White Elephant Gift Exchange Rules and Printables
A White Elephant Gift Exchange is a fun and lively Christmas party game where guests unwrap gifts and steal them from each other. Unlike Dirty Santa, where gifts are typically useful, White Elephant gifts are generally more humorous than practical. Use these White Elephant Gift Exchange Rules and Printables to keep the game organized and the stealing fun!
Why is it called White Elephant?
White Elephant is defined as a possession that is useless or troublesome, especially one that is expensive to maintain or difficult to dispose of. Supposedly, the King of Siam gifted rare albino elephants to courtiers who had displeased him, so that they might be ruined by the animals’ upkeep costs. The term White Elephant refers to a gift whose maintenance costs exceed its usefulness.
Who Should Host A White Elephant Gift Exchange?
If you are looking for a way to celebrate Christmas with friends and family, without adding stress to your guests’ Christmas Budget, a White Elephant Gift Exchange is perfect for you.
A White Elephant Party provides the opportunity for a fun and energetic evening and is best suited for those with a cheerful disposition.
Who Should Not Host A White Elephant Gift Exchange?
We once hosted a gift exchange party for middle schoolers. Some were offended when their friends stole their gifts. How could they?
A White Elephant Christmas Party may not be in your best interest for children or anyone who may get uptight about stolen gifts. Stealing gifts is what makes the White Elephant gift exchange fun!
A White Elephant Gift Exchange is not the place to expect the gift of your dreams. My son hosted his first gift exchange party when he was 11. A gift he loved was stolen from him and he was super upset. It was an excellent learning experience. Fast forward four years later where he received a girl’s hat at a gift exchange party and he wore it proudly! The whole experience is meant to be light hearted and fun! It’s kind of boring if no one steals.
White Elephant Gift Exchange Rules and Printables
Many partygoers don’t know the difference between a White Elephant and Dirty Santa party, so it’s important to clarify what White Elephant gifts are so your guests won’t be the brunt of jokes when they bring a ‘real’ gift.
Set a gift limit ahead of time and let your guests know that White Elephant gifts are meant to be funny or impractical rather than useful gifts. Often a $10 amount is placed on White Elephant gifts.
1. Place wrapped gifts in the center of the room.
When entering, have your guests place their gifts just inside the door to keep gifts anonymous.
2. Have each guest draw a number.
Check out the printables below to make this step easy!
3. Number one chooses a gift, unwraps it, and puts it on display for all to see.
Gifts must stay in view at all times and remain in their original packaging, if applicable. No eating the fruitcake!
4. Gifts must stay in view at all times and remain in original packaging, if applicable.
5. Each subsequent guest has two options: steal a gift or choose an unopened gift.
6. If your gift is stolen, you may steal from another or choose an unopened gift. You may NOT steal the gift back in the same turn.
They may NOT steal the same gift that was just stolen from them until the next round.
7. Gifts can be stolen up to three times. A gift is frozen with the fourth owner.
8. If number one has the same gift they started with, they may choose to trade with any unfrozen gift.
Let the stealing begin!
There are many variations to the White Elephant Gift Exchange rules. Just be sure you all agree before you get the party started! No one wants that laughter to turn to whining, so be sure to print out the rules to ensure you’re all on the same page and everyone keeps smiling! Print off a few and leave them scattered throughout the room, so when that persnickety guest questions your motives, it’s all in fine print!
Get The White Elephant Rules And Numbers Here!
Want to make the game even easier? These printable White Elephant Rules and Numbers include printable rules, numbers, first steal, second steal, and frozen cards to help you keep track of the game.
White Elephant Gift Ideas
Check out these $10 White Elephant Gift Exchange Ideas for parties with a $10 gift limit or these White Elephant Gift Ideas for a wider variety of price ranges.
Are you ready to party?
I’m wishing you a loud and boisterous White Elephant Gift Exchange full of laughter, fun, and useless, crazy gifts!
Frequently Asked Questions
Hi! I’m Bridget!
I create printables and DIYs to help you get organized and celebrate special occasions! My mission is to inspire you to get creative and find joy in every day!
If the gift can be stolen 3 times, wouldn’t it make sense to also have 4- 3rd steal cards as well?
Hi Brittany! The third time a gift is stolen, they get a frozen card!
We used to do the white elephant game every Christmas for years. Eventually our family got bigger with grandchildren now having spouses. Not everyone in the family had a partner and one year one of the single players became angry and stated that my daughter cheated because she told her husband that she wanted the gift that was stolen from her so he picked it on his turn and it happened to be the final exchange for that gift. The other single players then joined in and they said the couples do not follow the rules by telling their partners what to pick and the single players were at a disadvantage. Whew! I have never heard of this being a rule and I was sad to see such a fun game turned into an accusation of my daughter breaking the rules when we never even knew it was a rule “not to cohort or make suggestions to other players on what to choose”! Is this a rule to not cheer on or suggest a steal? Even if it wasn’t with your spouse – you are not supposed to suggest or encourage the person who is choosing the gift which gift to pick! I have searched and searched for this answer. This obviously put a stop to the game in our family because the purpose was to have fun and enjoy getting together – never occurred to me and my children that there were more detailed rules to this game. Please set me straight and enlighten me if we broke the rules?!?!?!?
Hi Liz! I’m sorry to hear the White Elephant fun had to come to a stop in your family. In my research I have not found such detailed rules. Stealing is part of the fun! There does need to be a shift of mindset. A White Elephant Gift Exchange is not the place to expect the gift of your dreams. My son hosted his first gift exchange party when he was 11. A gift he loved was stolen from him and he was super upset. It was an excellent learning experience. Fast forward four years later where he received a girl’s hat at a gift exchange party and he wore it proudly! The whole experience is meant to be light hearted and fun! It’s kind of boring if no one steals.
I use to have a copy of a poem to read for White Elephant every time the word White Elephant we would come up we passed the gift to the right or the left does anyone have that poem ??? If so could you send it to me
Hi Granny! I have seen the left/right game in action but I haven’t seen it with White Elephant. I’m sorry I’m not able to help!
This sounds like so much fun! I’ve never been to a Dirty Santa OR a White Elephant party. I’m going to start whining now, because I want to play! 🙂
Lol! Kay, it’s time to throw a party!!! You can do it!