Where to Find Online D&D Groups in 2025

If you know where to look, the internet can be your own personal DnD group finder

Many hopeful Dungeons & Dragons players struggle to find groups to play with in person – or, an all-too-common situation, they found a group, only to have it fall apart. This leaves many D&D players searching for D&D group finders, places to play D&D online, or even an app for finding D&D groups. While I do love playing Dungeons & Dragons around a physical table with my local friends, the vast majority of my games are online: whether through Discord servers, Zoom rooms, or Roll20 games. Not only are there lots of great tools to play online; sometimes, it truly is the best option to be able to find people to play D&D with. Here are some of the ways I’ve found people to play D&D online with and a few more I recommend from my experience running online D&D groups.

Can I Join A D&D Campaign Online? 

You can find people to play DnD online in places like forum posts.

First and foremost, many people wonder if it’s even possible to join a D&D campaign online. The good news is that you totally can! I myself play multiple D&D games online each week; I’ve already written about ways to play D&D virtually, so I’ll spare you the details here. But suffice it to say that there are an abundance of digital tools that make it possible to do a D&D campaign online, and it can be a great option for even the most novice players. It’s also totally possible to play D&D online with random people, even if you’re not in the same time zone (like finding a D&D group in the UK or if you’re searching for a D&D game in London). Many ongoing D&D campaigns are looking for new players – and plenty of people just like you are looking to start a brand new D&D campaign online! It’s only a matter of finding them.  

Where Can I Find People to Play D&D Online With For Free? 

Plenty of people are looking for people to play DnD with on subreddits and similar niche groups

If you’re wondering where to find people to play D&D with, there are plenty of options. If you’re looking to find an IRL D&D group, you’d be best served by visiting your Friendly Local Game Store, local library, or scouring nearby geek groups and conventions (my personal favorite). If you’re looking to find an online D&D group to join, the principle is the same: find places where D&D fans gather and ask around! Discord servers, Facebook groups, subreddits, and forums with people who share your interests are good places to find D&D players you’ll get along with. (For example, I’ve played with other LGBTQIA+ people on the Tabletop Gaymers Discord and fellow youth educators on the TTRPGKids Facebook Group.) 

If you’re looking for already-existing games to join, look for games that match your schedule (remembering that you may be in a different time zone!), how you like to play (are you a Rules Lawyer, or do you prefer the Rule of Cool?) and what kind of game you want to play (epic seafaring adventure or moody vampiric intrigue?). Lots of Discord servers have specific channels where people look for people to play games with, and some will even host events where people can play together! If you need a Dungeon Master, they’ll be the one putting most of the work into the campaign, so be prepared to be a little more flexible with these preferences (unless you find a perfect match, in which case, more power to you)!

How To Find A Dungeon Master Online

Casting calls like this one let you join DnD games online with a live audience!

If you aren’t ready to step behind the DM screen yourself, you’ll need to find a Dungeon Master for your online D&D game. You may be able to find a DM in the groups we mentioned above – Discord, Reddit, Facebook, ect – but willing DMs are a little more difficult to come by than willing players. If you’re willing to wait until a convention rolls around, many gaming conventions, like Gary Con, Origins, and Gen Con, have had online tracks where you can play D&D online with a convention attendee as a Dungeon Master. I especially like running games at conventions because you always know you’ll be playing with people who love the game! During Gary Con Ethereal, I got to play The Fae Team with the game’s creator over Discord, and it was a blast!

If you’re an experienced D&D player, actor, and/or improviser (like our DMs Zachery and Jesse), you may also be able to find a DM by looking for actual-play casting calls. Actual-play games are a little different: they’re streamed games of D&D where you get to show off and tell a story with other performers in front of a live audience! The Rising Tide network is a great place to meet people and get started in the world of actual play - you may end up crafting a beautiful story to share with the world!

Pro DMs on Dungeons & Dragons Group Finders 

Find online DnD groups that fit your play style, schedule, and preferences with a professional DM!

Most of the DMs you’ll find in the places we’ve mentioned so far have a particular kind of game they want to run. After all, they’re Dungeons & Dragons players just like you, and they have their own ways they like to play (or in the case of an actual play, their own story they want to create). If you’re looking to play something specific – like a particular D&D adventure, style of game, or even time slot – you’ll have a lot more luck if you look to the world of professional Dungeon Masters. Many pro DMs have profiles and games listed on places like StartPlaying or RPGClub so you can find what you’re looking for. Other places have a particular focus, like how Young Dragonslayers specifically runs online D&D for kids, and will match you with the Dungeon Master that best suits your needs. 

Professional Dungeon Masters aren’t just easier to find; they also vastly increase the chances you’ll actually get to sit down and play instead of having a group fizzle out on you. I’ve run games at libraries, community centers, conventions, and with professional groups, and by far the best turnout is for professional groups. It’s easy to say you’ll show up to a game at 4pm on a Friday, but you’ll probably be more likely to come if you already put down a deposit guaranteeing a game for the next 10 Fridays! (No shame, I’ve totally had rough days and had to skip a game here and there). Professional Dungeon Masters also know that the expectations are high, so we’ll often put in the extra effort to set up a virtual tabletop, play music, homebrew items, and post recaps for online D&D sessions. 

Where Do People Play D&D Online? 

You can find a DnD group on Discord, Zoom, or any other calling platform

Once you’ve found a group, you need to decide where to play. If you’ve found a place with a professional Dungeon Master, they’ll usually handle all of the scheduling, communication and hosting, whether that’s on a Zoom call, their own Discord server, or a proprietary system. If you’ve found an online group on a gathering place like Reddit or Facebook, you’ll likely create a group chat and set up a video or audio call on Messenger, Google Meets, or something similar. If you found a D&D group on Discord (or if your online friends want to set up their own server), it’s likely you’ll play right on Discord. This is my personal favorite; I’ve played games on Google Meets, Zoom, and even Roll20s built-in voice calls, but there’s just something about playing D&D on Discord – and being able to separate channels, roll virtual dice, and share dumb memes (and even little things like being able to adjust everyone’s volume individually) that makes Discord my platform of choice. (#NotSponsored #JustAFan)

Online D&D Groups for Children and Teens

Our online DnD groups for kids are a great place to learn in a safe, fun, and kid-friendly environment

D&D enthusiasts come in all colors, shapes, and sizes, and that includes young players! But trying to find a D&D group for kids is totally different than finding D&D groups online for yourself. I certainly wouldn’t feel comfortable having my own child interacting with strangers on a subreddit or start playing a game without knowing whether it’d be family friendly. In truth, it’s hard to find online D&D that’s safe for kids, D&D groups that are kid friendly, and online D&D for kids the way they like to play (which, in my experience, involves a lot of Minecraft references and chaos). Connecting with geek-minded parents is a good way to form family-friendly online D&D groups; different Facebook groups and Discord servers can let you meet parents and allow your children to play D&D with people their own age, with either a willing parent or a creative child as the Dungeon Master. Many online conventions also have specifically marked family friendly D&D games online for their virtual offerings, or even games that are specifically for children.

But, in my personal opinion, the most reliable option is groups like Young Dragonslayers. We’re all professional Dungeon Masters here (still the wildest job title I’ve ever had), but we’re also all experienced in working with tweens and teens, which means we run things in a way that’s safe for kids. Our founder, Katie, talks with each incoming player so she can match together players’ schedules, play styles, and support needs – way better than rolling with a random group of players on the internet! Speaking as a Dungeon Master, this makes Young Dragonslayers games by far the easiest to run (and safest to manage). My groups all have similar ages, play styles, and story interests, and I always know who’s going to show up and how they like to play. You can learn more about our games with the button below or reach out on socials to let us know how you found your own D&D group online!