80s Christmas Secret Santa Generator
enter names, add exclusions, draw — the Secret Santa assignment engine, running entirely on your device.
The short answer
Paste your names below (one per line), optionally note who cannot draw whom (couples, manager-direct pairs, the person someone gave a terrible gift last year), and hit draw. Each participant then privately checks their assignment by selecting their own name — the whole thing runs in your browser, nothing is uploaded, and a bad draw can be redrawn without anyone knowing.
Draw
Names, one per line:
Exclusions (one pair per line, like Marty - Doc):
How the draw works
The generator creates a random derangement — a shuffle where nobody draws themselves — then checks your exclusion pairs and redraws until all constraints hold (with a guard for impossible sets: three people where everyone is excluded from everyone cannot be solved by any algorithm, only by therapy). Because everything runs locally in your browser, assignments never leave the room; each participant checks their own pick privately on the shared screen or through the organizer.
The exclusion rules that matter
The standing exclusions of functional Secret Santa: couples (they buy each other things anyway), manager-direct report pairs in workplace draws (power dynamics poison gifting in both directions), and anyone with recent gift-history beef. The generator supports any custom pair. The organizer's one job beyond the draw: enforce the cap — a range like $20-25, stated in the invite, is the difference between a fun exchange and quiet resentment.
The reveal formats
Two canonical endings: the guess-each-giver reveal (everyone guesses who drew them before the unmasking — adds a game layer) and the open reveal (gifts opened in turn with immediate attribution). For steal mechanics — if your group runs a hybrid with white elephant elements — see the white elephant rules page; pure Secret Santa is fixed assignments, no stealing, which keeps the personal-research element intact. That element is the whole point: one person, actually studied.
FAQ
Does this upload our names anywhere?
No — the draw runs entirely in your browser on your device. Clear the page and it is gone.
Why can no one draw themselves?
The algorithm enforces a derangement — a no-self-assignment shuffle. That is the base rule; exclusions layer on top.
What is the right price cap?
$20-25 is the standard working band — high enough for quality, low enough for play. State it in the invite; enforce it with shame.