spies win. Wrong guess: citizens win. The spelling has to match exactly.
- Result: spies and the word are revealed, winners are announced and “Play again” starts the next round — the app avoids making last round’s spy the spy again.
Who wins?
- Citizens win if the spy is voted out and guesses the word wrong, or if the vote is tied.
- Spies win if a citizen is voted out, or if the ousted spy guesses the word.
- Manual call: the host can record “Spies win” or “Citizens win” at any moment — handy when a spy blurts out something impossible.
In saved groups every player on the winning side gets a win and everyone else a loss, so the leaderboard is always up to date.
Spyfall (location) mode
In Spyfall mode everyone sees a shared location instead of a word — restaurant, airport, hospital, school, cinema, supermarket, stadium, café, hotel, park, university, metro station, beach, library or barber shop. The spy has to work out where you are from the questions. Everything else follows the classic rules.
Spyfall is a Pro feature; free players can unlock one round by watching an ad. Classic Spy, Quick and Mafia are always free.
Quick mode for loud parties
Quick mode deals roles and the word just like classic, but skips the digital vote: just a timer and free discussion. When time is up the group decides, and the host records “Spies won” or “Citizens won”.
Tips and strategy
For citizens
- Ask questions that are easy only if you know the word — “Is it expensive or cheap?”, “When did you last deal with one?”.
- Don’t be too specific; the spy is listening!
- Watch for hesitation, vague answers and people who just echo others.
For the spy
- Keep answers short and confident and collect clues from everyone else.
- Ask questions that narrow the word down without sounding suspicious.
- Voted out? Don’t panic — a correct guess still wins the round.
Roles really stay secret
Leave the app during a reveal and the role card is covered instantly. On iPhone the discussion timer also shows on the Lock Screen and Dynamic Island (Live Activity), and an unfinished round resumes after the app is closed.
