Secret Santa Generator
Draw names for Secret Santa in a few seconds. Type everyone in, put couples and households on one line so they don’t draw each other, and add any other rules or last year’s pairs. The draw makes one gift loop by default, then gives each person a private link that shows only their own match. You can also print fold-over reveal cards for an in-person draw. There’s no sign-up and no email to collect, and the names never leave your device.
100% private — everything runs in your browser. Names stay on your device; nothing is uploaded, emailed or saved.
You’re the Secret Santa for
This page read your match from the link itself. Nothing was sent to a server.
Who shouldn’t draw whom
Last year’s draw (so nobody gets the same person)
Private links
Send each person only their own link. The match sits after the # in the link, which browsers don’t send to a server, and it’s scrambled so it can’t be read at a glance. It isn’t encrypted: anyone with a link can open it, including you. If you draw again, old links still open with the old match, so send only the newest ones.
| Giver | Gives to |
|---|
Printable reveal cards
Card design
The exchange
Cards
Runs in your browser with our own code. Names stay on your device: nothing is uploaded, emailed or saved, so keep the page open until you’ve sent the links. The card pictures are our own drawings. Print the cards at 100% (Actual size) and check the 50 mm line.
How to draw names for Secret Santa
- Type one person a line. Put a couple or household on one line with + between the names.
- Add a wish after a colon if you like, such as “Sam Patel: a good notebook”.
- Open “Who shouldn’t draw whom” for other rules, and “Last year’s draw” to stop repeats.
- Fill in the event name, budget, swap date and a note. They go into every link and card.
- Click Draw names. If the rules make a draw impossible, the tool says who or what is in the way.
- Copy each person’s link and send it to them on its own, or download the cards and print them at 100%.
What you can use it for
- An office Secret Santa where nobody wants a manager to see the list
- A family exchange where couples shouldn’t draw each other
- A friends’ swap run over group chat
- A remote team exchange with links sent by message
- A classroom or club draw with printed cards
- Running the same group again next year without repeats
How the private links work
Each link holds one match, scrambled, after the # sign. Browsers don’t send that part of a link to the website, so the match goes from you to the person you send it to and nowhere else. When they open it, the page reads the match from the link and shows it only after they tap Show my match.
| A private link | Can do | Can’t do |
|---|---|---|
| Keeps the match out of sight | Hides it from a quick look at the link | Stop someone who decodes it on purpose: it’s scrambled, not encrypted |
| Stays off our server | Nothing is sent or stored when it opens | Bring back a lost link: keep the file if you might need to resend |
| Carries the details | Shows the event, budget, swap date, note and the receiver’s wish | Change after it’s sent: draw again to change the details |
| Belongs to one person | Opens on any phone or computer | Tell who opened it: anyone with the link can, including you |
Households, rules and last year
- Households: names on one line with + never draw each other.
- One-way rule: “Sam > Priya” means Sam never draws Priya, but Priya can draw Sam.
- Two-way rule: “Tom <> Maya” means neither draws the other.
- Last year: pairs as “Giver > Receiver”, or the file the tool saved last year.
- Names not on the list are pointed out and ignored, so a typo can’t break the draw.
If a draw can’t be made, the tool says why. A household can’t be more than half the group, because there wouldn’t be enough other people for them all to draw. If only the single-loop rule is in the way, the tool says so, and turning it off allows smaller loops instead.
Printable reveal cards
Each card is a strip of three panels: a cover with the giver’s name, the match, and a patterned flap. Fold the flap over the match first, then fold the cover back so the name faces out, and seal it with a sticker. The match ends up between two layers of paper, and the pattern helps stop it showing through. Card stock hides it best.
| Card | Folded | Flat strip | A Letter sheet | An A4 sheet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small | 60 × 40 mm | 60 × 120 mm | 6 | 6 |
| Medium | 85 × 55 mm | 85 × 165 mm | 3 | 3 |
| Large | 90 × 65 mm | 90 × 195 mm | 2 | 2 |
Cards are packed on a portrait or landscape sheet, whichever fits more. Print at 100% (Actual size) and check the 50 mm line at the foot of the sheet. A group of six fits on one sheet of small cards. You may use what you make here, including commercially, with no credit needed.
Running the exchange
- Agree the budget and swap date before you draw, so they go into every link and card.
- Send each link in a private message, not in the group chat.
- For an in-person draw, print the cards and hand them out folded.
- Ask people to fill in a questionnaire or wish list, so their Secret Santa has ideas.
- Tick “Include who gives to whom” and save the file if you might need to resend a link or run the group again next year.
Want gift ideas from everyone? Share the Christmas Wish List Template. For the wrapping, try the Gift Tag Template and Christmas Wrapping Paper.
Made Good Designs isn’t connected with any Secret Santa app or website. “Santa” here is the folk figure, and every picture is our own drawing.
More free Christmas tools
Planning the rest of the exchange?
Wish lists, gift tags and cards: free tools that run in your browser, with no sign-up and nothing uploaded.
Frequently asked questions
How does the Secret Santa generator work?
You type the names, the tool draws them in your browser, and each person gets a private link or a printed card that shows only who they buy for. Nobody needs an account or an email address.
Can the organiser take part without seeing the matches?
Yes. The results list shows each giver’s link, not their match. Don’t click Show all matches or open other people’s links, and the draw stays a surprise for you too.
How do I keep couples from drawing each other?
Put them on one line with a plus sign between the names, such as “Leo Ruiz + Ana Okafor”. The same works for a whole household or for flatmates.
What is a single loop?
Everyone gives to one person and gets from another, all in one chain, so nobody simply swaps gifts with the person who drew them. Turn it off if strict rules leave no single loop; the tool tells you when that happens.
Can it avoid last year’s pairs?
Yes. Paste last year’s pairs as “Giver > Receiver”, or load the file this tool saves when you tick “Include who gives to whom”. Nobody gets the same person again.
Are the private links secure?
They hide the match from a casual look, and the part after the # is not sent to any server. They are not encrypted: anyone who has a link can open it, including the person who made it. Send each link only to its owner.
What if I draw again?
A new draw makes new links. Old links still open with the old match, because nothing is stored anywhere, so send only the newest links and ask people to ignore earlier ones.
Someone lost their link. What now?
If you saved the links file, find their row and send it again. Otherwise, draw again and send everyone their new link.
Does it send emails?
No. It doesn’t collect email addresses or send anything. You send each link yourself by message, chat or email, or print the cards.
What happens if the rules make a draw impossible?
The tool tells you why, such as a person who has nobody left to draw, or a household that is more than half the group. Remove a rule or add people and draw again.
Is the draw random?
Yes. It picks evenly among all the draws your rules allow, using your browser’s random numbers, and checks every rule before showing a result.
Are names stored anywhere?
No. The names stay in this page on your device and are not saved, so keep the page open until you’ve sent the links or printed the cards.