Setting up your Secret Santa
- Type the name of the group or event, the budget and the exchange date. All three print at the top of every wish list card and on the reminder cards, so nobody has to ask twice.
- Type the participants, one per line. Each person gets a wish list card with the name already filled in, a slip for the draw and a reminder card.
- Keep the draw slips page on if you draw from a bowl, or turn it off if you draw online. Pick the paper and a color, and download the PDF.
The preview shows every page; two wish list cards share a sheet and are cut apart along the dashed line. Leave the names empty to print blank cards for a group whose members you do not know yet.
Setting a budget everyone can live with
Pick the budget before you announce the exchange, and state it as a range or a firm ceiling, for example "$20 to $25" or "up to 15 €". Choose a figure that the person with the smallest budget in the group is comfortable with, not the average; a gift exchange should never put anyone in a tight spot.
Write the budget on the card the way you want people to read it. "Up to $25, including wrapping" avoids the question whether the ribbon counts. When shopping, the discount calculator shows the final price after a percentage off, so a sale item still lands inside the budget.
Collecting the wish list cards
Hand out the cards a week or two before the draw and set a date by which they come back. Ask everyone to write at least one thing in each field; "Things I would rather not get" is the most useful line on the card, because it rules out candles for the person who has twenty of them and scented things for someone who does not like them.
The sizes line helps with scarves, socks, gloves and anything that has to fit; the treats and hobbies line is for the small extras that round out a gift. The three gift ideas at the bottom are suggestions, not an order list. Collect the cards in a folder in the order of the names, so that after the draw you can hand each person the right card quickly.
Keeping the draw secret
Cut out the slips, fold each one along the faint line in the middle and mix them in a bowl or a hat. Everyone draws one; whoever draws their own name puts it back and draws again. With a couple or close friends in the group, agree beforehand whether drawing a partner counts or goes back in the bowl. Each person writes the drawn name on their Who I drew card and keeps it in a wallet, so nobody has to remember or ask again, and the organizer never sees the matches.
For a group that cannot meet before the exchange, or when the last person in a draw would otherwise draw themselves, the Secret Santa generator draws the matches from the list of names, with exclusions for couples, and lets you reveal each match privately. For a quick in-person draw without slips, the wheel spinner spins through the names on a phone and removes each one that has been drawn, and the random name picker picks one name at a time from the list for the order in which gifts are opened.
Deadlines and the exchange day
Three dates keep an exchange on track: the day the wish list cards are due, the day of the draw and the day of the exchange. Leave at least two weeks between the draw and the exchange so people have time to shop. Send one reminder a few days before the exchange with the time, the place and the budget, and ask people to wrap their gift and to label it only with the name of the recipient.
On the day, put all gifts on one table and hand them out one at a time, or let each person find the gift with their name. If someone cannot come, collect their gift in advance and keep their recipient's gift for them.
More printables for the party
The printable gift list tracks the gifts you give this season, with a budget per person and tick boxes for bought, wrapped and given, so the Secret Santa gift does not get lost among the family presents. The gift tags print to and from tags in several designs; fill the From line with "Your Secret Santa" to keep the secret until the end.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Secret Santa form free?
Yes. Type the group, the budget and the names, download the PDF and print a wish list card for everyone, plus the slips for the draw. There is no signup and no watermark; one small line at the bottom of each page names our website.
What is on the wish list card?
Each card has the budget and the exchange date at the top, then My name, Sizes, Favorite treats and hobbies, Things I love, Things I would rather not get, and three numbered lines for gift ideas. Two cards share a page, cut apart along the dashed line, so each card is half a sheet in landscape.
How do the draw slips work?
The last page prints one slip per name to cut out and fold, with a faint fold line in the middle, and a small Who I drew card per person to write the drawn name on and keep in a wallet. Mix the folded slips in a bowl and let everyone take one; whoever draws their own name puts it back and draws again. Turn the page off if you draw online instead.
Can I print blank cards?
Yes. Leave the names empty and you get two blank wish list cards and, if the slips page is on, twelve blank slips and six blank reminder cards. Print as many copies as you need and let everyone write their own name.
How do I keep the draw secret?
Collect the filled wish list cards in a folder, and after the draw hand each person only the card of the name they drew. If the same person collects the cards and runs the draw, ask someone who does not take part to hand them out, or let an online tool send every match privately.
Why are some characters missing from my text?
The PDF uses the standard Helvetica font, which 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.