Bring The Cheer With These 19 Festive Christmas Games For Office Employees

Got a year-end function coming up? Including Christmas games for office team in the agenda is the perfect way to end the year on a high note. 

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Our curated list of 19 fun games for employee Christmas parties will bring the cheer, motivation, and team building you need to make your people feel appreciated.

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How To Make Christmas Fun In The Office?

A recent Glassdoor survey found that 5% of employees are interested in having a holiday party. Despite this, the function is an excellent reward opportunity for building camaraderie, showing appreciation, and letting your employees unwind. 

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Considering the stat, the pressure is on to ensure you don’t host a boring Christmas office party this year. 

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Bring it all together and host a party that’s the talk of the town by giving out employee Christmas cards and Christmas gifts for office teams at the same time. Not sure what to write in the cards? We’ve written a list of Christmas wishes for employees.  

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Without further ado, build a strong company culture with our fun and hilarious games. These engaging activities will bring everyone together while chasing the grinch away.

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19 Festive Christmas Games For Office Employees

We’ve organized our fun-filled list according to three types of games. Each type will suit different scenarios, setups, and company needs:

• Gift Exchange Games: Add excitement to run-of-the-mill gift exchange rituals with this selection.

• In-Office Games: These games are perfect for those in-office festive parties. We’ve got fun for small and large teams.

• Remote and Virtual Games: No matter where you are, these fun, festive remote office games will put a smile on everyone’s face.

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Gift Exchange Games

These games are a perfect way to spice up those ordinary office gift exchange ceremonies. Use them to bring laughter and fun to your next Christmas party.

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1. Holiday Trivia

Trivia, but not like you know it. Let’s test your crew’s holiday knowledge and get those competitive streaks out with this tricky trivia game.

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What You’ll Need

• Drawn up trivia cards.

• Lots of gifts as rewards.

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How It Works

You must first draw up some holiday trivia cards according to the number of gifts available. Show the present and read out the trivia card. 

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If a participant knows the answer, they can raise their hand and give their answer. Should the answer be correct, they win that gift. The host moves on to the next present and trivia card.

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The game continues until everyone has received a present.

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2. Whose Gift Is It Anyway?

This fun Christmas game for office employees guarantees loads of wrong answers and buckets full of laughter. Even if you have employees who aren’t fans of the holidays, they’ll want to join in with this festive activity.

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What You’ll Need

• Presents from each player.

• Paper with each person’s name.

• A hat.

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How It Works

Before the game, you must organize who will buy a present for each employee. You can do this how you feel would work best. We recommend your typical secret Santa or randomly pulling names out of a hat. 

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On game day, place the names of the participants in a hat. You draw the first name, and that player needs to get their present. 

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They need to open it and then guess who bought it for them. If they get it wrong, they must do something funny or embarrassing. We recommend taking a shot of eggnog as punishment for guessing wrong. 

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3. Exchange Dice Game

This dice game is an absolute blast. It might be a bit of a gamble, and you may end up with something you don’t like, but it is all in a good festive spirit. 

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What You’ll Need

• Dice sheet.

• 2x dice.

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How It Works

There’s some prep work before you begin playing the game. You’ll need to make a sheet showing what each number on the dice represents (swap left, swap right, unwrap, or steal a gift). 

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Each player starts with three small gifts. They need to roll the dice to determine what action they must take with each gift. The game ends when all the presents are unwrapped.

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4. Hot Gift Potato

This hot game will take you back to the good old days of your childhood. It’ll also add some healthy modern-day anxiety. Let’s see who can handle the pressure of Hot Gift Potato.

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What You’ll Need

• A present from each player.

• A music player or a timer.

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How It Works

Gather all the players into a circle. Start some fun music and toss the gift between each other just like a typical game of hot potato. When the music stops, whoever is holding the present is out and gets to keep it. Start the music again and continue until all players receive their gift.

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5. Musical Chairs

We all know the game ‘Musical Chairs’ and have fond memories of people knocking each other over to get that last chair. Throw some presents into the mix, and this becomes one of those highly competitive Christmas games for office employees that’ll lead to intense moments of laughter.

What You’ll Need

• A chair for each player.

• A music player.

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How It Works

Place all chairs in a circle with an employee standing behind each one. Remove one chair and start the music. Everyone needs to move in a circle around the chairs. 

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Employees need to grab a chair and sit down when the music stops. The last person standing grabs a present and unwraps it as their reward. 

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Repeat the process until there is another last man standing. That person can choose whether they want to steal a gift or open one from the pile. 

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The winner of the game has the advantage of seeing all the other gifts giving them the ultimate option of stealing or opening the last one.

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In-Office Games

Whether small or large, these in-office Christmas team games will bring joy and laughter to everyone involved. Add some creative flair, and you’ve got a unique opportunity to make these party games your own.

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6. Jolly Treasure Hunt

Say goodbye to awkward Christmas party vibes with this fun and festive game. Even your shyest employee will climb out of their shell with a loud “Jolly-ho!” as they hunt for that elusive treasure.

What You’ll Need

Each team should get:

• A treasure list.

• A marker.

• A camera (optional).

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How To Play

Start by splitting everyone into teams; each team should get a list and a pen. Set a timer for 45 minutes. 

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The teams must complete as many tasks as possible in this period. The missions can include performing actions and finding objects. The team that finishes the most of their list in the given time wins.

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7. The Walking Christmas Tree

We are not talking about the walking trees from Lord of the Rings. However, as far as Christmas games for office teams go, this one makes for some great laughs and camera shots!

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What You’ll Need

• Toilet paper.

• Christmas decorations.

• Markers.

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How To Play

Sort everyone into groups. Each team must choose a volunteer to be their Christmas tree. Give them two minutes to turn their coworker into the ultimate Christmas tree. The best-looking tree wins the prize.

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8. Pictionary - Christmas Edition

Who doesn’t love being creative and showing off their drawing skills? How about while blindfolded? This hilarious game works well with small teams.

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What You’ll Need

• Whiteboard.

• Markers.

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How To Play

Blindfold your chosen player. They need to draw a picture that has to do with Christmas. The other players must guess what their coworker is drawing. 

The first person to shout out the correct answer wins and is the next player up.

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9. Gift Wrapping Challenge

We know that gift wrapping can be tedious for some people. Let’s make it enjoyable with a fun challenge. 

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What You’ll Need

• Box.

• Sellotape.

• Wrapping paper.

• Scissors.

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How To Play

To begin, divide your employees into small groups of two or three people. 

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Players will assist each other in wrapping the box, but here’s the twist: They only have one hand to use. The first team to finish wrapping their gift (if it looks great!) wins the grand prize.

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10. Candy Cane Relay Race

Imagine having an office obstacle course, especially after some of your employees have had too much eggnog. This game will pump the adrenaline and give the winners exclusive bragging rights. 

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What You’ll Need

• Candy canes for each team.

• Objects to complete your obstacle course of choice.

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How To Play

Split your employees into teams. You could also have interdepartmental teams. Put the sales team up against the marketing team or even management. 

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Add obstacles like finding the buried candy cane they need to hand to their teammate, who will proceed to the next block.

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The first team to complete the obstacle course wins the glory and title of Candy Cane Relay Champions.

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11. Christmas Bingo

A game of bingo, but different from how you know it. Christmas Bingo is a firm favorite bound to make your employees feel festive. This energetic game is suitable for both small and big teams.

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What You’ll Need

• A bingo board for each person or team.

• Markers.

• A phone for each group or person.

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How To Play

Give each team or player a bingo board. The objective is to complete a line of five spaces, whether vertically, horizontally, or diagonally. 

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The spaces can define activities they need to do or place and objects to find. They must document each task with a photo to prove they completed it. 

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Once they have completed a row of five, they need to yell, “Bingo all the way!” to win the game.

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12. Workspace Festive Makeover

Who doesn’t love a good workspace makeover? Let your employees’ jolly personality shine with this creative game. Bonus Points: Your office will look fantastic!

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What You’ll Need

• Lots of Christmas decorations.

• A judge.

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How To Play

The objective of this game is to make your workspace or department look the most festive of them all. Each employee will grab some Christmas decorations and decorate their workspace. 

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The judge will then decide who has the most jolly-looking workspace. That team or person will win the big prize.

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13. Guess The Number Of Christmas Decorations

Instead of jelly beans, tree decorations are in order for this one. Encourage some healthy banter while people attempt to determine how many items are contained in the jar. 

What You’ll Need

• A jar.

• Christmas decorations.

• A guess list.

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How To Play

Count the number of tree decorations, then place them in a big jar. As employees arrive at the party, have them guess the number of ornaments in the jar. 

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Write down their name and their guess to use later. Once everyone has submitted their bid, tally up the results. 

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Whoever has guessed the correct or closest amount is the winner. If there’s a tie, the prize can be split or put their names into a bowl and pick one randomly. 

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Afterward, have the team bond over the process of emptying the jar and decorating the office Christmas tree. 

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14. Paper Plate Game

Next on our list of games to play at employee Christmas parties is the Paper Plate Game. Even the most artistic employees will laugh at their results. You’ll probably see the weirdest-looking trees with this activity.

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What You’ll Need

• Paper plate for each person.

• Markers.

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How To Play

Give all participants a paper plate and a marker. The players must place the paper plate on their heads and draw a Christmas tree. 

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They are not allowed to look at how they are drawing the tree. When finished, everyone reveals their tree (and laughs at themselves and each other). The person with the best-looking tree wins the game.

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Remote and Virtual Games

Just because you’ve got a remote team, or a virtual office, doesn’t mean you can’t have a great Christmas office party. Try out our list of curated remote and virtual games to bring festive cheer, no matter where your employees are.

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15. Desk Photo Guessing Game

The fun part of working from home is having your workspace customized how you like it. The odds are good that your coworkers don’t know how your desk looks. 

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This game allows you to show off your fantastic workspace (whether messy or clean).

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What You’ll Need

• A photo of your workspace.

• A shared folder.

• A meeting and screen sharing program like Zoom.

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How To Play

Everyone needs to take a picture of their desk and upload it to the shared folder. Be careful of how you name your file; that will give you away. 

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As a group, you can guess who that desk belongs to (and be quite stunned in the process).

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16. Essential Christmas Trivia

Why not play online Christmas games with a host to cheer on your team? You are guaranteed to get a customized experience according to your team’s requirements. 

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This is a laidback activity with some competition to keep your Christmas office party interesting.

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What You’ll Need

• To book the event here with TagVenue.

• Laptop or a PC.

• The latest version of Chrome.

• Reliable internet connection.

• Headphones.

• Pricing is dependent on the number of participants.

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How To Play

Once your game is ready, you will get a link. Remember to send the link to everyone who is participating. Join the fun when it is your time to play. 

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You’ll be greeted by a ‘Ho-ho-host’ who will guide you through the mini-games. You will also get opportunities to take photos in the photo booth. 

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17. The Naughty List

Here is a fun and somewhat embarrassing game to play. You can get to know your coworkers more and see if they are worthy of being on the ‘nice list. It’s one of the festive Christmas games for office employees that will build team spirit like no other.

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What You’ll Need

• Zoom.

• Laptop camera / webcam.

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How To Play

Each player must have turned on their camera. The host should have prepared a list of naughty things that players may have done. 

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Read out the first item on the list. If a player is guilty of doing the deed, they must switch their camera off. The last person on the screen belongs on the ‘nice list’ and gets the fabulous prize.

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Here are some examples to get you started:

• Have you driven through a red light?

• Have you given a gift that you received?

• Have you eaten someone else’s lunch at the office?

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18. Christmas Costume Crackup

Sometimes we need a bit of a boost to get into the Christmas spirit while working remotely. Why not try dressing up to combat those festive blues? Host a Christmas-themed costume contest with a jolly prize up for grabs.

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What You’ll Need

• Any accessories to dress up for the festivities.

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How To Play

Each employee dresses up in their most creative and hilarious Christmas costume. They can use anything to make up their costume, but they must be handmade. The funniest costume wins the grand prize.

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19. Most Likely to…

This fun Christmas activity will reveal how well employees know each other. Not only does it provide endless fun but also an exciting team-building experience.

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What You’ll Need

• A list of Christmas activities that your coworkers would do.

• Zoom

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How To Play

With your list in hand, read out the first item. Players can type the name in the chat of the employee who they think matches the activity the most. 

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Take note of whose name pops up the most. The person whose name pops up the most wins the game.

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Here are some examples to get you started:

• Fall while ice-skating?

• Put a lot of thought into a gift?

• Leave Christmas shopping until the last minute?

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Final Thoughts

We hope we have given you some great ideas for Christmas games for office employees at your next year-end party. 

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No matter your work circumstance, there are always ways to celebrate festivities with your team. 

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Bringing joy to your office setting helps to boost morale and maintain relationships with your employees.

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Christmas office parties are another way for your team to feel appreciated and break the ice. With these ideas, you’ll retain your top talent for a more extended time and build a solid company culture.