RiLiFi
Start free

Icebreaker questionsEvents and conferences

Free list · Random picker · No sign-up

Event and conference icebreaker questions.

48 icebreakers for conferences, workshops and networking events, from big-room openers to questions for a single table. Many of them run as a live word cloud on the main screen.

Sample

Word cloudTop word cloud pick

What brought you here today, in one word?

Ask this live as a word cloud or poll – free for 100 people.

All 48 questions

Big-room openers

  1. What brought you here today, in one word?Word cloudTop word cloud pick
  2. Where did you travel from to be here?Word cloudTop word cloud pick
  3. What’s one word you hope will describe this event?Word cloudTop word cloud pick
  4. Name the topic you’re most curious about today.Word cloud
  5. How many events like this have you been to this year?PollAnswers: This is my first · 2 or 3 · 4 to 6 · I’ve lost count
  6. How did you get here today?PollAnswers: Car · Train or bus · Plane · On foot or by bike
  7. Which word sums up your industry this year?Word cloudTop word cloud pick
  8. How are you running this morning?PollAnswers: Wide awake · On my second coffee · Still on my way · Ask me after lunch
  9. What’s one thing you want to take home from today?Word cloudTop word cloud pick
  10. Have you met someone new yet?PollAnswers: Yes, already · Not yet · Working on it
  11. What’s one question you came here to answer?Talk it through

Table talk

  1. What’s the best event you’ve ever been to, and what made it work?Talk it through
  2. What’s a trend in your field that excites you?Talk it through
  3. What’s the most useful thing you’ve learned at a conference?Talk it through
  4. If you gave a talk here next year, what would it be about?Talk it throughAs a word cloud: Your talk topic for next year, in a few words.
  5. What’s one thing everyone at this table should know about your work?Talk it through
  6. What problem would you love someone in this room to solve?Talk it through
  7. Who in your field would you love to hear speak?Word cloud
  8. What’s a myth about your job you’d like to bust?Talk it through
  9. Which tool or habit saves you an hour a week?Talk it throughAs a word cloud: The tool that saves you the most time.
  10. What would you be doing today if you weren’t here?Word cloud
  11. What’s the most memorable conversation you’ve had at an event?Talk it through
  12. Which session title on today’s agenda caught your eye, and why?Talk it through

Workshop warm-ups

  1. How much do you know about today’s topic?PollAnswers: It’s new to me · I know the basics · I use it often · I could teach it
  2. What’s one thing you want to be able to do after this workshop?Word cloud
  3. What’s your biggest question about today’s topic?Talk it through
  4. How do you like to learn in a workshop?PollAnswers: Hands-on · Listening · Group discussion · A mix
  5. Sketch your current project in 30 seconds, then show your neighbor.Talk it through
  6. Which step of your work would you most like to speed up?Talk it through
  7. What pace suits you today?PollAnswers: Fast, with breaks · Steady · Slow and deep
  8. What do you already do well that others here could learn from?Talk it through
  9. Finish the sentence: “Today will be worth it if…”Talk it throughAs a word cloud: Today will be worth it if… (one word)
  10. Find someone you haven’t met and discover three things you have in common.Talk it through
  11. Which part of today’s agenda are you most ready for?PollAnswers: The talks · The hands-on parts · The discussions · The breaks

Networking

  1. What’s one thing you could help someone here with?Talk it throughAs a word cloud: One thing you could help with, in a word or two.
  2. What are you working on that you’d like feedback on?Talk it through
  3. Which city hosted the best event you’ve been to?Word cloud
  4. What’s your favorite question to ask someone new at an event?Talk it through
  5. What first got you into your line of work?Talk it through
  6. Name a podcast or newsletter you’d recommend to this crowd.Word cloud
  7. Where do you meet the most people at an event?PollAnswers: Coffee breaks · Lunch · The evening social · Between sessions
  8. Business cards:PollAnswers: Still carry them · Use a QR code · Just connect online · Never needed them
  9. What’s the best follow-up message you’ve had after an event?Talk it through
  10. Which sticker would you add to your name badge?PollAnswers: Ask me about… · First time here · Hiring · Here to learn
  11. What would you love to learn from someone in a different industry?Talk it through
  12. Would you skip a session to keep a great conversation going?PollAnswers: Any session · Only a keynote · Only the last one · Never
  13. What’s your go-to opening line at a networking event?Talk it through
  14. Which role or field would you most like to meet someone from today?Word cloud

Icebreakers for big rooms and small tables

In a big room, a live word cloud or poll is the quickest opener. Everyone answers at once from a phone, and the result on the main screen gives the room its first shared moment.

You can start before people arrive. Send a two-option poll with the invitation or the morning email, then show the result when the event opens, so people walk in already part of the conversation.

At round tables, give each table one Table talk question and ask them to bring one answer back to the room. In a workshop, open with a poll on what people already know and pitch the session to the result.

Want questions with right answers and a leaderboard instead? Try the icebreaker quiz for any event.