Best Secret Santa Apps for 2026: Elfster, DrawNames, Giftster and secret.gift Compared

Quick answer: which one to pick

How we compared them

Same six questions for each: is the draw free; does everyone have to create an account; can you stop couples or last year's pairs from drawing each other; are wishlists part of it; is there an app; and does the organizer see who drew whom.

We read each site's own draw page, home page and FAQ, nothing else. Where a page was a JavaScript shell or did not say, we write "not stated". We did not test prices behind a login, and we did not copy any screenshots.

Elfster

Elfster is the best-known name in the category. Its draw page lets you add names, choose whether to draw now or set an RSVP and draw date, and invite people by email. Once the exchange exists, there is an activity feed, wishlists for others to view and anonymous messages to the person you drew.

Its distinctive feature is repeat exchanges: you can reuse the same group each year, and Elfster keeps track of who drew whom so pairs do not repeat soon. The organizer can also adjust a name in the organizer settings after the draw, for instance to make sure one person draws another.

Pick it if you run the same exchange every year, or want email invites with RSVPs. Think twice if you want people to join with no email, or you need to know about an app: its draw page does not state one, and its pricing page could not be read without JavaScript.

DrawNames

DrawNames describes itself as free, and its page mentions no paid tier. You can draw names without an account, and invite people by email, text message, WhatsApp, other social media or a link. It supports exclusions ("who shouldn't draw whom", only when the group is big enough for the rules to work), wish lists, a gift finder, and a live draw where everyone sees their name at the same moment.

It also has an iPhone and Android app, and a group that exists only to share wish lists without drawing anyone.

Pick it if your group wants an app and free exclusions. Think twice if you want an anonymous chat or a budget visible on the group page: its page does not state either.

Giftster

Giftster is a family wishlist first and a Secret Santa tool second. Everyone keeps a private list in a family group, with items from any store, and others can mark gifts as reserved while the list owner never sees what is taken. To run Secret Santa, you add a drawing to the group: you can set exclusions, each person privately sees only their own pick, and even the organizer cannot see the full drawing.

It is free for groups and lists, works as an iPhone and Android app, and has browser extensions for adding items from any store. Everyone needs an account, though, and a group is meant to last: the list you write for the draw is the one your family uses for birthdays.

Pick it if you want one list per person for every occasion, all year. Think twice if the group is a one-time office draw where asking everyone to register will put people off.

secret.gift

secret.gift is the one we build, so read this section with that in mind. The draw is free and needs no email or account: the organizer shares a link, people join with a name, and one click assigns everyone a person. Nobody draws themselves, each person sees only their own match, and even the organizer cannot see the pairs.

Wishlists are part of the group: each person writes preferences, sizes and a delivery address, and the person who drew them sees it. There is also a budget on the group page, an anonymous chat, a Telegram bot for groups that live there, and a White Elephant mode that draws the pick order instead of pairs.

Where it is weaker: there is no native app, so it runs in the browser; and exclusions (couples, siblings, last year's pairs) and re-draws are part of Group PRO, a one-time $5.49 per group paid by the organizer, never by participants. A draw without rules stays free.

Pick it if you want the lowest friction for a mixed group: office chat, family WhatsApp, Discord. Think twice if you need an app, or you want free exclusions: DrawNames does that.

Which one fits which group

• Office or department: an invite people do not have to register for. Secret Santa at work covers budgets and rules; DrawNames or secret.gift cause the least friction
• Family that gifts all year: Giftster, because the wishlist outlives the draw. For a one-off family draw, see Secret Santa with family
• Same group, every year: Elfster's repeat-exchange feature, or secret.gift with a re-draw in Group PRO
• Couples and siblings in the same group: DrawNames if you want free exclusions; secret.gift or Giftster if you also want the wishlist attached
• Remote team: any of them works; pick the one where each person can leave a delivery address, and draw early enough for parcels to arrive
• A group that lives in Telegram: secret.gift's bot runs the same draw there
• A party game rather than a gift draw: neither; see White Elephant rules and the White Elephant generator

What to check before you commit a group

• Does everyone have to register? Every extra step costs you the one coworker who never replies
• Can the organizer see the pairs? In a secret exchange, they should not be able to
• Are exclusions free or paid? Know before you invite 30 people
• Is there a budget field everyone sees, so nobody brings a $90 gift to a $25 draw? Our Secret Santa gift ideas by budget shows what $10, $25 and $50 buy
• Do people share sizes and addresses in one place? A questionnaire in a spreadsheet gets lost; our Secret Santa questionnaire lists 18 questions to copy
• What happens after the draw? Someone joins late, someone drops out: check you can fix it without redoing everything

Set one up in five minutes

Agree a budget in the group chat before anything else, then draw two or three weeks before the date so the slowest parcel arrives. With the Secret Santa generator it is four steps: name the group and the budget, send the invite link, click draw, and remind people to fill in their wishlists.

Not sure how much to set? The gift budget calculator works out a cap from the group size and what people are used to spending.

Frequently asked questions

Keep reading