Left Right Game

White elephant rules

A white elephant swap (also called a Yankee swap, and often Dirty Santa in the South) is a gift exchange where people can steal. Below: a number draw for the turn order, then the rules and the house rules worth settling before anybody unwraps anything.

Draw the order

Your number ?

Each person taps once, remembers their number, and hands the phone on.

    Needs JavaScriptThe number draw runs in your browser. Slips of paper in a hat work too.

    How a white elephant swap works

    1. Everyone brings one wrapped gift.It goes in a pile in the middle. Agree on a price limit first.
    2. Everyone draws a number.That's the turn order.
    3. Number 1 opens a gift from the pile.Everyone else watches, which is half the point.
    4. Everyone after that has a choice.Open a new gift from the pile, or steal one that's already been opened. If yours gets stolen, you open a new one or steal from someone else.
    5. The game ends when the last gift is opened.Then the bargaining starts.

    House rules to settle first

    • The price limit. Twenty to thirty dollars is common at work. Families vary wildly.
    • Steals per gift. Three is a popular cap. After the third steal, the gift is frozen with whoever has it.
    • No instant steal-backs. If someone takes your gift, you can't take it straight back on the same turn.
    • A last turn for number 1. They had nothing to steal at the start, so a lot of groups let them swap with anyone at the very end.
    • Gag gifts, yes or no. Decide up front, so the one person who bought a nice candle doesn't go home with a rubber chicken.

    White elephant, Yankee swap, Dirty Santa

    Mostly the same game under regional names. Yankee swap is the usual New England name. Dirty Santa versions tend to allow more stealing. And at some parties "white elephant" means the gifts are supposed to be useless on purpose, so check which kind you've been invited to.

    Where the name comes from

    The story usually told is that the kings of Siam gave rare white elephants to courtiers they wanted to ruin: a sacred animal you couldn't refuse, couldn't put to work, and couldn't afford to feed. It gets repeated a lot and is probably more legend than history, but it's why a gift nobody wants is called a white elephant.

    Add a left right round

    Once every gift is open and the stealing is done, read a left right story and pass the opened gifts around the circle. Nobody can steal anymore, so the story gets the last word. White Elephant Chaos was written for exactly this, about a ceramic rooster that never leaves. The Speed Round works if people are already getting their coats.

    Prefer dice to stealing? Try the left right dice game, or read how the left right game works.