10 Best Games for Teaching Finance and Business

10 Best Games for Teaching Finance and Business

Top 10 Best Business and Finance Games

The topic of finances can be a bit humdrum. That was until gaming revolutionized financial literacy. Click here for the top 10 best business and finance games.

Research shows that two-thirds of Americans Adults would struggle to pass a basic financial literacy test. If you belong to this group, you might want to learn how you can upgrade your skills. 

It might sound odd, but games can be one of the best ways to improve your financial knowledge. The fact that games are fun means makes it so much easier to absorb some of the ‘boring’ concepts associated with finances. 

Here’s a list of 10 finance games that’ll help you learn more about finances and business.

With these finance games, you’ll be to improve your financial knowledge and progress to the next level of financial mastery.

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Let’s begin! 

1) Cashflow

Robert Kiyosaki, the author of popular finance book ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad,’ is the inventor of this game.

The game teaches you the fundamentals behind ‘cash flow,’ and how the concept relates to financial independence.

One of the great things about this game is that it teaches you a lot about investing. You’ll learn what it takes to identify worthwhile investment opportunities, and how you can use them to improve your net worth. 

2) Saving Spree

Saving Spree allows you to learn more about spending and saving money.

The game is designed to highlight the consequences behind certain financial decisions. For instance, you’re given the choice of saving money or making an impulse purchase.

As the game progresses, you’ll be able to see how these decisions play out, thereby allowing you to see where you might’ve gone wrong.

3) Star Banks Adventure

With this game, players are in charge of saving the galaxy from financial chaos.

The cool thing about the game is that it teaches financial literacy, using a science fiction storyline. This helps bring some excitement to the often dull concepts associated with personal finance.

4) Monopoly

Perhaps the king of all finance and business games, Monopoly gives people the chance to learn a wide range of skills.

The people in charge of ‘banking’ will need to learn how to handle various denominations of ‘currency.’

The other players will need to learn how to prepare for financial setbacks, should they need to pay rent. They’ll also need to learn how they can make money, by investing in ‘houses’ and ‘hotels.’

It’s also worth noting that Monopoly can lead to some heated debates. So alongside financial skills, people have the chance to learn about conflict resolution too!

5) Bad Credit Hotel

This is a game produced by the US Department of the Treasury. Which is a good sign if you’re interested in a game that comes from someone who knows what they’re talking about.

The point of this game is to teach people how to manage their credit. When playing the game, you’ll learn how various things like quick loans can impact your credit score. 

It’s worth noting that it’s a relatively old game, and so it’s not going to have the best graphics. But there’s no denying that the information it provides is still useful and relevant.

6) The Stock Market Game

This game provides a great, risk-free way for you to learn how the stock market works.

To begin with, you’re given a sum of $100,000. You’re then tasked with growing this investment, using the stock market.

It’s a game primarily designed for students, and thus the language used in the game is easy to understand.

Of course, if you want a more ‘realistic’ stock trading experience, there’s the option of setting up a paper trading account with an actual broker. With such an account, you’re still trading with ‘fake’ money, but you do so using realistic software.

7) Zoo Tycoon

It takes a lot to manage a zoo, and the Zoo Tycoon game gives you an insight into just how hard the task is.

The complexity of this game gives you the chance to learn a variety of business skills.

You’ll need to learn how to manage the employees and animals so that everyone is taken care of. You’ll also need to pay attention to ‘guest feedback’ so that you can improve the profits of the zoo.

It’s worth noting that the game gives you the chance to select from a number of difficulty levels. So if you’re looking to fast-track your education, you can do so by ramping up the difficulty.

Additionally, if you ever get bored of Zoo Tycoon, you can progress to other games such as Rollercoaster Tycoon.

Such games follow a similar theme, but you’ll face a different set of problems. For instance, in Rollercoaster Tycoon, you’ll need to figure out how to get people to visit your theme park, rather than the Zoo. 

8) Farming Simulator

Farming simulator shows you what it takes to establish and then grow a farm.

The game will help improve budgeting skills as you’ll need to figure out how to get the most out of your farming revenue.

You’ll also discover how investing in new tools can improve the efficiency of the farm, and eventually the profits too.

One of the exciting things about this game is that changing market conditions can affect the prices of certain crops. This can give you a real insight into the world of business, and how you need to react to changes in the market.

9) The Founder

If you want to learn how to set up a business, this game will teach you everything you need to know.

To begin with, you need to complete simple tasks like choosing a name for your business. But as the game progresses, you’ll need to learn various skills like marketing and how to manage employees.

It’s a ‘browser-based’ game, and so you’ll get the best experience when playing this game on a laptop. This can feel like a hassle, but you’ll find it’s all worth it after playing the game for just a short while. 

10) The Game of Life

The Game of Life is perhaps one of the oldest games on this list, but it’s still a firm favorite when it comes to learning financial skills.

The game gives you the chance to learn how decisions can impact your financial success. You find out how certain careers can impact your income and how debt can affect later life choices.

The game isn’t overly complicated, so it works well for people of all ages, making it a good game to play in a family setting.

Ready to Play These Finance Games? 

If you have little faith in your knowledge of finances, these finance games should help you get up to speed. 

Remember that new finance games are being released every month. So if you want to keep your skills in tip-top shape, consider downloading some of the new games that are being released. 

You don’t have to spend hours playing these games. Provided that you play a little every day, you should slowly start to see improvements in your financial literacy.  

Not sure which game you should buy next? Check out our reviews section to see some of the games that are worth your money. 

Eugene lives in New Mexico and has been a life long gamer since getting his hands on an NES. Always partial to Nintendo, Eugene has made it a point to keep informed on all things Mario.