Vaccines, masks and booster shots bring some sense of normalcy to this holiday season. Some people, who have seen their families for the first time in Thanksgiving for the first time in two years, may be planning a similar gathering at the end of the year celebration. But then Omickron appeared, and some may not be sure if they would still be traveling or attending crowded family gatherings. If you are such a person, at least you should know that these new complications have not cancelled gifts.

Many virtual platforms have allowed people to celebrate the digital secret Santa event for years, and you can also participate. However, finding the right online tool to organize gift exchanges for social distancing can be difficult.

Save your time and energy and check out our list of the best secrets Santa platform. Use it as a gift we give you.

Too basic: SecretSantaOrganizer.com

Like most websites and applications on this list, Secret Santa Organizer has basic features: it allows you to extract names, send anonymous messages, and send invitations with party time and URL. But unlike other platforms on this list, it allows you to choose to request delete all data after completion.

[Related: Don't have time to give gifts? Here are 14 gifts you can make yourself. ]

If you don't need the Secret Santa Tool to provide more features, this is great, but be aware that it doesn't have more features. You can't exclude when drawing a name - for example, your mother won't get your father - even though it allows you to create a wish list, the interface is very unfriendly and you can only send it to you when drawing a name Links to create a wish list. If you already manage activities on the platform, you cannot click to enter the same page. Even if you manage to create a wish list, you realize that the interface is just a list of URLs—no preview display or other fields to detail the item you selected.

This platform has nothing to do with any store or supplier, so you can paste any URL into your wishlist. You can also add interests or hobbies, or just write down the name of your favorite store without specifying a specific item.

If you include children (or people who don't want to learn another platform), you can create a wish list for them without creating a separate account. The downside is that this sets you as the person's contact, which means that when you draw your name, you need to tell them who they are giving them a gift.

First, Elfster will ask you to create an account, although it provides an alternative to login using Google, Apple, or Facebook. Unlike other platforms in this list, name extraction occurs when you create an event. But before people know who their secret Santa is, anyone on the list can invite more people to join by sending a link. Elfster is also the only platform here where you can opt out of your activities. This means that if you feel like a miser, but are your designated IT specialist, you can set everything up without having to participate in any gift giving.

Like Sneaky Santa, Elfster allows you to create a wish list for children or anyone who can’t manage their profile, but you need to create another account with a new email and password. Creating a wish list is easy: You can search for specific products from sites like Amazon, Nordstrom, Zappos, or Dick's Sporting Goods directly from Elfster and add them directly to your list. If you are unable or unwilling to participate in an actual gift exchange, you can fill in your address so that your secret Santa can deliver your gift directly to your doorstep.

No wish list, no invitation, no budget, no password, no auxiliary account: you provide a name list to the platform, click to select a name! , you're almost done. Apart from the participant list, you can only control three variables: how many gifts each person will receive, whether you are the omniscient game master or another player, and the exception to everyone.

The first two are drop-down menus and check boxes, but the latter is trickier. Secret Santa Generator has a highly simplified interface where you need to type or paste the participant's name (one name per line) into a single HTML text box. You need to add any exceptions after each name between braces, separated by commas - i.e. NAME, {exception1, exception2}. This can be a bit complicated, but if you make a mistake, the platform will tell you exactly what is wrong and where so you can fix it easily.

After you get the sorted list of names, you can add the participant's email address so that everyone will be notified. If you are a moderator and want to do it in an old-fashioned way, you can also write down your name and let people know who they get.

Wishlists are easy, and even if they run well, they are probably the least attractive aspect of this platform. First, on the vendor side, you won’t find as many options as Elfster does, but DrawNames still offers direct integration with sites like Amazon, Walmart, Etsy, Macy's, and Columbia. Additionally, this feature is not as flexible as the Sneaky Santa. You can paste the URL as text into the Hobbies/Interests field, but you won't see a preview of the content.

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