Christmas gift exchange ideas: 12 games for groups

Pick a game at a glance

Rules for all of these vary from group to group. Treat the versions below as a starting point and agree your own before you play.

1. Secret Santa

Best for: offices, large groups, families, remote teams

Everyone draws one name in secret and buys a gift for that person, within an agreed budget. On the day, gifts are opened together, and the giver may or may not be revealed. Merriam-Webster defines it as “a group gift exchange in which each person is secretly assigned to give a gift anonymously to one other person in the group”.

It scales to any size and works remotely, because nobody needs to be in the same room for the draw. Our free generator handles couples and other exclusions and sends private links. Full rules: Secret Santa rules.

2. White elephant

Best for: parties where people enjoy a bit of rivalry

Everyone brings one wrapped gift to a pile and draws a number. On your turn, open a new gift or steal one already opened. Gifts are often funny or impractical, which fits Merriam-Webster’s sense of a white elephant as “an object no longer of value to its owner but of value to others”. See white elephant rules for steal limits and the ending.

3. Yankee Swap

Best for: groups who want the stealing game with gifts people actually want

The same open-or-take turns as white elephant; the name is especially common in New England. Many groups bring useful gifts rather than joke ones. Freeze limits and player 1’s final turn are explained in Yankee Swap rules, with a turn-order generator.

4. Dice game

Best for: groups who find direct stealing awkward

Everyone sits in a circle holding a wrapped gift. Take turns rolling one die and follow a key you’ve written in advance, for example:

Set a timer for 10 to 15 minutes. When it rings, everyone keeps what they hold.

5. Left-right story

Best for: mixed ages and people who dislike competitive games

Everyone holds a wrapped gift while a host reads a short story full of the words “left” and “right”. Each time one comes up, everyone passes their gift that way. When the story ends, you keep what you’re holding. Writing your own story about your office or family makes it funnier.

6. Pass the parcel

Best for: children’s parties and family gatherings

Wrap one prize in many layers, with a small treat or forfeit between layers. Pass it around a circle while music plays. When the music stops, whoever holds the parcel removes one layer. The person who removes the last layer wins the prize. Make sure every child gets at least one layer.

7. Plastic-wrap ball

Best for: small groups who want something fast and silly

Wrap small prizes (sweets, notes, tiny gifts) into a big ball of cling film. Players sit in a circle. One person unwraps as fast as they can, keeping whatever falls out, while the next person rolls a pair of dice. When they roll doubles, the ball moves to them. Play until the ball is gone. Keep prizes small and skip anything breakable.

8. Themed swap

Best for: book clubs, friend groups and anyone tired of random gifts

Run Secret Santa or a swap where every gift follows a theme: a book you loved, an ornament, something handmade, something local, “cozy”, or “a gift under $10 that’s over the top”. Themes make shopping easier and give the pile a story.

9. Guess who

Best for: teams and families who like a puzzle

Play Secret Santa, but each giver writes three clues about themselves on the gift tag. Recipients read their clues out and guess who their Secret Santa is before the reveal. Keep clues kind and avoid anything private.

10. Gift auction

Best for: medium groups and office parties

Everyone brings a wrapped gift to the pile and gets the same amount of play money (or poker chips). The host auctions the gifts one by one, unopened, describing them only by size and weight. Players bid, and the highest bidder takes the gift. Some groups open each gift straight away; others wait until the end.

11. Pollyanna

Best for: families, especially in and around Pennsylvania

Pollyanna is a regional name for a family gift exchange where each person draws one name and buys for that person, much like Secret Santa. See Pollyanna gift exchange for more and a free draw.

12. Cookie or bake swap

Best for: groups who would rather not buy more things

Everyone bakes a batch of one recipe and brings it packaged in portions, plus copies of the recipe. Swap so everyone goes home with a mix. Ask bakers to label every batch with its ingredients and common allergens.

How to choose the right game

• Large group or remote team: Secret Santa
• Small party that likes competition: white elephant, Yankee Swap or the dice game
• Mixed ages or young children: left-right story or pass the parcel
• Tight budgets: cookie swap, themed swap with a low limit, or a regift swap
• People who don’t know each other: Secret Santa with a questionnaire
• Want both? Run Secret Santa first, then a short swap game with small extra gifts

Need number cards, name slips or a rules sheet? Print them from our printable kit. For gift ideas, start at gift ideas by budget or funny gifts that won’t offend.