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Secret Santa season is coming. Draw names in minutes.

Draw Secret Santa names. Keep secrets. Skip the hat.

Wishpile is a free Secret Santa app that runs your whole exchange online. Couples can’t draw each other, everyone sees only who they drew, and every Santa can see their person’s wishlist. Add the budget, the date, and the place, and you’re done.

Start your draw - free See how it works

Free.No credit card.Nothing to install.

Private reveal: each person sees only their own draw

Secret Santa 2026

The Harper Family

9 people · 2 exclusions

You’re gifting

Aunt Carol
$50 budgetDec 24Linda & Robert’s, 6pm

CAROL’S WISHLIST4 ideas

  • Wool hiking socks$18
  • A cozy mystery novel$16
  • Olive oil tasting set$42
Every exclusion respected
  • Families
  • Coworkers
  • Book clubs
  • Friendsgiving
  • Remote teams
  • Roommates
  • The cousins
  • White Elephant’s nicer sibling

01How it works

Four steps to a flawless draw.

From “who’s in?” to “who got Aunt Carol?” in about five minutes.

Step 1: Add your people

Family, coworkers, book club. Add everyone who’s playing.

Step 2: Set the rules

Add exclusions (spouses, last year’s pairs), set a spending limit, and add the date and place of the exchange.

Step 3: Draw names

Wishpile draws fairly and instantly, and each person sees only who they drew.

Step 4: Give something they want

Attach wishlists so every Santa knows what their person is hoping for. No more panic gift cards.

Start your draw - free

Free. Nothing to install, for anyone.

02The rules

Secret Santa generator with exclusions: no, you can’t draw your spouse.

Add any exclusions before you draw: couples, siblings, last year’s pairings. Wishpile respects every one of them, so nobody ends up buying for the person they already buy for.

  • Block couples and spouses from drawing each other
  • Skip last year’s pairs for a fresh draw
  • Set it once, before you draw

Exclusions

2 rules
LLindaRRobert

Couple. They won’t draw each other.

SSamMcMarcus

Last year’s pair. Sam had Marcus in 2025. Not again.

Add an exclusion

The draw respects every rule.

03Everything in the stocking

Everything a good Secret Santa needs.

Exclusions that make sense

Couples, spouses, last year’s pairs. Block any pairing before the draw.

Private reveals

Assignments stay secret. Each person sees only who they drew.

A spending limit

Set the budget once so every Santa is shopping to the same number.

Anonymous messages

Ask your giftee a question without giving yourself away. They can write back.

Email reminders

Everyone hears when names are drawn, then a week before the exchange and the day before.

Wishlists attached

Every Santa can see what their person is hoping for, so gifts land.

Track your gift

Move your Secret Santa gift from idea to bought to wrapped.

Works anywhere

In any browser, on any phone. Nothing to install. And it’s free.

04Beyond the draw

More than a name-drawing hat.

Most Secret Santa generators stop at the draw. Wishpile is a full gift planner underneath, so once names are drawn you can budget the gift, track it to wrapped, and handle every other list on your holiday plate in the same place.

  • Your Secret Santa gift, tracked from idea to bought to wrapped
  • The rest of Christmas too: a budget for every person on your list
  • Family wishlists where claims stay hidden from the owner
Start your draw - free See all of Wishpile
Secret Santa Home in the app: you're gifting Aunt Carol, $50 budget, Dec 24 at Mom and Dad's house, your gift for her (wool hiking socks) marked Bought, and her wishlist below
Your Secret Santa, in the real app

05Questions

Secret Santa questions.

The short answers, before you gather the group.

See every question
Can a Secret Santa generator exclude couples?
Most free name generators cannot, which is why half of family draws end with someone picking their own partner. Wishpile lets you set exclusions before the draw - couples, siblings, last year’s pairings, anyone who should not be matched - and the draw respects all of them on the first run. If your rules leave no fair draw possible, it tells you and draws nobody, so you can relax one exclusion and try again.
Is there a free Secret Santa app?
Yes. Wishpile is a free Secret Santa app with no ads, no trial, and no paid tier. The draw, exclusions, wishlists, anonymous messages, and email reminders are all included.
Is there a Secret Santa app for iPhone and Android?
Wishpile works on both. It runs in your phone’s browser, so there is nothing to download from an app store and everyone in the group can join from whatever phone they have. If you want it to feel like an app, add it to your home screen and it opens full-screen with its own icon.
Does it work for Kris Kringle or Pollyanna?
Yes. Kris Kringle, Pollyanna, Secret Santa, and Secret Elf are different names for the same idea: everyone draws one person to buy for in secret. Wishpile runs any of them the same way.
Can I run a Secret Santa remotely?
Yes. Everything happens online: the draw, the reveals, the wishlists. It works even when your group is spread across time zones. Add a video-call link in the event details.
Does everyone need an account?
Yes, a free one. You can add everyone by name, and anyone you invite by email can add their wishlist from the invite link without an account. To see who they drew, each participant signs in with a free Wishpile account (one tap with Google). There is nothing to install, and it works in any phone’s browser.
Can the organizer take part without spoiling their own draw?
Yes. Wishpile only ever shows each person their own draw, the organizer included. If you would rather just run the exchange, you can leave yourself out of the draw.
Can I message my Secret Santa anonymously?
Yes. Once names are drawn, you can ask the person you drew a question, like their size, and they see it as from "Your Santa", never your name. They can write back, and you can message whoever drew you the same way. Only the two of you can read it, not even the organizer.
Does Wishpile send reminders?
Yes, by email. Everyone hears when names are drawn, and if you set an exchange date, a week before and the day before. People with an empty wishlist get a nudge to add one, and the organizer gets a check-in when names still need drawing or someone has not signed in. Nobody is ever told who drew whom.
What if someone joins late or drops out?
Add or remove them, then run the draw again. A redraw reshuffles everyone, so do it before anyone starts shopping.
Is there a limit on group size?
No. You need at least two people. Very strict exclusions in a small group can make a fair draw impossible, and Wishpile will tell you if you need to loosen them.
How much does it cost?
Nothing. Secret Santa is free, along with wishlists, family groups, and claiming.

MoreWays to use Wishpile

Secret Santa is one list. Here are the others.

Family gift organizer One shared list for the whole family - no more double-buying.Christmas list app Wish lists, budgets, and every present in one calm place.Birthday gift planner Never blank on a birthday or panic-buy again.Best Secret Santa apps An honest side-by-side of the popular options.

Ready when you are

Your hat full of names, retired.

Set up your Secret Santa in the next five minutes: exclusions, budget, private reveals, and all.

Start your draw - free

Free.No credit card.Nothing to install.