Secret Santa generator — no email, no signup, share by URL
Draw Secret Santa names right in your browser. Type everyone's name, tap Draw, and send each person a private link that shows only their own match. Write a couple as "Anna + Ben" and they won't draw each other. No email, no signup, no app.
Late November, your office's twelve-person team has agreed on a $20 cap and the HR person who usually runs the draw is on vacation. You paste the twelve names into Tapitik, tap Draw, and send each colleague their own link in a direct message on Slack or WhatsApp. Everyone opens theirs, taps to reveal, and the full list of pairs never appears on anyone's screen.
The draw happens in your browser; Tapitik never receives the names or the pairs. Each match travels in the part of the link after the # sign, which browsers do not send to servers. It is scrambled, not encrypted: anyone holding a link can open it, the organizer included. The names form one big circle, so nobody draws themselves and no two people draw each other once you have three or more.
Frequently asked questions
Can the organizer see who drew whom?
Not on screen: after the draw the organizer sees a list of names with Share and Copy buttons, never the pairs. The pairs are inside the links, though, so an organizer who opens someone else's link sees that person's match. If the organizer is also taking part, the honest move is to open only their own link.
How do I keep couples or families from drawing each other?
Put them on one line joined with a plus sign, like "Anna + Ben" or "Mum + Dad + Lily". People on the same line never draw each other. A household can be at most half of the group, so with six people a family of three works but a family of four cannot be kept apart.
Someone lost their link or joined late — what now?
A lost link is easy: open this page again on the device you drew on, tap Continue, and send the same link again — the draw is saved in that browser, and Copy all links gives you a backup list. If it was cleared, or someone joins or drops out, draw again and send everyone a new link; old links keep showing the old draw.
Does it work in WhatsApp, Slack, Messenger, and email?
Yes. A personal link is an ordinary web address, so any messaging app or email opens it in a browser. Link previews in WhatsApp, Slack or iMessage show the general Secret Santa page, never the match, because the preview never sees the part of the link after the # sign.
Why not just use drawnames.com or a similar dedicated Secret Santa site?
Drawnames and similar sites ask every participant for an email address, and often an account, before the draw runs. Here nobody signs up and no email is collected, which suits a quick office or family draw. The trade-off: no automatic reminders, wishlists, or budget emails — you send the links yourself.
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