What is the US state numberplate game?
The US state numberplate game is one of the silliest staples of any good American road trip. The premise is very simple – you have to see a car numberplate from as many US states as possible. However, the rules of the game are subject to house variations.
Rule variations for the US state numberplate game
The main rule variations for the US state numberplate game are:
Individual vs team: Is it about who can get most numberplates, or is it a team effort to get the full 50? (We play team, as that seems to get everyone invested more, and individual is prone to accusations of cheating).
Daily vs trip-long: Is it about how many state numberplates you can gather across the course of a day or across the course of a trip? (You can play both simultaneously, although it can get confusing if you’re not writing it down. Trying to get all 50 by the end of the trip feels like more of a mission).
Strictly states vs all different plates: Do you discard extra plates spotted along the way, such as those from Mexican states and Canadian provinces, plus District of Columbia and US Government plates? (We tend to fudge it, allowing them into the 50, then discarding them towards the end as most of the state plates are spotted).
On the road vs all the time: Do you have to be driving for a spotted plate to count? Or is it OK if you see one while walking, or in a car park? (We play all the time, largely because car parks are such fertile ground).
The guess which is next twist: An enjoyable side-game is for everyone to pick which the next new plate will be. This leads to a lot of “well, I thought we’d have seen New Jersey by now” and “isn’t North Carolina the biggest state left” arguments.
Things you notice while playing the US state numberplate game
There’s a geographical logic to it: States that would be really difficult to spot on the east coast, such as Idaho or Wyoming, are relatively easy in the south west. The flip side is also true. The only three states we didn’t get on a two week trip around Arizona and Nevada were Rhode Island, Delaware and Connecticut.
Everyone gets sucked in eventually: Even the members of the party who think the game is silly at the start will be begging for a lap round a parking lot to see if there’s a car from New Hampshire at the end.
Maine is bizarrely easy: So many lorries have Maine number plates, presumably because so many imports come in through Maine.
Hawaii is the holy grail: I don’t think I’ll ever be more excited than I was when I saw a Hawaii numberplate on the way to Las Vegas Airport. Alaska, on the other hand, isn’t as tricky as you might expect – especially in the western US.
California numberplates are boring: As are some other state numberplates – notably Louisiana and Maine. On the flip side, some states (hello Nevada and Arizona) have several design variations on their plates, which is infuriating when you see what you think is a new state plate, but it’s just Nevada with a new look.
