33 Epic Office Holiday Party Games to Boost Team Spirit

Do you hear jingle bells? That means it’s time for some fun.

The holidays are here, and you know what that means: time for the office holiday party. But let’s be real: Without the right office holiday party games, your event could turn into another awkward gathering where people just hover near the snack table.

So, if you’re in charge of the office party this year and want to make this year’s party the most memorable one yet, don’t worry. We’ve got your back.

We’ve got 33 hilarious, creative, and fun office holiday party games that will have your team laughing, bonding, and maybe even competing a little too hard.

From small group challenges to big team showdowns, we’ve got something for every office vibe. Plus, we’ll answer all your burning questions like:

• How do you make office holiday party games more fun?
• What are the best Christmas party games for small groups?

Let’s dive in and turn your office party into the highlight of the year!

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How Do You Make Office Holiday Party Games More Fun?

Come on, nobody wants another cringeworthy office holiday party where everybody just stands around awkwardly small-talking. The secret to great office holiday party games is really making them fun for everyone. Begin by having a variety of game types so things stay exciting. Some individuals go crazy for quick-paced holiday party games such as relay games, but others prefer brainstorming games like ornament decorating. By having diversity, you will guarantee that there’s something that caters to each office personality.

Next, don’t ever downplay the importance of small rewards for holiday games. Even a minor reward, such as a $5 coffee card or “extra long lunch break” coupon, can turn casual players into ruthless competitors. The most rewarding part? Watching usually serious coworkers go all-out over that dumb holiday-themed trophy. Just don’t giggle too hard when your boss starts trash-talking during Christmas party games!

Remember that not everyone likes the same holiday office party games. That quiet accountant might hate charades but be great at holiday trivia. Include some low-key events so introverts can join in too. And don’t forget your remote team members! Simple virtual holiday games like online scavenger hunts or Zoom trivia bring everyone into the action. After all, the best holiday team games bring people together – no matter if they’re in the office or joining in from their living room.

The secret? Keep it fun, keep it lighthearted, and perhaps have some mistletoe on hand for when things get heated (just kidding, perhaps). What’s your favorite way to liven up office holiday games?

Quick Interactive Game

Before we continue, let’s play a quick round of “Guess the Holiday Song”! Below are three emoji puzzles. Can you name these Christmas classics?

1. ❄️👦
2. 🛷🔔
3. 🎄🌲

(Answers at the bottom of this section!)

Now, let’s get to the good stuff: 33 epic office holiday party games your team will love!

(Answers: 1. Frosty the Snowman, 2. Jingle Bells, 3. O Christmas Tree)

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Top 15 Funny Office Holiday Party Games (With How-To-Play Instructions)

1. Ugly Sweater Contest

There’s nothing that gets the holiday office party games going like an ugly sweater contest. Employees wear the ugliest holiday sweaters, think light-up reindeer, pom-pom snowmen, or tacky tinsel fringe. The worse, the better.

How to Play: Design categories like “Most Creative,” “Tackiest,” or “Best Homemade.” Have all participants flaunt their work while co-workers vote via secret ballot or claps.

Interactive Twist: Add a “Surprise Judge” like your CEO or office manager to pick their favorite!

2. Holiday Charades

This holiday favorite gets dressed up with holiday-themed hints that’ll have your team laughing until they cry.

How to Play: Write down holiday films, tunes, and traditions. Teams take turns acting them out wordlessly while others attempt to guess.

Interactive Twist: Include office-related concepts like “Trying to use the jammed copier” for an added dose of humor.

3. White Elephant Gift Exchange

The annual holiday party game where crummy gifts turn into coveted prizes via cutthroat pilfering!

How to Play: Set an inexpensive budget ($10-20). Everyone brings a wrapped present. Alternate between selecting and swiping gifts until all gifts are gone.

Interactive Twist: Add themed rounds like “Only regifts allowed” or “Dollar store treasures.”

4. Snowman Building Contest

Teams transform ordinary office supplies into frosty masterpieces in this creative challenge.

How to Play: Provide toilet paper, markers, sticky notes, and other supplies. Teams have 10 minutes to build the best snowman.

Interactive Twist: Add a “Meltdown Round” where teams must quickly rebuild after you “accidentally” knock them over.

5. Christmas Karaoke Battle

Unleash your team’s inner Mariah Carey with this high-energy singing showdown.

How to Play: Create a holiday playlist. Individuals or teams perform while others judge on enthusiasm and creativity.

Interactive Twist: Add props like Santa hats and microphones for extra flair.

6. Holiday Trivia

Test your team’s holiday trivia knowledge of holiday movies, songs, and traditions in this mental challenge.

How to Play: Create questions in subject categories like “Christmas Movies” or “Holiday Foods.” Teams compete to respond most accurately.

Interactive Twist: Include office-specific questions like “When did we get the break room microwave?”

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7. Candy Cane Hook Race

A hilarious physical challenge perfect for office holiday parties.

How to Play: Participants play with nothing but candy canes to hook and pick up tiny items like marshmallows or ornaments.

Interactive Twist: Make it tougher by having participants hold one hand behind their back.

8. Gift-Wrapping Relay

Watch typically well-organized staff turn into wrapping disasters in this team challenge.

How to Play: Teams race to wrap oddly shaped items (like staplers) flawlessly using only the materials given.

Interactive Twist: Add blindfolds or “no scissors permitted” rounds as challenges.

9. Pin the Nose on Rudolph

A holiday spin on a classic that’s suitable for all ability levels.

How to Play: Blindfolded players try to pin a red nose onto a reindeer poster after they’ve been spun around.

Interactive Twist: Get other workers to give fake instructions to make it more difficult.

10. Holiday Pictionary

The classic drawing game with a holiday spin, using holiday-inspired ideas.

How to Play: Take turns drawing holiday mottos and have others make guesses. Play on a whiteboard or a large piece of paper.

Interactive Twist: Add office-incentivizing ideas like “Annual Holiday Potluck” or “Secret Santa Surprise.”

11. Two Truths and a Lie: Holiday Edition

Uncover fascinating holiday facts about fellow coworkers with this icebreaker activity.

How to Play: Two true holiday items and one falsity must be stated by each player. Have others attempt to identify which item is false.

Interactive Twist: Award points for the most convincing lies and best guessers.

12. Minute to Win It: Holiday Edition

Action-filled challenges that get everyone’s competitive juices flowing.

How to Play: Set up 60-second challenges like ornament stacking or cookie face races.

Interactive Twist: Challenge teams to come up with their own minute-long challenges.

13. Holiday Mad Libs

Create totally silly holiday stories together.

How to Play: Replace blanks in stories with random words, and then read aloud the completed story.

Interactive Twist: Write office-themed stories for an extra belly laugh.

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14. Office Holiday Scavenger Hunt

Turn your workspace into a winter wonderland adventure with this team hunt. Hide holiday items around the office or provide a list of holiday tasks to complete.

How to Play: Break into groups of 3-5. Give each group a list of items to hunt for (“a candy cane”, “someone dressed in reindeer antlers”) or tasks to complete (“get a team photo with the office tree”). Set a time limit for gameplay to 15-30 minutes.

Interactive Twist: Include a “mystery item” that teams have to find through rhyming hints!

15. Christmas Carol Lyrics Challenge

Put your team’s holiday music knowledge to the test with this sing-off game that’s perfect for getting everyone in the spirit.

How to Play: Prepare snippets of popular Christmas carols with missing lyrics. Teams compete to fill in the blanks correctly. Play short clips of songs for bonus rounds.

Interactive Twist: Have teams create their own ridiculous holiday song verses using office inside jokes.

16. Holiday Movie Emoji Pictionary

A modern twist on charades using emojis to represent classic holiday films – great for tech-savvy teams.

How to Play: Create slides or cards with emoji sequences representing movies (“🎅✈️🏙️” = Elf). Teams race to guess the movie.

Interactive Twist: Let teams create their own emoji puzzles for others to solve.

17. Festive Photo Finish

Capture humorous holiday memories with this creative photography challenge that gets everyone involved.

How to Play: Set up holiday photo stations with props. Teams must reenact certain holiday poses or scenes. Judges pick the winners.

Interactive Twist: Add ridiculous requirements like “entire team must be airborne” or “feature three office supplies in the photo.”

18. Ornament Toss

A simple but addictive game that tests hand-eye coordination with a holiday twist.

How to Play: Set up buckets or holiday wreaths at varying distances. Players toss ornaments to score points based on difficulty.

Interactive Twist: Add moving targets by having someone gently swing a wreath back and forth.

19. Holiday Would You Rather

Discover your coworkers’ surprising holiday preferences in this fun icebreaker game.

How to Play: Display holiday dilemmas (“Would you rather have 100 little presents or 1 big present?”). See how the group votes and discuss the answers.

Interactive Twist: Include office-specific scenarios like “Would you rather have an extra week of vacation or a parking spot close to the door?”

20. Gingerbread Office Building

Combine baking and architecture in this entertaining team activity, perfect for holiday office parties.

How to Play: Split the teams and give them gingerbread kits or graham crackers, icing, and candy. They must build replicas of your office or dream workspaces.

Interactive Twist: Add a “natural disaster” round where teams must rebuild their buildings within 60 seconds after mimicking earthquakes.

21. Holiday Heads Up!

The popular app game receives a holiday makeover with holiday-themed decks that will provide the laughs.

How to Play: Play using the Heads Up! app on holiday decks. Team members try to guess words based on hints provided by their teammates.

Interactive Twist: Create personalized cards with office slang and inside jokes.

22. Festive Freeze Dance

Get everyone dancing with this simple but lively holiday dance party game.

How to Play: Holiday music dance party. When the music stops, everybody has to freeze. Anyone who moves is out. The last man dancing wins.

Interactive Twist: Add silly dance requirements like “only use your arms” or “dance like a melting snowman.”

23. Holiday Memory Wall

Create a touching collaborative display that celebrates your team’s holiday memories.

How to Play: Set up a board with prompts like “Best Holiday Memory” or “Favorite Childhood Gift.” Employees add their responses throughout the party.

Interactive Twist: Include a guessing game where people try to match memories to coworkers.

24. Christmas Card Decorating

A calmer, creative activity that lets employees make something meaningful.

How to Play: Provide blank cards, stickers, markers, and other supplies. Employees create cards that can be sent to local charities.

Interactive Twist: Add funny categories like “Most Likely to Be Kept Forever” or “Best Use of Glitter.”

25. Holiday Lip Sync Battle

Channel your inner pop star in this over-the-top performance game that always brings the laughs.

How to Play: Individuals or teams perform dramatic lip syncs to holiday songs. Judges or audience applause determines winners.

Interactive Twist: Require performers to incorporate specific props like Santa hats or wrapping paper.

26. Snowball (Paper) Fight

Melt away some year-end stress with this indoor “snowball” fight.

How to Play: Roll recycled paper into balls. Divide into teams and build forts using office materials. Most shots after 5 minutes win.

Interactive Twist: Add special “power-up” snowballs that have different rules (must hop on one foot if caught). 

27. Holiday Password

A verbal guessing game that assesses how effectively your team can communicate under pressure.

How to Play: A player gives single-word clues to help their team come up with a holiday word or phrase. 60-second time limit per round.

Interactive Twist: Include office jargon on the word list for sidesplitting humor.

28. Festive Blind Drawing

No creative skill needed in this sidesplitting blind drawing game with a holiday twist.

How to Play: Players describe holiday settings as their teammates work blindfolded to draw them. Best version wins.

Interactive Twist: Use office-holiday scenarios like “the Christmas party when the copier broke down.”

29. Holiday Bingo

A classic game made festive with seasonal squares that gets everyone mingling.

How to Play: Create bingo cards with squares like “Wearing light-up jewelry” or “Can name all reindeer.” First to get a line wins.

Interactive Twist: Include squares that require interacting with specific coworkers for bonus points.

30. Christmas Story Chain

A group storytelling activity that produces hilariously unpredictable holiday tales.

How to Play: Start a holiday story with one sentence. Each participant contributes one more sentence, building on the story.

Interactive Twist: Tape-record the finished story and email it to everyone for amusement memorabilia.

31. Holiday Hat Decorating

A fun competition that will enable employees to let their creative juices flow.

How to Play: Provide plain holiday hats and decorating supplies. Most creative, most humorous, or most holiday hat wins.

Interactive Twist: Organize a runway show where designers share their hat inspirations.

32. Festive Guess Who?

A holiday spin on the classic game where your co-workers are the characters.

How to Play: Write holiday-themed traits onto sticky notes (“Loves eggnog”, “Has 5 stockings”). Stick to backs. Players guess theirs by asking yes/no questions.

Interactive Twist: Include witty office-specific traits everyone will enjoy.

33. New Year’s Resolution Roulette

Cap your holiday bash by looking into the new year with this holiday prediction game.

How to Play: Have everyone write funny/practical solutions for co-workers. Read them out loud and attempt to guess who wrote what.

Interactive Twist: Save them to look back at next year’s party to see who actually did it!

Best Office Christmas Party Games for Small Groups to Spark Big Fun

If your team is small but mighty, these games are perfect for intimate, high-energy fun:

1. Two Truths & a Lie: Holiday Edition

How to Play: Share two real holiday memories and one fake one. Can coworkers guess the lie?

2. Minute to Win It: Holiday Edition

How to Play: Quick challenges like:

• Stacking ornaments in 60 seconds
• Eating a candy cane without using your hands

3. Holiday Mad Libs

How to Play: Fill in the blanks on festive stories (results = hilarious).

Interactive Element: Try this quick holiday Mad Lib with your team right now! Fill in the blanks:

“Last Christmas, my coworker [Name] accidentally wore [Article of Clothing] inside out all day while eating [Food] at their desk. The best part? They didn’t even notice until [Event] happened!”

Conclusion

These office holiday party games prove that big fun doesn’t require a big budget! From lively competitions to creative challenges, the right mix will have your team laughing and bonding. Choose activities that fit your group’s vibe—whether that’s high-energy karaoke or low-key trivia.

The best office holiday party games create connections while keeping everyone engaged. Now grab some treats, turn up the holiday tunes, and get ready for your most memorable celebration yet!