The Best Secret Santa Apps and Websites in 2026

If your group wants the draw and the wishlists behind one link with no sign-up, our pick is Wishes (wishes.app), the app we make: type 3 to 50 names, tap Draw names, share one link in the group chat, and each person taps their own name to see who they're buying for and that person's wishlist.

The group chat agreed on a Secret Santa in about four minutes. Then someone asked "so which app are we using?", and the thread went quiet, because nobody wants to pick the one that makes Grandma create an account.

Every tool below draws the names, and most will also hold a wishlist. They differ in the details that decide whether your group actually uses it: who has to sign up, whether couples can be kept apart, and how each person finds out who they drew. This is an honest comparison of the ways to run a Secret Santa online in 2026, including ours, with every competitor fact taken from its own site or app listing.

The short answer

• Elfster: best for a group that wants the full package, with exclusion rules, an email to each person, anonymous questions and a phone app.
• DrawNames: best for a group that wants exclusions and wishlists with no registration at all.
• Giftster: best for a family that will keep one private group for every birthday and Christmas from now on.
• Secret Santa Organizer: best for a big or multilingual group where everyone should get their match by email and nobody makes an account.
• Sneaky Santa: best for a group that wants one invite link and exclusions, and an organizer who can check the draw.
• Secret Santa with wishlists on Wishes: best for a simple exchange where everyone opens one link, sees who they drew, and can make a wishlist their Santa books from.
• The Wishes Secret Santa generator: best when you just need names drawn right now, with no sign-up and couples kept apart.
• A hat or a spreadsheet: best for a small group in one room, or an organizer who doesn't mind seeing every match.

Secret Santa apps compared

What each option says about itself, checked on its own site or app store listing in September 2026.

The rest of this page is what sits behind each row, including the places where a competitor does something better than we do.

Elfster

Elfster is the name most people mean when they say "Secret Santa app," and it is built around the draw. Its App Store listing describes it as "100% FREE: No hidden fees, subscriptions, or premium upgrades," and it carries more than 300,000 ratings there.

What it does well is everything around the exchange. The listing says you can "set exclusions so couples don't draw each other," "prevent kids from being paired with adults" and "exclude last year's matches for variety," for groups "from 3 to 300+ people." Its how-it-works page says it "notifies each person of their assignment via email," and its help center explains that messages to the person you drew are sent anonymously by default. Wishlists take items from "any online store, just paste the link."

Worth knowing: everyone in the exchange signs up. The same how-it-works page says players "receive an email inviting them to join in the Secret Santa game and sign up on Elfster." For a group that is happy to do that, it is the most complete tool here. For how it compares with Giftster in detail, see our Elfster and Giftster comparison.

DrawNames

DrawNames is the one to look at if the words "create an account" would lose you half the group. Its how-to page sums it up as "Fast, fun and free. No registration required. No ads and no selling of personal data either."

It still covers the essentials. You can set "who can't draw whom," send invitations "via email, text message, Facebook messenger or any other apps," "ask your giftee questions anonymously" and add wishlists. Its homepage adds two nice touches: you can watch the drawing live "so that everyone sees whose name they've drawn at the same time," and you can "set up a group just to share wish lists." There's a DrawNames app for iPhone and Android, and the site runs in English, Spanish, French and Portuguese.

Lost links are covered too. If someone loses their email link, the how-to page says they can retrieve it, and "the organizer can also resend someone's drawn name to them via the group page."

Giftster

Giftster is a family wishlist app first and a Secret Santa tool second. Its App Store listing describes a way to "Create and share wish lists, add gifts from any store, and keep your whole family organized in one private group," and the draw lives inside that group: "Add a Secret Santa drawing to your Giftster group."

The draw is well thought out. You can "Set exclusions, privately reveal each person's pick, and keep the entire drawing secret, even from the organizer." The wishlists are the strongest part: you "Add items from any store or website," and "The person who made the list never sees what's been claimed," so bought gifts stay a surprise. It's on the App Store and Google Play, and on the web at giftster.com.

Worth knowing: the value comes from everyone joining. To join a group you "login to your existing account or create an account," and the draw itself is set up on the website, because "Secret Santa is not currently available on the iOS or Android app" (Giftster's generator page). That's a great fit for a family that will use it all year, and more setup than an office exchange needs.

Secret Santa Organizer

Secret Santa Organizer is the email-first option with no accounts. Its homepage says: "Draw the names online, let everyone fill in a wishlist, exclude couples if you want, and send the invites by email. No account needed. You need at least 3 people."

Its FAQ says it "sends a private email invite to each participant," has "no app and no account," and is "completely and permanently free," with "no premium plan." It is open about how it pays for that: "The service is supported by non-intrusive advertising." It also runs in 17 languages, lets you reuse last year's group, and lets participants tick off gifts on a wishlist "so nobody buys the same thing twice."

Worth knowing: there's no phone app, and assignments go out by email, so you'll want everyone's address. For an office or a family spread across countries, that's often exactly what you want.

Sneaky Santa

Sneaky Santa is a web-only tool that says it has been "helping people draw names for Christmas for over twenty years." You create a group, share one invite link, and "when you are ready, you hit the draw names button." It promises "no app to install, no spam or junk email, and human customer support."

Exclusions are flexible: for each person, you "uncheck any names that you don't want that person to be able to pick," and the organizer can leave themselves out of the draw. Members can send an anonymous "Sneaky Message" to the person they picked, and wishlists hold anything, from a product link to a favorite snack.

Worth knowing: the group leader gets "built-in tools to check who picked who." That's handy when someone forgets, but it means the organizer can see the matches, so it suits groups where the organizer isn't playing, or is trusted not to peek.

Wishes: Secret Santa with wishlists

This is ours, so here is exactly what it does and doesn't do. Secret Santa on Wishes is free, and nobody needs an account to draw names or see their match. The organizer types everyone's names, adds a budget and a date if they like, picks any pairs to keep apart, and draws. Then they share one group link, and each person taps their own name to see who they're buying for.

Nobody draws themselves, and nobody sees who drew them, the organizer included, so the organizer can play too. The group link opens any name, so share it only with your group. Each Santa sees one name and a link to that person's wishlist, and can book a gift from it so it shows as taken and nobody buys it twice. Making a wishlist or booking a gift asks for a free sign-in with Apple, Google or your email.

Worth knowing: it's still the simple version. If the organizer adds someone's email address, Wishes emails that person an invite at the draw; everyone else finds the link in the group chat. There are no anonymous questions, and it runs on the web.

The person you drew will see that something on their wishlist was booked, but no Wishes app or page shows them who booked it. If you want anonymous questions or a phone app built for the draw, Elfster will serve you better.

Wishes: the free Secret Santa generator

For the "just draw the names" job, the Wishes Secret Santa generator needs no sign-up. You type 3 to 50 names, add a budget if you like, and pick pairs to keep apart, like partners or siblings. If the pairs leave someone with no one to draw, it tells you who.

A hat or a spreadsheet

The oldest method still works. Names on slips of paper, into a hat, pass it around: if everyone is in the same room and you're happy to redraw whenever someone pulls their own name or their partner's, you don't need an app at all.

A spreadsheet is the remote version. Put the names in a column, sort them into a random order, and have each person give to the name below theirs, with the last person giving to the first. Nobody draws themselves, but you, as the organizer, see every match, and you have to message each person their name by hand. For anything beyond a handful of people, one of the free tools above saves you the evening.

How to choose

Four questions settle it for most groups:

• Will everyone make an account? If not, use DrawNames, Secret Santa Organizer or the Wishes generator, none of which ask for one.
• Do couples or households need to be kept apart? Every tool here can, Wishes included.
• Should each person get their match by email? Elfster and Secret Santa Organizer email every participant. With Wishes, each person finds their match from the group link, and anyone whose email the organizer adds gets their link by email.
• Do you want wishlists attached to the draw? Elfster, DrawNames, Giftster, Secret Santa Organizer, Sneaky Santa and Wishes all have them. What differs is whether bookings are hidden from the wishlist owner: Giftster says they are, and on Wishes a booked gift shows as taken to everyone, the owner included.

For a virtual Secret Santa, add one more: whatever you choose, collect each person's mailing address privately and set a buy-by date a week or two before the exchange. How Secret Santa works covers the rules, the budget and the online version step by step, and once the names are drawn, our Secret Santa gift ideas by budget help with the shopping.

Secret Santa app questions

What is the best Secret Santa app?

It depends on your group. Elfster is the fullest package, with exclusions, emailed assignments, anonymous messages and apps for iPhone and Android. DrawNames does exclusions and wishlists with no registration. Giftster suits a family that keeps one group year-round, and Wishes is the simple version where everyone opens one link and can make a wishlist.

Is there a free Secret Santa app?

Yes, several. Elfster's App Store listing says it has no fees, subscriptions or premium upgrades, DrawNames says it's free with no ads, and Secret Santa Organizer is free and supported by ads. The Wishes Secret Santa generator is free too.

Can you do Secret Santa online without signing up?

Yes. DrawNames says no registration is required, Secret Santa Organizer says no account is needed, and the Wishes Secret Santa generator needs no sign-up. Elfster and Giftster ask each participant to sign up.

How do you do a virtual Secret Santa?

Draw names with an online tool, share wishlists as links, and ship each gift straight to the person you drew. Set a buy-by date a week or two before the exchange, then open the gifts together on a video call. How Secret Santa works walks through the online version step by step.

Which Secret Santa apps can keep couples apart?

Elfster, DrawNames, Secret Santa Organizer and Sneaky Santa all let you set who can't draw whom, and Giftster does it on giftster.com, with one exclusion each way. On Wishes, the Secret Santa generator keeps pairs apart too.

Can the organizer see who drew who?

It depends on the tool. Giftster says picks stay secret from everyone, the organizer included, and so does Secret Santa on Wishes. The group link opens any name, so share it only with your group. Sneaky Santa gives the group leader tools to check who picked who, and a paper draw or a spreadsheet run by one person shows that person every match.

Does Wishes have a Secret Santa app?

Wishes runs Secret Santa with wishlists on the web, free and with no sign-up to draw. The organizer types the names, keeps couples apart if needed and shares one link, and each person taps their name to see their match and that person's wishlist. Anyone whose email the organizer adds gets their link by email.

The draw is the easy part

Any of these will draw the names. What makes a Secret Santa good is what happens after: the Santa who knew exactly what to get, because somebody told them.

The book they mentioned in July. The mug in the right color. The one thing they'd never buy for themselves.

Pick the tool that fits your group, then make sure your own Santa isn't guessing. Start a Secret Santa with wishlists, or draw names with the free generator and share a wishlist link with the group.