The 20 Best Christmas Party Games to Play at Work

If you’re in need of some fun Christmas party games for your office party, you’ve come to the right place! On this page, you’ll find some of the best games you can play to get your party started and keep the fun going.

Christmas is a busy time of year for most people, and work can be extra stressful amidst all the holiday madness, but a fun-filled office Christmas party is sure to help everyone relax a little along the way.

Christmas party games are an excellent way to break the ice, get everyone involved, and even bring on the laughter! Each workplace has a different dynamic, and the games you choose to play at your party should take this into account.

The top 20 games you should play at your work Christmas party!

Each game is given a 1-5 rating for difficulty, involvement, and overall festiveness.

1. White Elephant Gift Exchange

Possibly the most iconic Christmas party event, the White Elephant gift exchange is a fun alternative to a secret Santa gift exchange. Prior to the party, have everyone buy and wrap a gift to bring for the white elephant game. You can set a price mark (e.g. below $25) or you can have everyone bring a re-gifted or repurposed item. 

Once all of the gifts are below the tree, write numbers on small pieces of paper equal to the number of participants. Next, have each person draw a number out of a Santa hat or stocking, this represents the order in which you will play the game. The player with number one starts things off by opening a gift. Now is when it starts to get interesting, starting with number two and working up, each player has the option to either open another gift or steal one that has already been open. Once a gift has been stolen three times, it is effectively “locked-in” and cannot be stolen again.

This sure-fire Christmas game will definitely leave everyone smiling, whether for the token gag-gifts, the cut-throat stealing or the overall excitement of unwrapping a mystery gift!

2. Saran Wrap and Oven Mitts Game

Step one: wrap up an assortment of candy, trinkets, and other surprises and place them randomly throughout a big ball of Saran wrap. Step two: get a pair of Christmas-themed oven mitts. Step three: begin the game by passing the ball around a circle, each player gets 10 seconds to unwrap as much as they can –  they get to keep what falls out. Oh yeah, you have to make the players wear those oven mitts when it’s their turn! Make it extra suspenseful by playing some upbeat Christmas music while you play!

3. Christmas Quiz

Test your co-workers’ knowledge of classic Christmas movies, songs, and traditions. Divide into teams and assign each question with a number of points; it’s a great way to get everyone talking, and it is a good team-building activity. If you’re willing to put in a little extra prep time into the game, you can include an audio round where you play obscure parts of popular Christmas songs and have teams guess the song.

4. What’s in the Stocking?

This is a perfect mini-game that you can set up near your drink or dessert table! Take a pair of socks or stocking and fill it with 5-10 holiday season-themed items like an ornament, candy cane, or even a dreidel. Each attendee can get a chance to feel around inside and guess what each item is, and you can have a prize for the winner/s.

This game is similar to the gumballs in a jar guessing game. This fun Christmas spin on a childhood game will have the whole office feeling nostalgic and eager for fun!

5. “Let it Snow” Race

A hilariously fun (and slightly messy) game! To play “Let it Snow”, all you will need is a bunch of full tissue boxes. Line them all up on a table and have players or teams line up across the room and then race to see who can empty their box of tissues first by pulling them out one at a time as fast as they can. The whole room will appear like it’s the North Pole from the tissue blizzard!

6. Ugly Sweater Contest

Call it a new classic! Ugly sweater Christmas parties are sweeping the (snow) globe! Make it a contest by taking a secret vote at the party to find out who donned the best ugly sweater.

7. Candy Canes

‘Candy Canes’ is played just like the card game ‘Spoons’ only with a Christmas spin. Use candy canes instead of spoons, and let each player eat a candy cane as they are eliminated. The winner gets a prize or gift!

This is a quick game that can work well as a filler or side event when you have some downtime at your party.

8. Christmas Mad-Libs

‘Santa’s elves make lots of underwear in their embassy so he can bring all the lumberjacks presents for Christmas…’

Imagine all the ridiculous stories your group will create with this easy-going and silly party game! Mad-Libs is a game where you take turns filling in the blanks to collectively create a funny story.

There are dozens of free templates online that you can print up, or you can make your own.

9. Marshmallow Wars

For a more lively group, how about some delicious conflict? It’s super easy to make your own marshmallow slingshots and guns. Make two teams, stock each with loads of mini marshmallows and launchers, and have fun! This is definitely a messy game that will include lots of cleanup, but it won’t be easily forgotten.

10. Christmas Karaoke

Every workplace has that one person who sings all the time anyway, why not join them in creating some Christmas cheer? This particular game usually goes over better at parties that will be serving drinks! You can rent a karaoke machine, or just pull up a Youtube Christmas Karaoke playlist.

11. Yuletide Employee Awards

Think of the Dundies from The Office, only more Christmasy. Whether the awards are serious or silly, it will be fun to shine a spotlight on each employee, and you can even present them each with a little gift or trophy. Some companies even take this time to present employees with a Christmas bonus. Who’s going to complain about that?

12. Two Gifts and Lie

Turn another traditional game into a Christmas-themed conversation starter by having players think of two Christmas gifts that they have received at some point and one that they must make up. Each player tells their three gifts in random order as the others try to decipher which one is the lie! The stranger the items, the more fun the game will be. You won’t believe some of the gifts people have actually received!

13. Christmas Bake-Off

This is a fantastic way to both provide snacks for your work party and get everyone involved. Each attendee must make and bring a baked good to share. It’s up to you whether you want to judge or vote on them, but either way, you can’t go wrong with having more sweets at your Christmas party!

14. Gingerbread House Decorating

Buy some pre-made gingerbread house kits and have a decorating contest at your company party! Have employees team up and work together to make their masterpiece. This is a good, relaxed game to get people working together and talking. Whether you have a large or small group, this game is a great way to encourage and create some more personal conversation throughout your party.

15. Gift Wrapping Party Event

This game is more on the practical side of things but, nonetheless, will serve most low-key groups well. Have you ever found yourself dreading the task of wrapping your kids’ Christmas gifts all by yourself? How about bringing the gifts to the party and wrapping them alongside some work friends as they do the same? Set up a gift wrapping station complete with wrapping paper, ribbons, bows, tags and more. The conversation comes easier when everyone has something to do while they talk. Just don’t forget to provide enough labels for the gifts to avoid Christmas chaos!

16. Tinsel Game

An engaging game for the more creative crowd, the Tinsel Game is played by dividing into two teams, one member from each team is given tinsel and a secret word. They must make a picture on a table out of their tinsel to help their team to guess the word. The first team to guess correctly wins the round. This game tends to get loud and exciting, so keep that in mind as you plan your party.

17. Christmas Song Pictionary

Do you have any artists in your workgroup? Do you enjoy drawing? If so, Pictionary is the game to play at your party! You can write down all sorts of old and new Christmas songs on cards, and have each person take turns trying to draw out clues to help their team guess that song. Bonus points can be awarded if the team who guesses correctly sings the song, too!

18. The Christmas Pickle

This is a classic Christmas tradition for many families, but why not add it to your workplace Christmas party? Before your party, hide a green pickle ornament somewhere in the tree. As guests arrive at the event, they can peek around for the pickle, whoever finds it gets to open up their present first. Obviously, this game works best if you’re doing a traditional gift exchange at your party.

19. Are You Christmas Ready?

One of the best icebreaker games on our list, this game is a great way to kick off your work or office Christmas party! All you have to do to prepare for this game is come up with a list of common Christmas-time happenings and festive traditions. To play, you will gather everyone together and compete to see who will be declared ’Totally Ready!’ for Christmas. Assign each item on your list a number of points. The person who can say that they did the most Christmas things, and wins the most points at the end will clearly be declared the most festive of the group!

Example #1: If you have made multiple kinds of Christmas cookies this year, give yourself 5 points.

Example #2: If you are hosting your family Christmas party this year, give yourself 10 points.

20. Christmas Skits

A merry game for a cheerful crowd, you’re sure to end this game in uncontrollable laughter! To play, make a list of Christmas scenarios from classic movies, songs, and stories. Divide your group into teams of 3-4 people and assign each team with a scenario – they will have until the end of the party to prepare. As one of your party’s final events, have each team perform their skit for the whole group. You can even make it more fun by adding props or by voting for the best skit!

Tips For Workplace Christmas Parties

With any work Christmas party, it’s a good idea to play some sort of game to get everyone comfortable and relaxed. The above games vary in competitiveness, length and involvement. Keep that in mind as you plan them, and make sure that each game suits your group dynamic and company culture.

Choose at least one conversation-centred game

Work Christmas parties are a chance for colleagues to reflect on the past year of hard work while getting to know each other outside of their usual interactions. Try to choose at least one game that allows the staff to discuss and learn things about their coworkers that they otherwise wouldn’t learn.

Don’t bring too much work talk into the party

It can be tempting to bring up work and performance-related topics while everyone is together, and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing to do, but make sure you let the party be what it is – a party. Let your employees take a break from their work-related stress for a night and send out a memo later that week instead.

Play a game that will make people laugh

This is a time to kick back and have a good time, isn’t it? Your whole office will grow closer when they start sharing memories together that they can laugh about for years to come. A happy office is a productive office. Encourage this culture by playing some funny games.

Don’t force it

Face it, no matter how hard you try, some people are just not into games, so don’t get too pushy when it comes to getting them involved. Be respectful of each individual’s preferences, and you’ll be better off for it.