Secret Santa Wish List: What to Write and Examples

Name a few things under the budget, a favorite snack or color, and something you already have too many of. Being specific helps: “a mystery novel” is easier to shop for than “books”.

Give a range rather than one exact item. Your Secret Santa gets to choose, so it still feels like a gift rather than an order.

For work: “I like tea, desk plants and good pens. No more mugs, please!” For family: “Anything for baking, a puzzle, or a mystery novel.” For a class: “I like drawing, dinosaurs and the color green.”

One short line like these is often all a buyer needs. If you’re stuck, ask yourself what you last bought for yourself as a treat.

Collect wishes before names are drawn, so nobody can guess who drew them from who asks. A shared document or a group chat works well, and so does our Secret Santa questionnaire.

The Secret Santa generator can carry it for you. The organizer clicks Add gift wishes and types one line for each person, and whoever draws that person sees it right after their spin.

Plenty of people say they don’t want anything. Ask them to name one snack and one hobby instead, as that’s enough to buy something thoughtful. A nice treat with a card is hard to get wrong.