The reference box
What makes Crated with Love different
Each Crated with Love box is a themed date night built around games for two. One puts you on a retro game show as rival contestants. Another sends you through Madame Medora’s House of Curiosities, solving riddles to claim an inheritance.
- Players
- Two, sometimes as rivals and sometimes as partners working through riddles together.
- Contents
- Four or five games and activities built for two players, plus themed recipes, a movie list, and a Spotify playlist.
- Tone
- Laughter first and family friendly. Some games have romantic elements, but nothing you’d hesitate to give a relative.
Compare the boxes
| Box | Best fit | Cost and commitment | Delivery |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crated with Love Reference box |
A themed game night for two, with recipes and a playlist | One box per date night | A new theme in every box |
| DateBox Club | A planned date each month: a game, a deep talk, or a craft | $54.95 a month. Cancel anytime. | Free ground shipping from California. |
| Cocktail Courier | A cocktail kit to mix together, spirit included | $80 a month with spirits included, or $45.83 a box for the non-alcoholic kit on a 12-month plan. Cancel anytime. | New orders ship within two business days. |
| SplureBox Mystery and Escape Games Club | Escape-room puzzles set somewhere new each month | $32.09 a month. Cancel anytime. | Ships from Czechia on the 14th of each month. Free shipping. |
| Deadbolt Mystery Society | A murder-mystery case to crack together | $37.44 a month. Cancel anytime. | Orders ship the first week of the next month. Free US shipping. |
| The Adults & Crafts Crate | A hands-on project night | $38.52 a month for one kit. Cancel anytime. | First kit ships within five business days, then around the 25th. |
Every box here also sells longer plans, three months and up, that cost less per box. DateBox Club bills those up front.
The alternatives
The closest match
DateBox Club vs Crated with Love
Best for: Couples who loved having the whole night planned and want the same open-the-box-and-go evening.
DateBox Club sends one planned date night a month, rotating between a game night, a deeper-conversation activity, and a craft, with a snack to share in every box.
What feels familiar
Everything for the night arrives in one box with step-by-step instructions and a new playlist, and the dates aren’t themed around sex or romance, which suits couples who liked Crated with Love’s family-friendly tone. You can reschedule, pause, or cancel from your account.
What changes
It’s the priciest box here, and only some months are games. Others are a conversation or a craft. DateBox Club suggests planning your first date about two weeks after you order and emails a printable date to use while you wait.
A cocktail night for two
Cocktail Courier vs Crated with Love
Best for: Couples who liked Crated with Love’s themed recipes and want the drinks to be the evening’s project.
Cocktail Courier sends one cocktail kit a month, built around a featured spirit. The box holds the alcohol, fresh citrus, the other ingredients, and step-by-step instructions, enough for six to eight drinks. Recent kits include a whisky lemonade made with SirDavis and a spicy margarita made with Ghost Tequila.
What feels familiar
As with Crated with Love, everything for the night comes in one box with instructions to follow together, and the theme changes every month.
What changes
You make drinks instead of playing games, and it’s for adults only: Cocktail Courier’s terms require subscribers to be at least 21, and an adult with ID has to accept the delivery. Kits with alcohol can’t ship to several states, including Alabama, Michigan, and Utah, where the seller’s non-alcoholic version is the option.
Escape-room puzzles for two
SplureBox Mystery and Escape Games Club vs Crated with Love
Best for: Couples whose favorite Crated with Love nights were the puzzle ones, like Arcade Invasion or Madame Medora’s House of Curiosities.
SplureBox sends a new mystery or escape-style game each month, each set in a different destination, with clues and challenges to crack without a screen. It’s built for one player, a couple, or a group.
What feels familiar
A themed, screen-free evening with a story to follow. Crated with Love’s boxes sent couples to Australia and the jungles of Ecuador, and SplureBox moves the setting every month too.
What changes
Each box is one game, so the night is one long puzzle instead of four short games, and you work together against it rather than against each other. There’s no recipe or playlist.
A murder mystery to solve together
Deadbolt Mystery Society vs Crated with Love
Best for: Couples who liked The Honolulu Heist, Crated with Love’s whodunit, and want a full case every month.
Each month Deadbolt Mystery Society sends a standalone investigation: evidence to examine, suspects to question, and puzzles that lead to the culprit. There’s no timer, so you can stop partway and finish the case another night.
What feels familiar
A new story every month that doesn’t depend on earlier boxes, so you can start with any case.
What changes
It’s a murder mystery recommended for ages 13 and up, so the tone is darker than Crated with Love’s. Some clues need a phone or laptop with internet to scan QR codes. It plays for up to four, so it also works for a double date.
A project to make together
The Adults & Crafts Crate vs Crated with Love
Best for: Couples who would rather make something than play something, and want a keepsake from the night.
The Adults & Crafts Crate sends a full craft kit each month with the tools, materials, and instructions, so there’s no trip to the craft store. Projects range from wood burning and engraving to resin clocks and marbled clay dishes, and you can request any of its 50-plus kits by the 10th of the month.
What feels familiar
Every supply arrives in the box, and you finish with something to keep, much like the small memento in each Crated with Love box.
What changes
There’s no game or friendly competition, and one kit makes one project. The seller suggests two subscriptions for a date night, which doubles the cost.
The honest part
What no box here replaces
No box here repeats Crated with Love’s mix of four or five short themed games for two, with recipes and a playlist on the side. DateBox Club comes closest on format. If the puzzle nights were your favorite, start with SplureBox or Deadbolt Mystery Society.
How we chose these boxes
We started from Crated with Love’s format, a themed night of two-player games with everything in one box, and the reasons someone might want something different: the same planned-date format, a cocktail night, a puzzle night, or a project instead of a game. We went through Cratejoy’s date night listings and kept those with a working buy button that plan an evening for two. We added DateBox Club because no Cratejoy box rotates through games, conversations, and crafts the same way. The photo at the top is Crated with Love’s own product photo of its Retro Game Show box.
Questions before you choose
Which alternative is closest to Crated with Love?
DateBox Club. Each month brings a planned date night for two with an activity, a snack, a playlist, and full instructions, and its dates aren’t themed around sex or romance.
Which of these date night boxes costs the least?
SplureBox’s Mystery and Escape Games Club, at $32.09 a month or $26.74 a box on a 12-month plan, has the lowest regular price of the five.
Which of these boxes stay family friendly?
DateBox Club says its dates aren’t themed around sex or romance, and SplureBox and The Adults & Crafts Crate are puzzles and craft projects. Deadbolt Mystery Society is a murder mystery recommended for ages 13 and up. Cocktail Courier is for adults 21 and older, since its kits include the alcohol.
Can I give one of these as a gift?
Yes. The four Cratejoy boxes have a Give as a Gift option on their listings, and DateBox Club sells gift plans on its own site.
