Gift Exchange Games: 8 Formats for a Crowd

In a group of ten, everyone buying for everyone means ninety presents. In practice nobody does that, but the alternative stays undefined: some people buy, some don't, and an awkward inequality appears.

Exchange games solve it: everyone gives one present and everyone receives one. The load is even and nobody has to calculate what anyone spent on them.

The second benefit is that it gives the evening a shape. Turned into a game, handing out presents becomes a half-hour event; left alone it's over in five minutes and adds nothing.

The most common group. Everyone buys for one person, and who bought for whom stays hidden.

This group gets far more laughs and works better with people who don't know each other well, because the presents are general rather than personal.

This is the single point where these games break. Without a clear budget, one person brings something expensive and another something cheap, and both are uncomfortable.

The rule is simple: state the budget as one number, not a range. "Somewhere between X and Y" leaves everyone standing in a different place; a single figure puts everyone in the same one.

The things that spoil an exchange are the same in every group, and all of them disappear if discussed in advance.

Once everything is unwrapped the table usually breaks up. But at that moment the group is already gathered and relaxed — with something to continue into, the evening actually extends there.

A ready-made question deck makes that transition with no preparation, because nobody in the room asked the question. The Gossip Pot is built for rounds where a group talks about each other; Best Liar Wins suits people who like bluffing.