Rate your friends template: a kind, funny jar chart for the group

Rate the strengths, not the people

The rule that makes this template work is simple: every jar is something good. Nobody is scored on being annoying or late. Instead, each jar names a strength, a habit or a favourite quality, and the fill level says how much that fits a friend. A full jar is a compliment. A half-full jar is still a nice thing to say. An empty one just means that is not their thing, and everyone has an empty jar or two.

Framed like that, you get the fun of comparing and ranking with none of the sting. People who normally dodge games like this usually join in, because the worst result is a gentle joke about how nobody would trust them to read a map.

Thirty jar labels to borrow

Choose twelve to sixteen. Keep them short enough to fit under a jar.

• The organiser: best at planning, always on time, finds the venue, remembers birthdays, books the table.
• The entertainer: funniest voice notes, best stories, loudest laugh, brings the snacks, starts the sing-along.
• The rock: great listener, calm in a crisis, gives honest advice, always replies, remembers the small stuff.
• The adventurer: says yes to a day out, tries the weird menu item, finds the best walks, up for anything, packs the picnic.
• The home team: best host, cosiest sofa, top baker, board game champion, makes the best playlist.
• Group chat: first to reply, sends the best photos, sends the longest messages, master of the meme, keeps the thread alive.

Mix in a few jars about the group itself, like our best inside joke or how often we meet up. They give everyone a shared jar to fill high.

One sheet per friend, or one shelf for all

There are two easy ways to run it.

• One sheet per friend. Every person fills a sheet about one chosen friend, then hands it over. Each friend ends up with a stack of kind opinions. For a group of six, that is five sheets each, so keep the jars to eight.
• One sheet for the group. Everyone fills a shelf about the friendship as a whole, such as how much we love a long brunch. Compare the shelves like a team portrait.

The printable sheet has sixteen jars with a name line and tick marks, and the free jar chart maker lets you add your own labels and save a picture, so you can send each friend their shelf.

Reveal games that keep it warm

• Guess who filled it. Gather the sheets about one friend, remove the names and have the friend guess the author of each. Nobody is ever wrong for long.
• Self versus friends. Each person fills their own shelf, then reads the average of the group. The gaps are always lovely, because people underrate themselves.
• Award night. For each jar, find the fullest sheet in the group and give that friend the jar's title for the evening. Make paper crowns if you are feeling bold.
• Thank-you round. Everyone picks their fullest jar for a friend and says why in one sentence.

Ground rules for a good evening

A few simple agreements keep the mood right. Only positive or neutral labels. Anyone can skip a jar. Sheets belong to the friend they are about, so nobody posts them without asking. And everyone gets the same amount of attention, so quieter friends do not feel left out of the reveal.

If your group is large, work in pairs or trios to keep the count of sheets manageable. If you are planning a game night around it, the jar chart template for friends has more formats, and couples jar chart ideas covers the two-person version. If you are new to the idea, read what the jar meme is for the background.