Limit or target, and why it matters
A limit means do not go above this number. A target means aim for roughly this. A group told twenty with no further explanation will produce gifts between five and forty, and the people at both ends will feel awkward.
State it as a range if you want the clearest result. Between fifteen and twenty gives people a floor as well as a ceiling, which stops both the token gift and the one that embarrasses everyone else.
What counts towards the number
Decide whether wrapping, postage and a card count. For a remote exchange where postage can be a quarter of the budget, it matters a great deal. Usually the sensible answer is that the budget is the gift and postage is the giver's problem, but it needs saying.
Home-made gifts should count as fully valid, with no cash equivalent attached. Asking someone to value their own time ruins the one kind of gift that is always well received.
Vouchers, cash and receipts
A voucher for the exact budget amount is technically within the rules and almost always lands flat, because it tells the recipient how much was spent and that no thought went in. Many groups ban them outright. Cash, likewise.
Nobody should be asked for a receipt. If you need a receipt rule to keep people honest, the budget is wrong or the group is too large.
Running a genuinely low budget exchange
Five pounds or dollars works well if you add a theme, because a constraint makes the search easier rather than harder. Something edible, something from a charity shop, something that smells good, something useless but beautiful. A themed low budget exchange usually produces better gifts than an unthemed higher one.
Questions
- Should a Secret Santa budget be a limit or a target?
- Say which, or better, give a range. A single number with no explanation produces gifts anywhere between a quarter and double it, and people at both ends feel awkward.
- Does postage count towards the budget?
- Decide in advance. For a remote exchange where postage can be a quarter of the total, it matters. The usual answer is that the budget is the gift and postage is the sender cost.
- Are vouchers allowed?
- Many groups ban them, because a voucher for exactly the budget tells the recipient both how much was spent and that no thought went in. If you allow them, say so in advance.
- How do you make a five pound exchange work?
- Add a theme. Something edible, something second hand, something that smells good. A constraint makes a low budget easier to shop for and usually produces better gifts than a higher unthemed budget.