About Secret Santa Name Generator

Who runs this site

This site is made and run by XmasDong, in the United States. It does one job: its name generator draws names so that nobody has to sign up or give an email address, and so that the organizer can take part without seeing anyone's match but their own.

To report a problem or ask a question, write to hello@secretsantanamegenerator.com.

Why the draw runs in your browser

The draw happens on your own phone or computer, and each person's match travels inside their own link, after the # sign, a part of an address that browsers never send to a website. So this site never receives the names, the pairs, the budget or the note, and there is nothing about your group here to leak, sell or lose. The privacy page sets out what stays on your device and what the links can and can't protect.

That choice has a cost, and it's better to say so. There is no server that knows about your exchange, so a lost link can't be looked up: the organizer sends it again or draws again. The step-by-step walkthrough shows what to do in each case.

How the draw stays fair

Every person gives one gift and receives one, nobody draws their own name, and nobody draws someone you asked to keep apart. Among all the draws that follow those rules, the generator picks one at random, using your browser's own cryptographic random numbers.

For groups of up to 16 it counts every possible draw and picks one with exactly equal chances. For larger groups it shuffles the whole list and starts again whenever a shuffle breaks a rule, which also gives every allowed draw the same chance. Only when a large group has very tight rules, such as whole teams who may not draw within their team, does it switch to a method that is close to fair but not exact; the privacy page explains when.

Before it draws, it checks that a draw is possible at all. If the rules leave someone with nobody to give to, it says who is stuck instead of forcing a draw, and makes no links.

What this site doesn't do

It doesn't ask for email addresses, phone numbers or an account. It shows no ads, runs no analytics and sets no cookies. It never sends messages for you: the WhatsApp, Text and Email buttons open your own app with the message written, and you send it.