---
title: "White Elephant Randomizer & Rules | Sunlit Circle"
description: "Shuffle a fair turn order for a white elephant or Yankee swap gift game, print clear house rules with your steal limit, and track steals per gift."
url: https://sunlitcircle.cyou/white-elephant/
---

# White elephant randomizer & rules

Shuffle the turn order, pick your house rules, and keep count of steals while you play. Ideal for office parties, family gatherings and Yankee swaps.

White elephant

## Turn order

Add at least two players and press Shuffle. Everyone gets a numbered turn.

## House rules

1. Everyone brings one wrapped gift and adds it to the pile. No name tags, so nobody knows whose is whose.
2. Play in the turn order shown. Player 1 opens any gift from the pile and shows it to everyone.
3. On every later turn, choose: open a new gift from the pile, or steal a gift that someone has already opened.
4. If your gift is stolen, you go again straight away: steal a different gift or open a new one. The turn ends when someone opens a new gift.
5. No instant steal-backs: you cannot take back the gift that was just taken from you.
6. A gift can change hands only once per turn. After that it is safe until the next player starts.
7. A gift is frozen once it has been stolen 3 times. Whoever holds it then keeps it, and nobody can take it from them.
8. Last word for player 1: when the pile is empty, player 1, who had nothing to steal at the start, may swap their gift for any gift that is not frozen. Then the game ends.

## Running the game

1. Type or paste the players, one per line, and press **Shuffle turn order**. Every order is equally likely, drawn with your browser's cryptographic random generator.
2. Choose your house rules. The rules card rewrites itself, so you can read it aloud or print it before the first gift is opened.
3. During the game, use **Next turn** to show whose go it is, and tap **Stolen** on the tracker whenever a gift changes hands. A gift freezes once it reaches your limit.

Your players, order and steal counts stay in this browser, so a reload in the middle of the party does not lose your place.

## Choosing a steal limit

The limit decides how long the game runs. Freezing a gift after three steals keeps the fun of a tug-of-war without letting one prize circle the room all night. Big groups move faster with a limit of one or two; small, competitive groups may enjoy no limit with a time cap instead. Player 1 opens a gift with nothing to steal, so the optional final swap gives them a fair chance at the end.

## Questions

**Is a Yankee swap the same game?**

Mostly, yes. White elephant, Yankee swap and dirty Santa are different local names for the same open-or-steal gift game. House rules vary more than the names do, which is why the rules card spells them out.

**How many players work best?**

Anywhere from about six to thirty. With fewer, there is little to steal; with more, use a low steal limit so the game finishes in a reasonable time.

**Can I reshuffle?**

Yes, as often as you like before the game starts. Reshuffling clears the steal tracker, so do it before anyone opens a gift.