New York City / Trivia Nights
Best Trivia Nights
in NYC
Where to actually win a bar tab on a weeknight – ten verified NYC trivia nights, with the day, the host, and the move.
Most run Monday to Wednesday – show up 30 minutes early to grab a table.
- 10 verified quizzes
- Mon-Wed nights
- mostly free
- 2 boroughs
The short version
- Best overallThe Waylon – Tue 8pm, NYC Trivia League, in a country bar.
- Back-room classicPete’s Candy Store – Wed 7:30pm, real bar-tab prizes.
- Most funMetropolitan Bar – Wed 9pm, drag-hosted and themed.
- CheapestPost No Bills – Mon 8:30pm, free-shot rounds, cash only.
- Sober optionMockingbird – Park Slope zero-proof trivia.
The best trivia nights in NYC right now are The Waylon in Hell’s Kitchen (Tuesdays at 8, a tight NYC Trivia League quiz in a real country bar), Pete’s Candy Store in Williamsburg (Wednesdays, the beloved back-room Quizz-Off with real bar-tab prizes), and Metropolitan Bar (Wednesdays at 9, a drag-hosted, themed pop-culture quiz). We verified every one – the day, the time, the host – and dropped the closed bars and the stale schedules. Below are ten, grouped into the best-run quizzes, the Brooklyn pub crowd, and the themed and offbeat picks. Most are free; you just have to show up early and drink.
At a glance
The best-run quizzes up top, then Brooklyn and the offbeat picks. Tap a number on the map to place it.
| Bar | Trivia night | Host | Neighborhood | $ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Waylon | Tue 8pm | NYC Trivia League | Hell’s Kitchen | $$$ |
| The Winslow | Mon 7:30pm | NYC Trivia League | East Village | $$$ |
| Pete’s Candy Store | Wed 7:30pm | Quizz-Off | Williamsburg | $$$ |
| Idaho Bar | Tue 8pm | house quiz | East Village | $$$ |
| Post No Bills | Mon 8:30pm | house quiz | Bushwick | $$$ |
| Pine Box Rock Shop | Wed 8:30pm | house quiz | Bushwick | $$$ |
| Banter Bar | 2nd/4th Wed 8pm | Good Question | Williamsburg | $$$ |
| Metropolitan Bar | Wed 9pm | drag-hosted | Williamsburg | $$$ |
| Mockingbird | Tue eve | sober trivia | Park Slope | $$$ |
| The Gaf West | Wed eve | house quiz | Hell’s Kitchen | $$$ |
Map: where these 10 spots are
Across Manhattan (Hell’s Kitchen and the East Village) and Brooklyn (Williamsburg, Bushwick, and Park Slope).
Pins are numbered to match the table above – tap any pin for the deal and directions.
The best-run quizzes
The most polished, high-reputation weekly quizzes across both boroughs. Pair with our best sports bars for game nights.
The Waylon
The Waylon is the trivia room every quiz snob name-drops, and for once the hype holds. Tuesdays at 8, NYC Trivia League runs a tight, fast pub quiz under the honky-tonk lights while a Tex-Mex kitchen keeps your table in queso. It’s a real country bar – bourbon list, live bands most nights – so the room already has a pulse before the first question lands. The move: get there by 7, claim a booth near the back, order the brisket tacos before the crowd swallows the kitchen. Honest caveat: it fills fast and the front by the door gets loud, so early is the whole game. Come sharp on music rounds.
See our best sports bars in NYC
The Winslow
The Winslow is how you start a week without hating Monday. NYC Trivia League hosts at 7:30, and this is the league’s polished house style: timed rounds, a running scoreboard, a host who actually keeps the banter moving. The winning team takes a $50 Winslow gift card, second place and best team name get shots – so a clever name pays literal dividends. It’s a British gin bar, which means a real gin list and pub food that survives six rounds. The move: reserve a table, because walk-in Mondays here go quick. Honest caveat: league night occasionally bumps for big soccer, so check before you haul over. Bring six, cap it there.
See our East Village
Pete’s Candy Store
Pete’s runs its Quizz-Off in the narrow back room behind the bar, and that tight space is the whole charm – every team is basically elbow-to-elbow, so a wrong answer travels. Wednesdays at 7:30, the categories sound easy (General Knowledge, Music, Top Tens, Visual ID) and then quietly humble you. Prizes are real: a $75 bar tab for first, $40 for second, $15 for third. It’s a beloved old Williamsburg music room, no cover, cheap drinks, garden out back. The move: show up 30 minutes early or you’re standing, full stop – that back room seats maybe a dozen tables. Honest caveat: regulars are sharp; earn it.
See our Williamsburg
Idaho Bar
Idaho is the newer kid on the block – opened 2024 – and it’s already a legit Tuesday quiz stop. Trivia Tuesdays kick at 8 in a woodsy, Pacific-Northwest-themed room that feels more cabin than dive, with a genuinely good craft-cocktail and local-beer list to match. The crowd is East Village smart without the attitude, and the format keeps things brisk. The move: grab a spot at the long communal setup, split a round of the local drafts, and treat the first two rounds as your warm-up. Honest caveat: it’s a compact room, so a big team eats space fast – keep it to four or five. Lean into the pop-culture rounds; that’s where it’s winnable.
See our East Village
Brooklyn pub trivia
The cheap, no-cover Bushwick and Williamsburg quizzes. More in our best dive bars guide.
Post No Bills
Post No Bills is the platonic Bushwick dive – tin walls, vintage concert posters, goth-rock on the speakers – and its Monday quiz is a genuinely fun way to kill the worst night of the week. Hosts run it at 8:30 with free-shot questions dropped between rounds, plus the usual picture, music, and current-events breaks. There’s a backyard patio and they let you bring outside food, which makes it a proper hang. The move: bring cash (it’s cash-only), grab the patio if the weather’s decent, and stay sharp for the free-shot Qs – that’s your edge. Honest caveat: it’s narrow and gets packed once trivia starts, so claim your table before 8.
See our best dive bars in NYC
Pine Box Rock Shop
Pine Box Rock Shop is built inside an old casket factory, which tells you exactly how much personality this Bushwick room has. Wednesday trivia at 8:30 runs in a big, high-ceilinged space that’s Bushwick’s premier vegan-friendly bar – all-vegan kitchen, late-night pizza, cheap local drafts and legit non-alc options. It’s roomy, so unlike the cramped back-room quizzes you can actually field a full team without a shoving match. The move: order the pizza early, post up at one of the long tables, and treat it as a full night – the space rewards lingering. Honest caveat: it’s cavernous and can get loud when it’s full, so sit close to the host.
See our more Brooklyn happy hours
Banter Bar
Banter is the Williamsburg beer-and-footy bar that also happens to run a sharp quiz – but only twice a month, so read the fine print. Good Question Trivia hosts on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday at 8, in a handsome room with a long copper bar, 24 taps, and six screens usually showing soccer. It’s a solid, well-poured pick when the date lines up. The move: confirm it’s a quiz Wednesday before you go – half the Wednesdays it’s just a bar – then come early and take a table off the screens so you can hear the host. Honest caveat: the biweekly schedule trips people up constantly; a quick check saves the trip. Deep tap list; the beer rounds write themselves.
See our Williamsburg
Themed & offbeat trivia
A drag-hosted pop-culture quiz, a sober one, and a darts-and-Guinness dive quiz – trivia with a hook.
Metropolitan Bar
Metropolitan Bar runs the most fun themed quiz in Williamsburg, full stop. Alotta Trivia goes Wednesdays 9 to 11, co-hosted by drag performer Alotta McGriddle, and each week takes a rotating theme – Friends, Harry Potter, Mean Girls, Disney – so it’s visual, loud, and gleefully not-serious. No cover. It’s a longtime Brooklyn queer bar, so the room is warm, the crowd is game, and the host will absolutely roast a bad team name. The move: check which theme is running that week and stack your team accordingly – a Disney week rewards different brains than a Seinfeld week. Honest caveat: it starts late at 9, so it’s a school-night commitment. Come for the theme, stay for the host.
See our Williamsburg
Mockingbird
Mockingbird is Park Slope’s booze-free bar, and its Tuesday sober trivia is the rare quiz you leave clear-headed. The room is candlelit and low-key – booths, soft light, grazing plates – so it plays more lounge than pub, and the drinks are genuinely good zero-proof cocktails, not sad seltzer. The crowd skews sober-curious, parents on a night off, people who just want the game without the hangover math. The move: come for a real dinner-plus-quiz combo and actually taste the non-alc menu – The Herbalist earns its name. Honest caveat: it’s a small space that books up around events, so reserve, and confirm the start time on their socials. No shots to bribe the host here.
See our more Brooklyn happy hours
The Gaf West
The Gaf West is the unglamorous Hell’s Kitchen pick, and that’s exactly why it works. It’s a proper Irish bar – darts, free comedy some nights, open absurdly late – running a low-key Wednesday quiz for people who want trivia without a production. No cover, cheap pours, zero pretense. It’s the anti-corporate quiz night: you play, you argue, you have another Guinness. The move: post up near the dartboards, keep a pint going, and let the regulars carry the sports rounds while you handle everything else. Honest caveat: this is a neighborhood bar, so the vibe is loose and the schedule can shift – confirm the start time before you trek over. Cash keeps it simple.
See our best dive bars in NYC
Best trivia nights in NYC: FAQ
What’s the best trivia night in NYC?
For pure pedigree, The Waylon in Hell’s Kitchen on Tuesdays at 8 – a tight NYC Trivia League quiz in a real country bar with a kitchen worth staying for. If you want a quieter, back-room classic, Pete’s Candy Store’s Quizz-Off on Wednesdays in Williamsburg is the sentimental favorite, with actual bar-tab prizes. Both reward showing up early.
Which nights of the week can I play trivia in NYC?
Most of the week. Mondays: The Winslow (East Village, 7:30) and Post No Bills (Bushwick, 8:30). Tuesdays: The Waylon and Idaho Bar (both 8) and Mockingbird in Park Slope. Wednesdays are the big night – Pete’s Candy Store (7:30), The Gaf West, Pine Box Rock Shop (8:30), and Metropolitan Bar (9). Banter runs the 2nd and 4th Wednesday only.
Is trivia in NYC free?
Almost always, yes – nearly every quiz on this list has no cover, including The Winslow, Pete’s Candy Store, Metropolitan Bar, and Post No Bills. You’re expected to actually drink and eat, which is the real entry fee. Bring cash at the dives – Post No Bills is cash-only, and Pine Box runs cheap.
Where’s the best trivia in Brooklyn?
Depends on your mood. Pete’s Candy Store (Williamsburg, Wed 7:30) for the cozy classic with real prizes. Metropolitan Bar (Williamsburg, Wed 9) for the drag-hosted, themed, loudest-fun option. Post No Bills and Pine Box Rock Shop (both Bushwick) for cheap, no-frills dive quizzes with free-shot questions and late pizza. Mockingbird in Park Slope if you want it sober.
Which trivia night is the most competitive or has the biggest prize?
Pete’s Candy Store puts real money on the line – a $75 bar tab for first, $40 for second, $15 for third – and the regulars in that back room are genuinely sharp, so it plays competitive. The Winslow’s league night (a $50 gift card, running scoreboard) draws serious repeat teams too. If you want a trophy, bring your best six and get there early to either.
Last updated: July 2026. Details change – confirm with the venue before you go. Spot something out of date? Let us know.
