How it worksOdd numbersPrintable
Everyone draws one name, buys one gift within the limit and keeps it secret until the swap. Below: odd numbers worked through, what to spend for each kind of group, house rules for work, family and kids, and a rules card to print.
Free, no sign-up. Everyone sees only their own name, on their own phone.
Everyone in one room? Draw on one phone
Six steps, from the group chat to the swap. Most groups start four weeks before the day.
Who's in, and when you swap. The last get-together before Christmas is the usual choice.
One amount for everyone, said out loud. The table below has a starting point for each kind of group.
Each person gets one name and nobody gets their own. Online, everyone sees their name on their own phone; at a table, pass one phone round.
Don't tell anyone who you drew, including your partner if they're in the same draw. The guessing is half the fun.
A short wish list or a filled-in questionnaire saves a lot of guessing. In our draw you can also ask your person a question without giving yourself away.
Hand the gifts over on the day. Some groups guess who their Santa was before anyone says; some never reveal at all.
It works the same way. Secret Santa doesn't pair people off: each person gives to the next one in a loop, and the last one gives to the first. So 3, 5 or 7 people work exactly like 4, 6 or 8, and nobody is left out.
The only number that doesn't work is 2, because you'd each know who has you. With two people, buy for each other openly, or ask a third person to join.
AnaBenCleoAna
Ana gives to Ben, Ben to Cleo, Cleo to Ana. Three gifts, three people, one loop.
AnaBenCleoDevEllaAna
The same, with a bigger loop. Nobody simply swaps gifts with the person who has them, which makes guessing harder.
AnaBenDevCleoEllaFinnGusAna
Ben and Cleo are a couple, so they're kept apart: neither draws the other. The loop still closes back at Ana.
Our draw does this for you: one loop through the whole group, from 3 people up. It keeps couples apart if you tap them as a pair, and someone who joins after the draw slots into the loop without anyone starting over.
Pick one limit and say it in the invite, so nobody overspends or turns up with too little. These are our suggestions for each kind of group; change them to fit yours.
| Group | Price limit | |
|---|---|---|
| Work and coworkersLow enough that nobody feels pushed. Check whether the company chips in before you set it. | $15–25 (£10)Start a draw with this limit | Low enough that nobody feels pushed. Check whether the company chips in before you set it. |
| FriendsEnough for something good: a book and a treat, a nice candle, a game. | $20–30Start a draw with this limit | Enough for something good: a book and a treat, a nice candle, a game. |
| Family, adultsThe point is one good gift instead of a gift for everyone. Set it close to what you'd have spent per person anyway. | $25–50Start a draw with this limit | The point is one good gift instead of a gift for everyone. Set it close to what you'd have spent per person anyway. |
| Kids drawing kidsKids care about the unwrapping more than the price. The parents agree the limit, not the kids. | $10–15Start a draw with this limit | Kids care about the unwrapping more than the price. The parents agree the limit, not the kids. |
| Class, club or a big groupA limit every family in the group can manage without thinking about it. | $5–10Start a draw with this limit | A limit every family in the group can manage without thinking about it. |
The amounts are our advice, not survey figures. The one large count we know of: Drawnames looked at 152,000 groups from 2021 to 2024 and found 20 € the most common budget on its Spanish site. Drawnames, Christmas trends 2024 (in Spanish)
The basics stay the same. What changes is what's fair to ask of people.
If your group likes a reveal, here are some ways to do it. Use one, or none: some groups never say.
Fill in the limit and the dates, then print it or save it as a PDF. It fits one page, A4 or US Letter. Pin it up or send it round.
Drawn a name? Ideas sorted by price and by who they are.
Everyone in the group draws one name, buys a gift for that person within an agreed price limit and keeps it secret. On the swap day, everyone gets one gift and gives one. Nobody draws their own name.
Yes. Each person gives to the next one in a loop and the last gives to the first, so any number from 3 up works. With 5 people: Ana to Ben, Ben to Cleo, Cleo to Dev, Dev to Ella, Ella to Ana.
With 3, yes, though the secret only half holds: once you know who you drew, the third person must be the one who drew you. The surprise is the gift, not the name. With 2 it can't stay secret, so just buy for each other.
At work, $15–25 (about £10 in the UK). Friends often pick $20–30, adult family $25–50 and kids $10–15. What matters is that everyone knows the same number.
Only the person who had them needs a new name. In our draw, the organizer removes them and the loop closes around the gap: usually one person gets a new name (two at most, if a couple rule is in the way), and nobody starts over.
Yes. In our draw, a late joiner slots into the loop: one person gets the newcomer's name and the newcomer takes the name that person had. Everyone else keeps theirs.
No. Some groups guess and reveal on the day, some never say. Agree it in advance so nobody is put on the spot.
Yes. Our draw works from one link: you share it in the group chat, and each person opens their name on their own phone. No account and no email needed.
Draw names now
Free, no sign-up. Everyone sees only their own name, on their own phone.
Draw names nowBy the Gift DeskUpdated October 2026
