How to Play Office (Dirty)Secret Santa

Looking to spice up your end-of-year office party? Dirty Secret Santa—also known as White Elephant—is a fun twist on the traditional gift exchange. It’s competitive, unpredictable, and the perfect way to bring some laughs to your workplace while celebrating the holiday season.

Here’s how to organise a smooth, inclusive, and entertaining Dirty Secret Santa event that your coworkers will still be talking about next year.

🎁 What Is Dirty Secret Santa?

Unlike regular Secret Santa, where you thoughtfully buy a gift for a specific colleague, Dirty Secret Santa adds strategy and surprise. Everyone brings a wrapped gift, then takes turns either unwrapping a new one or stealing someone else’s. It’s all anonymous, and often hilarious.

📝 How to Set It Up

1. Set the ground rules

Agree on a price limit—$20 to $30 is typical. Optional: choose a fun theme like “only useful gifts” or “DIY creations”.

2. Confirm participants

Make sure everyone who wants to join is committed and understands the rules. Having an odd number is fine, but too few players can make the game short or awkward—aim for at least 6–8 people.

3. Schedule the game

Run it as part of your office holiday party, lunch, or Friday drinks. Keep things casual but organised.

🎲 The Rules of Dirty Secret Santa

1. Each participant brings one wrapped, anonymous gift.
2. Everyone draws a number to decide turn order.
3. Player 1 picks and unwraps a gift from the pile.
4. Player 2 can either steal that gift or pick a new one to unwrap.
5. If your gift is stolen, you can steal from someone else or pick from the pile.

Stealing rules:

• A gift can only be stolen three times total—after that, it’s “locked”.
• You can’t immediately steal back the gift that was just taken from you.
• The first player may optionally swap at the end (unless all gifts are locked).

🎁 Dirty Secret Santa Gift Ideas

Keep it office-appropriate but fun. Some ideas include:

• Funny mugs or novelty stationery
• Mini cocktail kits or reusable wine tumblers
• Quirky desk gadgets or stress toys
• Reusable lunch boxes or keep cups
• Snack packs, hot sauce samplers, or gourmet chocolates
• DIY gift kits or cheeky card games

Just avoid anything offensive, overly personal, or NSFW—especially in a professional setting.

🤝 Pro Tips for a Great Experience

• Don’t cheap out: Stay within budget, but aim for quality or creativity.
• Keep gifts unlabelled: Part of the fun is not knowing who brought what.
• Encourage participation: Make it optional, but hype it up with posters, emails, or Slack reminders.
• Set expectations: Briefly explain the rules before you begin to avoid confusion.

Make It the Highlight of Your Holiday Party

Done right, Dirty Secret Santa is one of the easiest ways to add laughs, interaction and festive cheer to your office end-of-year celebrations. It’s low-cost, low-effort, and high-fun—plus, it gives everyone a chance to take a break and connect outside of daily work routines.

Want to build more positive energy and team spirit? Discover leadership and communication courses that help foster healthy workplace culture, even beyond the holidays.