Secret Santa exclusions

· 2 min read

Pick the people who should never draw each other. Humbugg draws names around every pair you set, so nobody has to quietly swap papers afterwards.

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Who usually gets excluded

  • Couples, who are buying each other a present anyway
  • People who live together and would see the gift being wrapped
  • Whoever had each other last year
  • A parent and child, when the family wants everyone to mix

How to set them

  1. Wait for everyone to join

    Exclusions are pairs of members, so add them once people are in.

  2. Add each pair

    Choose the first person and the second. The rule works both ways.

  3. Draw

    Humbugg only makes matches that respect every pair. If the rules leave no possible draw, it says so and assigns nothing.

Adding an exclusion in Humbugg: Femi Adeyemi and Kenji Watanabe chosen and added beside an existing pair, Diego Alvarez and Zoe Sullivan, with a Save exclusions button.
Femi and Kenji had each other last year, so they go in as a pair.

Why a hat cannot do this

With paper slips, an exclusion means someone looks at the slip and puts it back. Now one person knows a match, and the draw is no longer secret. A draw that respects exclusions without anyone seeing the result has to happen somewhere nobody is watching.

Too many rules

In a small group, each exclusion removes a lot of possible matches. Four people with two couples excluded has very few valid draws, which also makes it easier to guess who has whom. Keep the rules to the ones that matter, or invite a few more people.

Good to know

Yes. Exclusions are part of every exchange, Free included.

Humbugg tells you the exclusions do not allow a complete draw, and assigns nothing. Remove a pair or add a person, then draw again.

Humbugg never says who is typing. Your recipient sees “Your Secret Santa” and never your name. What you write is up to you.

An exchange of up to 6 people, organizer included, is free, chat included. Bigger exchanges need Plus, which covers every exchange you organize for a year. Subscribe if you want it to renew automatically.

Set the rules, then draw.

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