How to Do Secret Santa in The Office: A Complete Guide

Secret Santa activity can bring onsite and remote teams together and create a sense of mystery even for accomplished professionals. Plus, it is a great way to save on gift expenses – instead of preparing a bulk of generic gifts, you get a thoughtful, personalized present for one colleague.

With our tips and tricks below, you will make your corporate gift exchange smooth and exciting no matter the number of players – 5, 50, or 500.

What is Secret Santa and how to play?

Secret Santa is a popular gift exchange game. The rules are simple: everyone draws names from a hat to find out for whom they will buy a gift. Each Secret Santa should get a present secretly and not reveal their identity until the gift exchange day.

There are many variations of Secret Santa gift exchange, such as White Elephant, Casino Santa, Conspiracy Santa, and more. Read our guide to learn how to play Secret Santa with a twist and liven up your gift exchange party.

How to Organize Secret Santa At Work: A Step-by-Step Guide

Here’s how to organize a successful Secret Santa exchange in the office this year:

1. Invite players

Encourage everyone in your department or company to join the exchange. If you use an online generator, you can invite players by email, QR code, or share an invite link in Slack. Below, you will find an invitation email template.

2. Add wishlists

Each player writes 2-3 gift ideas to help the Secret Santa choose a perfect gift for them. You can also specify what NOT to give if coffee mugs and chocolates aren't really your favorites.

3. Draw names

When everyone joins the game, draw names to find out who gives a present to whom. You can draw names from the bowl or use an online generator to save time. With an online generator, all results will be saved and you can set exceptions.

4. Set gift budget and theme

Set the budget for your office Secret Santa gifts to keep the exchange equal (usually, $20-30 for office parties), and ask everyone to buy something within that limit. To add a creative touch to the game, ask everyone to bring themed gifts, such as homemade gifts, practical gifts, self-care items, or else.

5. Decide on the rules

Set the date for the exchange and the party location. Introduce any additional rules for the party, such as the dress code, and what food/drinks your coworkers should bring. Decide on the date when all gifts should be ready (usually a few days before the party) to avoid delays.

6. Exchange gifts

On the day of the exchange, everyone brings the wrapped present to the office and puts them under the tree. Next, players open presents in turn and try to guess who their Secret Santa is. Add clues or riddles to make the guessing fun for everyone!

The Best Ways to Organize Secret Santa Name Draw

There are two main ways to draw names for Secret Santa at work: in person and with an online generator.

In person

Doing Secret Santa in person is easy and takes just a few minutes. All participants write their names on paper and then draw names from the hat. Each player can write gift ideas next to their name (i.e. sci-fi books, kitchen tools) to help their Santa choose a gift.

However, this method has disadvantages. People can lose a piece of paper or forget for whom they should buy a gift. Moreover, you cannot set exceptions. To ensure that everyone receives a gift, it is better to use an online organizer.

Using a Secret Santa generator

Traditionally, Secret Santa is played in person. Yet, if there are more than 10 people in your company or department, it will be difficult to keep track of everything. Plus, many companies have remote employees, and it is next to impossible to gather everyone in one place.

The solution? Use a Secret Santa generator, for example, MySanta. With an online game organizer, you can invite as many people as you like, and the results of the draw are saved.

The advantages of using an online generator

• Play with the entire department. Or, organize a companywide Secret Santa to bring people from different departments together. The number of players is not limited.
• Set exceptions. If Joe and July don’t get along well, set exceptions and they will not give presents to each other.
• Everything is recorded. You can see that Mike and Amina haven’t bought presents yet, and send them a friendly reminder.
• Personalized wishlists. With wishlists and our personalized gift suggestions, each player can receive exactly what they want for Christmas.

Secret Santa invitation email for colleagues

Here's an example of the email to invite your coworkers to join the Secret Santa exchange:

Subject: You’re invited to a Secret Santa Gift Exchange!

Hi everyone,
We are thrilled to announce our annual Secret Santa gift exchange! Join us and participate in a holiday tradition of spreading joy and surprises in our fantastic team.  

Gift exchange details:
Date: [Date]
Time: [Time]
Location: [Location]

Here are the rules:
1. Please bring a wrapped gift that costs $30 or less. Let your creativity shine and make sure to choose something that your giftee will enjoy.
2. Include a fun clue about yourself along with a gift – something you enjoy, a few words about yourself or a riddle that will make the guessing fun!
Please let us know by [Date] if you’d like to participate in the festivities. Should you have any questions, feel free to reach out to [Organizer's Name].

Happy holidays,
[Your Name]

How to Host a Virtual Secret Santa With Coworkers

With an online organizer, you can easily set up a remote Secret Santa exchange and bring virtual employees together. The main difference is that people send gifts by mail and not bring them in person. Here is how to organize Secret Santa for virtual or hybrid teams:

1. Create a new game on our platform, specifying that you will exchange presents by mail.
2. Invite players, and when everyone joins the game, draw names.
3. Make sure that every Santa buys a present in advance so that no delivery issues will prevent your colleagues from getting desired gifts.
4. Set the time and date for the video conference call where everyone will join and unwrap gifts, sharing the suspense and joy of gift-giving.

Think about Christmas activities for your video call to make the gift exchange even more festive and memorable!

How to exchange presents

Keep things secret when bringing gifts to the office so that nobody reveals your identity before the party. All employees must bring the wrapped gifts and leave them in the conference room or the HR department.

On the exchange day, all presents are put under the Christmas tree or on the desk. Players unwrap gifts in turn and guess their Secret Santa.  

Also Read:

An HR’s guide to an amazing Christmas party

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What to Give Your Coworker for Secret Santa: Top Gift Ideas

Choosing a present for a coworker you don’t know well can be puzzling. You want to give your colleague something fun or practical and not embarrassing. If you participate in a themed gift exchange (for example, gifts that start with a T letter or tech gifts), follow the theme and keep the gift budget in mind.

Here are some great gift ideas for all types of coworkers:

Office Secret Santa Etiquette: Do's and Don'ts

To make gift exchange fun for everyone and avoid confusing situations, follow these guidelines:

• Stay on budget. Exchanging gifts of different values can make people feel uncomfortable. Nobody wants a situation when they give $40 headphones and receive a body wash worth $5. If the gift budget is $20, try to stay within this amount.
• Know your recipient. If you don’t know the gift recipient well, choosing the present gets even more challenging. In MySanta generator, you can chat with the giftee anonymously and learn about their likes and dislikes. Plus, all participants can create wishlists so you will see specific gift ideas.
• Avoid personal presents. Such gifts as lingerie, personal hygiene products, cleaning supplies, or weight loss products are a big no-no. Giving a present like this can confuse both you and the recipient, or even land you in the HR office.
• Add a note. Write a small note with Christmas wishes for your colleague. The note will make your gift more personalized and help your coworker feel valued.

Also Read:

7 Ultimate ideas to play Secret Santa with a twist

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Tips and recommendations for a smooth Secret Santa experience

Here are some extra office Secret Santa rules to help organize a joyful and memorable gift exchange and avoid confusion:

Plan ahead

People have too much on their plates before Christmas, so announce the upcoming exchange a month or two in advance. If you advertise the gift exchange too late, people might not have the time to participate and prepare gifts.

Set the game rules

Set the deadline for buying gifts, the gift budget and theme. Decide on the location and time of the exchange. If some people need to revise the game rules, share this link to the Secret Santa exchange rules so that everyone understand how the game is played and keeps everything secret.

Set reasonable budget

Christmas can be costly, so it is best not to ask people to bring expensive gifts. It is advisable to keep the gift budget between $20 and $30. If one Santa wants to get a slightly more expensive present to indulge their recipient, it is up to them.

Try gift themes

Want your coworkers to get creative while buying presents? Try gift themes - they will encourage everyone to get creative instead of grabbing a random item at the supermarket. Inform people about the theme in their invitation letter.

You can also add missions, riddles, and challenges. Thus, the participants will not only open their wrapped gifts and guess but also look for gifts in the office or solve puzzles before getting a present.

Don’t force everyone to join

If someone in your team doesn't want to participate, don't force them to join. Participation in Secret Santa should be voluntary. Chances are, when they see the preparation before the event and hear their coworkers talking about the event, they will be excited to join the next year.

Show appreciation

You will receive a gift, too. If you are not super excited about the present you get, do not complain about it. Your Santa has put thought and effort into preparing a present for you, so acknowledge their effort and respond with a “thank you”.

Try our MySanta app

MySanta generator helps organize a successful game even for large teams and remote companies. Create a game, add participants, and send reminders so that everyone in your team gets a present.

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