Secret Santa Generator

Secret Santa is a festive gift exchange where everyone in a group secretly draws the name of one other person and buys a single gift for them. On the day of the exchange the gifts are handed over, and everyone can guess who picked whom. It's a popular tradition in offices, friend groups and families during the holidays because it keeps things simple, with one present each instead of a gift for everyone. With Happy Giftlist you can organize the whole thing online, without paper slips or a hat.

Start by adding each participant with their name, and an email address if you have one. Set a budget that works for everyone, and exclude any pairs who shouldn't be matched, for example couples or siblings who already buy for each other. Then start the draw. Happy Giftlist runs the name picker and gives everyone their secret recipient. Everyone with an email address gets a private link by email that shows their match; for the others you get a private link to send by WhatsApp or any other way. The organizer needs a free account; participants don't need an account or even an email address.

Among friends and colleagues a typical Secret Santa budget is about the price of a good book or a bottle of wine, while families often go a little higher. Pick an amount everyone in the group is comfortable with, so nobody feels they have to overspend, and stick to it when you buy your gift. If your recipient has linked a wishlist, you'll see what they'd like within that price range.

Since everything happens online, by email or through a link in WhatsApp, the Secret Santa generator works just as well for groups spread across different cities or countries, like families who live far apart, colleagues working from home or friends abroad who can't meet up. Gifts can be sent straight to each recipient's address from any online store, so nobody misses out on the exchange.

Happy Giftlist is a Secret Santa generator and a Secret Santa website with wishlist sharing built in, and there's a Secret Santa app for iPhone and Android too. At the office, colleagues you add with their work email get the name they drew by email, and anyone else gets a private link you send them. In a family, you draw names Secret Santa style, and a grandparent without an email address gets their link by WhatsApp. One person acts as the Secret Santa organizer, and nobody knows in advance who will draw their name. Everyone can join the Secret Santa online from wherever they are, without a spreadsheet or a chaotic group chat.

What makes it different from a basic Secret Santa list or a random Secret Santa name generator is the wishlist link. Once the names are drawn, every participant can attach their own Secret Santa wishlist, or add a few wishes through their private link without an account, so the person who drew them knows what they'd like. With a Secret Santa wishlist, the giver doesn't have to guess, and it's far less likely that someone ends up with a gift they already have, or the same thing they were given last year.

Type in everyone's name. An email address is optional. Set a budget, click “Done”, and the generator matches every person with someone else at random. Each participant gets their own link by email, or you send it on WhatsApp for people without an address. Opening the link shows only their own match, so nobody sees the full list.

Exclude pairs that shouldn't draw each other, such as partners who already buy for each other. On the settings page you see who hasn't drawn a name yet and who hasn't added gifts, and you can send a reminder by email, at most once a day per person. Next year, “Draw again” starts a new draw with the same people, budget and exclusions already filled in.