Filling in the list before you shop
- Pick a title, add the year or the date of the occasion and, if you have one, the total you want to spend. An empty budget box can be filled in with a pen later.
- Type the people you buy for into Names, one per line. They print in the first column and the rest of the rows stay blank. A long list carries on to a second page with the same columns.
- Choose your paper and orientation, download the PDF and print it at 100 % or actual size so the rows keep their height.
- Before the first shopping trip, write an idea and an amount next to every name. Ideas that are not tied to anyone yet go on the Gift ideas lines at the bottom of the last page.
Setting a budget per person
Begin with the total for the whole occasion and share it out from there. When you enter a budget and names, the line under the title shows an even split. Treat it as a first draft: close family often gets more than a colleague or a neighbor. Write each person's amount into the Budget column and add the column up. If the sum is above the total in the box at the top, cut back on a few rows now, while it is only ink on paper.
Leave part of the total unassigned. Wrapping paper, cards, batteries and postage for gifts you mail are easy to forget, and on a long list they add up. If you shop for the same people every year, keep the filled-in sheet; next year it tells you what you spent and what went down well.
Tracking as you buy
Write the price into Spent on the day you buy, including any delivery charge, and tick Bought. Every few purchases, add up the Spent column and put the sum in Spent so far. Left is the total budget minus that sum, so one glance shows how much is still free for the rows without a tick.
Wrapped and Given matter in the last days before the occasion. A tick in Wrapped saves you from digging through the hiding place to check. Given helps when gifts change hands over several days or at a big party, and it shows who you still owe a visit or a thank-you call.
Keep the receipts with the list
Not every gift fits or pleases. Put the receipts in one envelope and clip it to the sheet, or note the store and the date of purchase in the Gift idea cell. Read the return terms on the receipt or on the store's website soon after you buy, while there is still time to act on them. If the shop can print a receipt without the price, ask for one; you can hand it over with the gift so an exchange stays simple.
Using it with a Secret Santa draw
For an exchange where everyone buys for one person, the Secret Santa generator handles the draw. You add everyone taking part, mark pairs who should not draw each other, such as couples, and send each person a private link that shows only the name they drew. The organizer can set a budget, and each person can add a wishlist line that their Secret Santa sees.
The printed list works on both sides of the draw. As the organizer, type all participants into Names and tick Bought as people confirm they have their gift, without knowing who drew whom. As a participant, add the name you drew to your own family list, write the group budget in its Budget cell and the wishlist line in Gift idea.
More tools for gift planning
The budget planner splits your take-home pay into needs, wants and savings with the 50/30/20 rule; if you count gifts as a want, it shows how much room there is before you fix the total at the top of the sheet. The countdown timer counts the days, hours and minutes to a date you pick, and you can share it as a link, which is handy for a birthday party or the evening of the exchange.
Frequently asked questions
Is the gift list free?
Yes. Print it for every birthday, holiday or wedding, as often as you need. There is no signup and no watermark; one small line at the bottom of each page names our website.
Do I have to type in the names?
No. Rows without a name print blank, so you can write the list by hand. If you do type names, put one person per line, up to 30; they fill the Name column from the top and the remaining rows stay empty.
Why does my list have two pages?
With the gift ideas lines at the bottom, one page has room for about 20 rows in portrait and 12 or 13 in landscape. When you type in more names than fit, the list continues on a second page with the same title and columns, and the page number sits in the bottom corner. The budget boxes print only on the first page and the gift ideas lines only on the last.
What goes in the Budget and Spent columns?
Budget is what you plan to spend on that person, Spent is what the gift really cost. Add up the Spent column now and then and write the sum in Spent so far at the top; Left is the total budget minus that sum. The amounts are written by hand, and the currency you pick only sets the sign in the column headings and the line under the title.
Why are some characters missing from my names?
The PDF uses a standard font that covers English and most Western European letters, but no emoji and no other scripts such as Greek, Cyrillic or Chinese. Those characters are left out, a few rare accented letters lose the accent, and a note under the fields tells you when that happens. The preview shows the text exactly as it will print.
Portrait or landscape?
Portrait fits more rows on a page and slips easily into a folder. Landscape gives the Gift idea column more room for a store name, a size or a link you want to remember, with fewer rows per page.