Christmas Gift Exchange Dice Game Printable: Rules & Chart

Of all the ways to swap Christmas gifts, the dice game is the loudest. Nobody sits quietly while a die decides whether their gift goes left, gets stolen, or stays put. It works for families, offices, and friend groups, it needs almost nothing — one die, one wrapped gift per person, and a printed chart — and it turns the most predictable part of the party into the most memorable one.

Below is a complete printable-style guide: the full rules, a roll chart you can print, variations for kids and offices, and hosting tips for a smooth, lively game.

What You Need to Play

Each player brings one wrapped gift, within an agreed budget — usually 10 to 25 dollars, set before the party. You need one standard die, a printed copy of the dice chart (one large copy everyone can see, or a few small ones around the circle), and a timer if you want to keep the game moving. A phone timer works fine. That is everything: no special equipment, no app, no preparation beyond printing the chart.

Seat everyone in a circle, with the wrapped gifts in the middle or held on laps. Decide who goes first — the youngest player, the host, or whoever rolled the highest number in a warm-up roll — and pass the die clockwise from there. The game works best with at least five players, and it scales happily up to thirty, which makes it a good choice for office parties and large family gatherings.

How to Play the Christmas Dice Gift Exchange

Round one hands out the gifts. Each player takes a turn rolling the die and follows the action on the chart. Round two is the swap round: players keep rolling, and gifts move around the circle until the timer rings or the agreed number of rounds is done. When the game ends, everyone opens the gift they are holding — and that gift is theirs to keep.

Set a clear end point before you start: three full rounds around the circle, or ten minutes on the timer, whichever the host prefers. Without an end point, a dice game can run happily forever, and the rest of the party will wait. Announce the end clearly — “last roll!” — so the final swap feels exciting rather than abrupt.

The Dice Chart: What Each Roll Means

Print this chart on a card and place it where everyone can read it. These are the classic actions; adjust them to suit your group.

Roll a 1 — Unwrap a gift. The player unwraps the gift they are holding, or tells someone else to unwrap theirs. Everyone sees what is in play, which makes the stealing round much more interesting.
Roll a 2 — Pass your gift to the left. Everyone passes their gift one person to the left at the same time.
Roll a 3 — Steal any gift. The player takes any gift they want from anyone in the circle, handing over their own gift in return.
Roll a 4 — Pass your gift to the right. Everyone passes their gift one person to the right at the same time.
Roll a 5 — Trade with the person across from you. The player swaps gifts with the person sitting directly opposite them.
Roll a 6 — Everyone passes to the left, twice. Two passes at once, which scrambles the circle and gets a big laugh.

Some groups add a house rule: a gift can only be stolen twice, then it is “frozen” and safe for the rest of the game. The freeze rule keeps the game from turning into the same gift being stolen ten times, and it gives players a reason to protect a gift they love.

Variations for Kids, Offices, and Big Groups

For kids, remove the stealing — young children take a stolen gift personally, and the game should end in smiles. Use a gentler chart instead: roll a 1 to unwrap, 2 to pass left, 3 to swap with a neighbor, 4 to pass right, 5 to sing a line of a Christmas song before passing, 6 to trade with anyone. Keep the gifts small and similar in value so nobody feels short-changed.

For an office party, keep the chart exactly as printed but set a firm budget and a “no gag gifts” rule if the group includes managers or new hires. A dice game is a great office equalizer — the intern can steal the manager’s gift, and everyone laughs — but only if the gifts are appropriate for work.

For a big group, play with two dice instead of one: the first die picks the action, the second picks how many places to pass. Or split into two circles and let the winners of each circle swap gifts at the end. A candy cane version works well for a quick game: each player brings two candy canes instead of a gift, and the chart moves candy canes around the circle — fast, cheap, and very popular with children.

No Dice? Play the Card Version

If the die goes missing — and at a Christmas party, it will — the game can run on printed action cards instead. Make a deck of cards with the same six actions written on them, shuffle, and have each player draw a card on their turn instead of rolling. When the deck runs out, shuffle it and keep going. The card version plays exactly the same way, and it is a good backup to print alongside the chart.

A phone dice-rolling app works as a backup too, but the physical die is part of the fun — the rattle, the bounce, the groan when a 6 comes up at the worst moment. Keep a spare die in the party supplies box, next to the tape and the scissors.

Hosting Tips for a Great Dice Exchange

Set the budget early and repeat it often — a dice game goes wrong fastest when one gift costs five dollars and another costs fifty. Ask guests to wrap their gifts well, with no clues on the outside, and to bring gifts that suit anyone in the group rather than one specific person. Announce the freeze rule, the end point, and the chart before the first roll, and let everyone read the chart for a minute before playing.

Keep the energy up: the host should narrate the big moments — “Sarah just stole the big box!” — and encourage cheering when a gift gets frozen. Take photos during the swap round, when faces are at their most dramatic. And when the game ends, give everyone a moment to open their gift and react before moving on to the next part of the evening.

Want a Full Printable Dice Game Kit?

If you want a full printable Christmas gift exchange dice game kit — the rules, the dice chart, action cards for playing without dice, and matching gift tags — visit the Fukroo shop on Etsy. The Black Friday Mega Sale is on now with 50% off storewide.